Clark: We can feed off Ben and Mark
Durham will not just have a boost of quality in their ranks for tomorrow’s Specsavers County Championship Division Two clash against Gloucesteshire with the presence of Ben Stokes and Mark Wood, says batsman Graham Clark.
England all-rounder Stokes made his second appearance of the season for his county side against the Worcestershire Rapids last night, taking 4-16 and hitting 43 runs in their successful chase.
Now Stokes, along with England paceman Wood will attempt to get Durham back to winning ways in the County Championship in their contest against Gloucestershire.
Clark, who scored 55 in the Jets’ triumph over the Rapids, believes that he and his team-mates can feed off the quality of the duo solely from their character on the pitch. He said: “It’s massive just having two characters like that around the dressing room. “It makes a huge difference to the team, not just with their skill level as well. “To have Woody and Stokesy leading the bowling attack, and having Stokes in the batting line-up gives up a huge deal of confidence.”
Durham have little time to prepare for the switch in format, with just one day to first travel then train at Cheltenham ahead of the match
Clark has conceded that he and his team-mates face a challenge to get re-adjusted to the red ball, but feels that they can use the confidence gained by their success in the T20 format to regain their form in the Championship.
He added: “You’ve got to give it the best go you can. We’ve got one training session on Satur- day with the red ball to try to get used to hitting them again.
“I’m sure the lads will be able to adapt and bat long over the four days then it’s back to T20 mode.
“I kind of want the white ball to keep coming the way I’m playing at the minute.
“It’s something we’ve all got to do. We’ve got to focus in on our practice time and try to get back into the four-day mode over the next couple of days.
“Gloucestershire play well on the out grounds. We’re not going to underestimate them, we’re going to take the game as it comes and hopefully put forward a good performance.”