Tom Hartley accepts England have taken a “bit of a punt” in selecting him for a daunting trip to India but the slow left-armer believes he has the tools to thrive.
England’s focus was not on Hartley’s 19 wickets at a modest 44.84 apiece in last year’s LV= Insurance County Championship when they named him in their squad for the upcoming five-match Test series.
Instead, they are banking on Hartley harnessing India’s spinning surfaces in a manner comparable to Ravindra Jadeja and especially Axar Patel, who was England’s nemesis on their last Test tour in 2021.
Hartley’s only previous excursion to India was with Lancashire four years ago although an England Lions training camp in Abu Dhabi a couple of months ago has given him some confidence for the weeks ahead.
“With the conditions being completely different to English conditions, they’ve really analysed what has done well in India and what will do well,” the 24-year-old told the PA news agency.
“It’s nice to see people recognise that I might be the bowler to go out in India and do well. When people have confidence in you like that, it’s fantastic.
“I just feel all that confidence has been passed on to me and I can’t wait to go out there. My stats might not be the best in championship cricket but I bowl very similar to Axar and Jadeja.
“They’re taking a bit of a punt but I feel like I’ve proved myself in the training camps that I’ve been on and I deserve to get a go.”
Hartley suspects he will have a supplementary role if he is given the nod for a series which begins in Hyderabad on January 25, with only Jack Leach among England’s four main spinners capped more than once.
But Hartley, whose international career has comprised of just two ODI appearances against Ireland last year, has given plenty of consideration on how he intends to bowl to the likes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
“Although I haven’t played much cricket out there, I’m going with a feeling of what I need to bowl,” he said. “I see a lot of similarities between my white-ball bowling here and red-ball bowling out there.
“I feel like the pace, the revs you want to put on it and the shape of the ball will be very similar to white-ball areas – you just want to bowl that little bit fuller.
“As much as Indian’s batters are good players of spin, the conditions should be in my favour. You’ve just got to try not to over-complicate things and keep things simple and keep the stumps in play.
“India’s spinners are great but can we perform as well as them? There will be a lot of fight in us. I won’t be playing as a frontline spinner, so there won’t be tons of pressure on me.”
Hartley, who could also extract extra bounce from a 6ft 4in frame, has been taking on board advice from Graeme Swann, revealing the former England spinner’s straightforward approach is a breath of fresh air.
As for whether he has a similar outgoing demeanour as a spinner who took 255 wickets in 60 Tests and is now a consultant bowling coach, Hartley prefers to keep his cool but is not frightened to speak up.
“Once I’m in a battle or someone’s p*****g me off a bit, I’m not afraid to say what I want to say,” Hartley added, ahead of linking up with England on Thursday for a 11-day training camp in Abu Dhabi.
“That really has to be in the moment sort of feel but I’ve done a bit of both and found that just staying as relaxed as possible and having as little emotion as possible works for me.”
ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 Ticket Box Offices to open on Thursday, May 2
Fans in the Caribbean will be able to buy ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 tickets directly from box offices from Thursday 2 May and confirm their attendance at the biggest cricket carnival spectacle ever.
To celebrate 30 days to go to the start of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup and the launch of the official anthem, box offices will open their doors on Thursday until the end of the event across the six host locations in the West Indies.
Box office locations:
Opening hours:
Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago: Monday to Friday: 10:30 am - 6:00 pm and Saturdays: 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Saint Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines: Monday to Friday: 9:30 am - 5:00 pm and Saturdays: 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Box offices will be closed on Sundays. Fans across the West Indies will be able to purchase tickets for all Caribbean match fixtures. Fixtures and local start times for matches are available here.
Tickets for 39 of the World Cup’s 55 matches which are to be hosted in the West Indies will be available with prices starting from as low as US$6 for selected matches. Fans can choose from the following ticket categories: Premium, Standard Plus, Standard, Grounds and Mounds, and Party stand.
Fans will be able to pay with cash in their local currency or with their credit card at box offices. Tickets are also available online on the tournament’s official ticketing website; tickets.t20worldcup.com.
Leading up to the opening of the box offices, ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 Tournament Director Fawwaz Baksh said: “With just over 30 days to the start of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, the opening of the ticket box offices in the West Indies from 2 May will mark a pivotal moment in our journey to delivering an out of this world experience for all fans.
“The opening of box offices also underscores our commitment to ensuring accessibility and inclusivity for all West Indians, who are passionate followers of the game. Their presence in the stadiums will energise players, entertain fans and viewers, and show the world a cricketing spectacle which can only be experienced in the Caribbean.”
Venue, hospitality, and party stand packages for ICC Men’s T20 World Cup are also available for matches in the West Indies and USA and are available at tickets.t20worldcup.com.
England and Saracens number eight Vunipola fined after arrest in Mallorca
England international Billy Vunipola has confirmed he has been fined after an incident which saw him arrested in Mallorca on Sunday, with his club Saracens set to launch an internal investigation.
On Monday, widespread reports claimed Vunipola had been tasered by Spanish police in the early hours of Sunday morning, with an altercation taking place after he left a club in Palma.
Saracens later confirmed they were aware of an incident and said they would deal with it internally.
The number eight, who was born in Australia but has represented England 75 times, later released a statement of his own via his club, denying that any violence took place and confirming the police investigation was now closed.
"I can confirm I was involved in an unfortunate misunderstanding when I was leaving a club in Mallorca on Sunday, which got out of hand," that statement read.
"Contrary to media reports, there was no violence, no fight and I did not threaten anybody at any stage, with bottles or chairs or anything else.
"I was charged with resisting the law and, following an 'express trial', I have paid a fine of €240. The Spanish police investigation is now closed, and I am flying back to the UK today.
"I will obviously cooperate with the Saracens internal process and unreservedly apologise for any inconvenience to all involved."
IPL: Gaikwad inspires CSK to emphatic victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad
Ruturaj Gaikwad inspired Chennai Super Kings to a 78-run victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League.
CSK lost by six wickets to Lucknow Super Giants in their last outing, but they bounced back in emphatic fashion on Sunday.
Captain Gaikwad was in rampant form, plundering 98 runs from 54 balls, a knock that included 10 fours and three sixes, while Daryl Mitchell added a useful 52.
Tushar Deshpande subsequently picked up the mantle with the ball, taking 4-27, including dismissing Hyderabad's top three - Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma and Anmolpreet Singh.
Aiden Markram offered some resistance with a 26-ball 32, but once skipper Pat Cummins also fell to Deshpande, the game was all but up.
Jaydev Unadkat was the final one to tumble, as Hyderabad were bowled out for 134 and saw CSK move above them into third in the standings.
Data Debrief: Gaikwad on Kohli's heels
With 447 runs across nine innings, Gaikwad is now second on the list of leading run scorers in the IPL this season, behind only the great Virat Kohli (500).
Gaikward, though, has the better strike-rate at 149.49, while he is averaging 63.86.
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