Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
Zak’s plan of attack
COUNTY GAME IS CRAWLEY’S FOCUS - THE ASHES CAN WAIT
Zak Crawley insists his sole focus at the moment is on making a good start to the summer with Kent.
The 25-year-old remains one of England’s openers ahead of a home Ashes series which he’ll hope to play a big part in. But the former Tonbridge School pupil, who is set to be available for Matt Walker’s team for their first batch of County Championship clashes, isn’t looking too far ahead of their opening four-day game at home to Northamptonshire. He said: “Every game is important to me, especially playing for Kent. “There’s not a game I’ve played in my life where it’s not meant something to me. It means an awful lot to me to score runs every time I go out to bat.
“I want to score runs for my sake and Kent’s sake - not for getting my eye in for England’s sake. “If I score some runs and I’m in good nick in June, that’ll be nice as well.
“But the only thing I want to do right now is score runs on April 6.”
Crawley had a healthy taste of an Ashes series in 2021/22, being drafted in for the last three Tests with a highlight of 77 in the second innings at Sydney. That showed him exactly how big a deal the rivalry is. “I certainly felt it in the Ashes Down Under,” he said. “There was a lot more hype around it and it was just bigger and there seemed to be more media.
“I got more nervous for it, it almost felt like my debut again, so I suppose that answers it. “There is just a bigger hype around it and rightly so. It’s the biggest rivalry in Test match cricket, isn’t it?” Crawley is one of several talented batsmen at Kent but he believes the competition for places they have is a good thing for the squad.
“I think all good sides have competition for places,” he noted. “We’ve certainly got it, especially in our batting. I think the talent in our batting department is the best in the country. “We’ve made some good overseas signings and we’ve got some good young bowlers as well. “So we’ve got a really good squad and it’s only going to get better.”
Crawley finished last summer with a half-century for Kent but has struggled to find his best form in an England squad of late. “It gets talked about like it’s very easy, opening the batting, which makes me smile,” said Crawley, who also recently enjoyed his first T20 Big Bash experience in Australia with Hobart Hurricanes.
“I take it in my stride and try to score runs every time I go out to bat.”
Notably, when asked about his defensive technique and whether that needed honing before Australia visit, he was keen to set the record straight.
He said: “I’ve got a defensive technique.
“When you’re playing the best bowlers in the world, it might not look like it, but it’s not something I need to work on. It’s just something I need to keep backing, the same as my aggressive game. “I always try to improve all areas of my game - that’s a given.” The first Ashes Test is set to begin at Edgbaston in June as Crawley aims to have another year to remember for county and country.