Learning to play spin in India was great experience

While many academy cricketers will be fully focused on their own development, Durham batsman and wicketkeeper Eddie Hurst, 18, also wants to help his peers.

One of the more experienced heads in the Durham academy, having been with the county since U12s, he is keen to take on a senior role.

He made his North East Premier League debut at 14 so knows what it takes to compete at the highest club level.

But while the batsman is happy to help those following in his footsteps, his desire to be a success in the Durham 2nd XI and push for a firstteam place is undiminished.

He said: “I live in Jarrow so to play first team at Durham would mean the world. I’ve played for them since I was 12 and watched since I was ten so to play for a county I really admire would be an honour.

“I’m looking to take a senior role in the academy team as one of the older members and show the younger lads how to play the game and take a leadership role.

“I’ve been through the process the younger ones are going through now so it’s easier for me to understand any issues they’re going through.”

After working his way up through the ranks, Hurst made his 2nd XI debut against an MCC Universities XI last year and took two catches in each innings.

And following the thrill of making his first appearance, the keeper/batsman was called up again for the 2nd XI Championship final against Middlesex.

Hurst took a six catches in the match and made the vital stumping of opening batsman Paul Stirling when he was well set on 86 in the second innings.

He said: “My debut was an amazing experience, I felt like the hard work I’d put in paid off and it felt great to be seen as a good enough to be at that level.

“That was a very good game to come into, playing against Middlesex, a very high-class team who had James Harris and James Fuller playing for them.

“I thought I’d play the MCCU and then miss the final so it was a lovely surprise to play that game.”

More recently, Hurst has been spending time in India perfecting his batting technique against spin and working with first-choice wicketkeeper Stuart Poynter.

“India was an amazing experience, you see a different culture and an outside viewpoint on how to play the game,” Hurst enthused.

“We have our way of coaching and they have theirs and to learn some new ways to combat spin was an amazing thing to experience.

“I have been doing a bit of work with Stuart Poynter, too, you see the first-team quite a lot, they’re quite easy to talk to and you can pick their brains.

“You see what it takes to be a professional and how good you need to be to reach that goal.”