Five years on from the death of Tom Maynard:
The road to recovery has been long and painful for Englandís biggest county but Surrey are finally poised to honour the memory of Tom Maynard by regaining their place at the very top of domestic cricket.
The tragic death five years ago of a young cricketer seemingly destined for a highly successful career will never be forgotten by all at a county embedded in the twin traditions of winning trophies and producing England players.
But now, after five years of mainly hurt, Surrey finally appear ready to fulfil the rich potential provided by the combination of top home grown products and the ability to recruit well and expensively because of their financial muscle.
Surrey are top of the formative championship table after two matches and begin their Royal London one-day Cup campaign against Somerset on Friday with captain Gareth Batty confident that they are back on the right path.
It took more time than expected and that is a reflection of the pivotal role Tom was playing in the way we were developing as a team and his position within it,í said Batty.
So in some ways it ís nice that it has taken us so long to challenge again because it reflects so well on Tomís role within the group.
Itís taken this long for us to get to a pretty good place where the core of the club is Surrey and want the best for Surrey. And because of our financial strength we do have the ability to recruit people like Mark Stoneman and Scott Borthwick from Durham who would be wonderful signings for any team in the country.
Iím not going to sit here and deny itís great we can sign fine, ready-made players but the point is theyíre coming into what is a Surrey environment where things have been done in a certain way and hopefully will continue to be done that way for generations.
I see that as my greatest responsibility. Even though we have the financial power to bring people in they have to have that value of the brown cap and everything that goes with it. The people who come in understand this isnít any old club, this is Surrey and this is how we want to do things.í
At the centre of that is Surreyís impressive 39-year-old captain who had to rally Surrey when Maynardís close friend Rory Hamilton-Brown gave up the leadership in the terrible aftermath of the accident that killed him.
Batty was briefly captain when Hamilton-Brown resigned and then took over when the short-lived reign of Graeme Smith was ended by serious injury. Now a man who considers himself a Surrey product despite starting out with his native Yorkshire epitomises the values he wants to see in his younger charges.
Sometimes we will upset people with how we want to do things and other times we wonít get the credit we deserve which is absolutely fine because we understand it comes with the territory of being a Surrey player,í Batty told Sportsmail. Itís a wonderful club and there will always be people who want to give it a nudge. Itís our job to make sure we do things properly.
We wonít walk around with a swagger for the sake of it. Itís about being confident, yes, but holding yourself in the right way and I certainly feel over the last 18 months or so the perception about us has changed around the traps.
‘People know now that we want to do things properly and weíre trying to be good human beings as well as win games of cricket.í
Surrey certainly seem well equipped to do that with a squad as strong as any county with the possible exception of Yorkshire and Batty purrs at the quality of the players, both young and experienced, at his disposal.
He waxes lyrical about the start Mark Footitt, one of those recruits from elsewhere, has made to the season and the huge influence of Kumar Sangakkara but it is potential of two of those Surrey products that particularly excites him.
The Curran brothers are fantastic talents but different,í said Batty. Tom is a more workmanlike player whereas Sam is more free-flowing, a bit more natural. They are reminiscent of the Hollioake brothers and how they went about things. They complement each other and are great lads. Itís our job to make sure we donít put too much on them too early and allow them to flourish into the cricketers they want to be. They have huge careers ahead.í
While Tom and Sam Curran are undoubtedly part of Englandís future, Batty is now, almost certainly, part of Englandís past after his fairytale return to Test cricket after an 11-year absence for the winter tours of Bangladesh and India. Sadly, that fairytale did not have the happiest of endings as the off-spinner played just two Tests with modest results but his call-up was a triumph for Battyís enduring skills, determination and sheer passion for the game.
The first game back in Bangladesh was the most nervous Iíve ever been on a cricket field,í said Batty. I was petrified and I canít explain why other than when youíre a bit older you understand the repercussions more when it goes wrong. You donít want to let anybody down.
But I felt I got into more of a groove in the second innings and if I hadnít been taken off when I was there could have been a quicker finish to the game.
Yes we lost in India and that was a bitter pill to swallow but I was engrossed in that tour. The people around the group were fantastic, particularly Alastair Cook, who I think gets some unjust stick. For a guy to leave his new-born baby 24 hours after she was born and get on a plane to do what he did should have been put up in lights. I donít think many people would do that.
I took some really positive things out of watching the way Cooky went about things with Trevor Bayliss and I hope I can help make Surrey better for the experience. Iím a cricket badger and to sit in that dressing room with the likes of Jimmy Anderson was something else. Yes heís a friend but he ís our best ever bowler and I was sat there in the same team. It wasnít like youíre going out for dinner as mates. It ís an amazing thing and I wouldnít change it for anything.í
And Batty has no doubts England have a bright future. The last time I was involved I felt that team was getting to its peak but this one now has so much ahead of them. In two or three years time I want to be sat in the stands watching them because as a group itís frightening what they could achieve.í
Batty ís future approaching his 40th birthday, surely, is solely with Surrey now where he retains the competitive edge that has sometimes got him into trouble but which will always define his approach to the game.
I had about four or five years when I said to myself if you get a wicket donít do anythingí but I couldnít. It just comes out. I was embarrassed about it for a while but Iíve realised now that I canít stop so I just get on with it. Iím a bad loser but I like to think as time has gone on I now lose in the correct manner.
The day the competitive edge goes it wonít need Alec Stewart to say thereís your P45í because I will know itís time to go. Itís what itís all about. The more you win the more youíre doing your job and that passion is part of me. The older Iíve got the less I try to fight it. I donít want it to boil over but if people donít like it then Iím sorry I canít change, itís me. Itís just the way I am.
Surrey looked poised for great things before the Tom Maynard tragedy changed everything but now, after being beaten finalists in the last two Royal London finals, the time has come for them to start winning again. Their adopted Yorkshireman wants nothing more.
The accent and birthplace doesnít suggest Iím a product of Surrey but from the day I walked into the gates at the Oval Iíve felt like one. I guess itís a love affair. I fell in love with the club and thatís still the case.
I will stop at some point and I will be very grateful for the career Iíve had but I wonít stop loving the club, thatís for sure.í ñ Daily Mail
DIVISION ONE TABLE
1. Surrey (32 points)
2. Hampshire (29)
3. Yorkshire (28)
4. Essex (27)
5. Lancashire (22)
6. Middlesex (10)
7. Somerset (4)
8. Warwickshire (3)
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