Nottinghamshire seamer Harry Gurney put his sensational start to the season largely down to a decision to shorten his run-up during the winter break.

The 31-year-old left-arm recorded career-best figures of 6-25 in the second innings of the opening game victory at Lancashire, completed on Monday.

He believes a subtle change in approach during pre-season training camps overseas has helped him find his best form and star at Emirates Old Trafford along with Jake Ball, who finished with career-best match figures of 9-57.

“I shortened my run-up in the winter and while I don’t know if that’s the sole reason for my good start to the season, I feel it is a significant factor.”

“I shortened my run-up in the winter and while I don’t know if that’s the sole reason for my good start to the season, I feel it is a significant factor,” said Gurney.

“We were in Oman on a bowling camp and I tweaked my quad about halfway through the trip so I was bowling off half my usual run-up.

“It felt like I was bowling really well and there was no sacrifice in pace, with me bowling in really good areas and having good control of my skills.

“So we decided that I would carry on doing it in Potchefstroom in pre-season for the whole of that trip and then I would make a decision at the end of the tour.

“We did that and decided to stick it out and to get a performance like that early in the season gives me the confidence that it’s definitely the right thing to do moving forward, so it’s here to stay.”

With just six of the eight Division One teams having a fixture in the opening round of four-day matches – and one of those between Yorkshire and Essex washed out – Notts and Hampshire were the only two sides to record victory.

But former Leeds University student Gurney insists the squad are using past history to ensure there is no speck of complacency going into tomorrow’s match against Yorkshire at Headingley.

“We feel like we have got a good squad and a chance of being up there at the end of the season, but it’s only one win.”

He said: “You would definitely rather start the season with a win than a loss, but we know we have a lot of tough cricket ahead of us.

“We feel like we have got a good squad and a chance of being up there at the end of the season, but it’s only one win.

“The last time we were in Division One, we won the first game of the season and ended up getting relegated, so we are aware of that. We are taking positives and confidence from Lancashire, but we’re not getting too giddy.

 “We are staying humble and preparing for the Yorkshire match like it is a Cup Final.”

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