Pushing the bo

Identifying the sporting star of this hot, hazy Scottish summer isn’t difficult, particularly in light of Andy Murray’s inactivity. Even had Murray earned headlines with some stellar Wimbledon exploits it would surely be reasonable to propose an alternative contender.

Because, let’s face it, it isn’t often a Scot scores a century in a win over England. In fact, it’s never until a famous afternoon/evening at the Grange, when the clocks stopped, the rivers ran dry – or at least the beer barrels in downtown Stockbridge did – and Scotland defeated England at cricket in a one-off One Day International. It’s surely up there with a Scot winning Wimbledon when it comes to sporting miracles.

When we first spoke, earlier this summer, Calum Macleod’s bat still bore the indents of the 16 fours and three sixes included in his match-winning, headline-generating turn of 140 not out against the top-ranked ODI side. Not that there was much time to bask in the achievement. The news he had signed for the Derbyshire Falcons Twenty20 side was announced the very next day. There’s barely been any let up since. Many cricketers, especially those playing all formats, must now cope with the workaday psychological and physical grind of a baseball player.

Two nights ago it was Trent Bridge, Nottingham, where the Falcons suffered a narrow defeat by Notts Outlaws, bringing an end to a run of four successive wins.

Last night it was back at Derbyshire’s 3aaa County Ground for another Vitality Blast fixture, this time against Birmingham Bears. Then this afternoon it’s down to Bexley, where Macleod also turns out for their first IX when he can, for a Shepherd Neame Kent Cricket League fixture against Lordswood.

Oh, and did he mention he was getting married next month? The ceremony is in Canterbury and he will be wearing a kilt, naturally. Macleod will pick up fiancée Laura from the first of a series of hen weekends on the way down to Kent from Derby today. His batsman’s eye for a gap was tested when given the task of locating a free Saturday in his late summer schedule.

“When we decided to look at a day, we knew we would need something just after the season, but we knew we could not wait until after the summer, because we wanted the weather,” he explains.

Macleod has got his own stag weekend to fit in. “It’s still up in the air whethterday er it’s the week before or two weeks before. It’s in the capable hands of my two brothers. They claim to be organising it.” He has told them he doesn’t care where it is, as long as it includes a game of golf. All this and Macleod also turns 30 later this year.

The hectic pace means it’s hard for an interviewer to keep up. In that first conversation, shortly after a Falcons fixture was postponed so as to avoid a clash with an England World Cup game, Macleod was patiently explaining about his conversion to batsman from bowler. The transformation had reached, in some people’s eyes, not necessarily his own, such a thrilling pinnacle against England just under two months ago. A follow-up call yes- saw Macleod casually mention he had just recorded his best ever bowling figures. “My best legal ones at least,” he adds. It’s possible to sense the wry grin down the phone line. He’s slightly embarrassed to mention just how good these figures were: six for five as the unfortunate Beckenham were skittled out for just 18 runs, a record low score for the Kent Premier League. Their entire innings took just 49 minutes.

Macleod’s switch from bowler to batsman was born out of necessity when his bowling action was deemed to be illegal. He was accused of throwing the ball rather than bowling it. He went from leading the Scotland attack to becoming something of an outcast. Reports described him as being unavailable for selection. He had to find a way to stay in the game so turned himself into a batsman with the help of some well-known mentors.

“The first questions were raised after the Twenty20 World Cup in 2009,” he remembers. “That was quite big exposure, a world event. Questions were asked after that. Then I went to play a four-day game for Scotland in Aberdeen [against Canada] and the umpire

“I can remember the exact phone call. I was questioning myself. I went for a walk and phoned Laura and said: ‘I am done with cricket, I will do

something else’”

reported my action for being suspicious. I had to go through a whole stage of getting it tested and re-modelled. Looking back, on reflection, it is probably one of the best things that ever happened to me.”

He spent the remainder of the summer travelling with the Warwickshire first XI squad. It was at the time when Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott were out of the England side and so he was able

ON CONSIDERING QUITTING CRICKET to study how they batted. “I started to learn a little bit more about batting and what it takes to become a run scorer,” he says. “Reflecting on it, the time spent then, just pestering them with questions, that was the best thing. Watching their workrate, their work ethic, watching how they went about things. As a 19-year-old kid it’s not something