Robinson has been playing cricket for Chester-le-Street since 2022. Photo: Getty Images/Stu Forster
Ollie Robinson from Durham was 12 years old. or 13 years old, and was playing in the fourth division of the Kent League, when it first became apparent that on the cricket field his seemingly unremarkable name was far from being so.
“I played for Sidcup with his father,” the wicketkeeper-batsman tells Telegraph Sport. “And someone called the club bar and complained that we were fielding the wrong player, thinking it was me.”
The “he” in this case is, of course, the other Ollie Robinson, now from Sussex and England. The couple have a bizarre amount of basic information: name, birthday (December 1, five years apart), county of origin (Kent; Sussex Robinson was born in Margate and Durham Robinson in Sidcup) and occupation. which, unsurprisingly, became the source of some confusion.
“This was the first time, and later it became clear that this could become a common occurrence,” Robinson continues. “There’s been a lot going on on social media, people are confusing us – for better and for worse. I probably gained a few followers from this, but I was also tagged in content intended for him, which might be interesting…”
The pair played together for the England Lions in Australia four years ago. , when there was at least one case of “caught O.G. Robinson, knocked out O.E. Robinson.» To avoid any confusion on this tour, Dan Lawrence has taken to referring to Robinson Jr. as «the little guy».
Jr Robinson's performances for Durham and the Lions this winter mean it doesn't go beyond that. what these two have. will soon be found again in the same indicator system at the test level.
Robinson offers a combination of excellent glove work and batting ability. Photo: Getty Images/Stu Forster
The wicket-keeping debate will rage ahead for England's next Test assignment against the West Indies in the summer as the Baseballers enter their second phase under Ben Stokes.
Incumbent Ben Foakes and last summer's pick Jonny Bairstow remain the leading contenders, but Robinson's strong start in Durham's promotion team (under Stokes' watch) will propel him straight to the front of the chasing pack with James Ryu, Jamie Smith and Phil Salt. He is perhaps the most versatile package of all of them, as his superior ball control is equaled by his rounded shot, which appears even more extensive in terms of his No. 5 position in keeping with the Baseball style approach espoused at Durham. . He averages 35 in first-class cricket and 58 in Durham.
“That’s the goal [of being an all-rounder],” he says. “You don’t want one suit to take over. When it comes to working out, you can get stuck. I've done this before when you neglect one skill. I want to invest as much as possible into both.”
Robinson remained with the Lions in India this year while Ryu moved into the middle order. Robinson recorded three ducks in the first innings but still stayed in the scoring thanks to some good driving and a couple of 80s in the second innings. The tour, his first visit to India, provided insight into what it takes to reach the highest level both on and off the field.
“It was an interesting tour, difficult at times,” he says. “We were in Ahmedabad, staying in the same hotel for a month, not going out too often, although Keaton Jennings loves adventure, so he made sure we embraced the culture. We played in a new stadium with a capacity of 130,000 or so and hosted the World Cup final a few weeks ago. There was no one there — just players, coaches, ground staff and a few monkeys running around the stands. It's just a huge playground for them.
“I was happy with the way I carried myself and it was nice to be able to work on it. My first serve didn't go as planned, but I dug deep and worked hard to find a way to score. When I didn't get anything, I was fine.
“It was a big step up from the county game. At this level we were faced with a serious challenge from the first ball. Akash Deep played well against us and then showed how good he is when he played against the Test boys [taking England's top three players to Ranchi]. The biggest thing I took away from the trip was that I needed to be in it from the very first ball. You can't just ease your way into submission. This summer I'll be paying a little more attention to how I start my innings, either in the nets to build good habits or in the middle of this summer.»
«A match made in heaven»
Durham was in the second division since forced relegation for financial reasons in 2016. Robinson arrived from Kent before last summer (on a short loan in 2022) and immediately fit into a team that has been unhappy with simply surviving this summer.< /p>
«At Kent I always felt I was the first to go [out of the XI] in white-ball cricket and when I started to be absent from the championship team I thought, 'I'm 23, I've played too much cricket to be second , now I want to be number 1 and have stability,” he explains. “[Durham coach] Ryan Campbell and [director of cricket] Marcus North suggested it to me.
“This support has helped me become a better person. I always felt I had ability and by the time I left Kent I had played many, maybe 50 first-class games. Nothing has changed except my support, which means that the fear of failure has gone away a little, which is nice. This means I can play my natural game, which is to attack spin and put pressure on the bowlers. This affects how we want to play as a team because sometimes our pitches can be flat so we need to give the bowlers the best chance of getting 20 wickets by bowling at a good rate.
“Cumbo and Northey are very passionate about the idea that county cricket is the link to England, so they want us to play like England so that the transition will naturally become smoother. Ben [Stokes], who plays for Durham, helps that. He is good friends with many guys, he grew up with everyone. But that's exactly how Cumbo played for Western Australia: batting aggressively and hating draws. It's something of a match made in heaven.
“When Cumbo first came into the team, his first message was that he wanted to become the best team in England. First we had to get promoted, which we did. We will approach the First Division as well as the Second Division and if we play cricket like we did last year we will be able to win games. Do what we know we can do, we can be a match for any team.
“We should be better than last year because by adding players like Scott Boland and Colin Ackermann, we have a really strong roster of players. I think there will be some really tough selection decisions because it's impossible to squeeze everyone into the squad.
“Durham have had a tough time over the last 10 years or so, both for fans and players. It's hard to accept, so we do it for them too. We've worked really hard as a team and it would be a shame if we didn't keep going.”
If Durham can hit the ground running, Robinson will likely be at the center of it all as he continues to find success. name for yourself.
Свежие комментарии