Harry Gurney has admitted that the delight of his maiden Indian Premier League contract is tinged with a little sadness at missing the early stages of the season with Nottinghamshire.
The 32-year-old was picked up by Kolkata Knight Riders in the recent auction and will now be culminating his winter jet-setting with a stint in the most lucrative and celebrated T20 tournament of them all.
Gurney, whose appearances in Australia’s Big Bash with Melbourne Renegades and the Pakistan Super League with Quetta Gladiators will precede his IPL adventure, believes he will return to the East Midlands a better bowler.
“As a cricketer that’s never going to play Test cricket, it’s pretty much the pinnacle,” he said.
“Along with the Big Bash over the last few years, the IPL is a competition I’ve admired from a distance. To get an opportunity to go and play in it is a real honour and I can’t wait.
“It’s such a shame that the IPL clashes with the English season. You train all winter looking forward to the start of the new campaign – and all of a sudden, I’m not going to be there.
“However, in previous years, when T20 has arrived in the UK, I sometimes haven’t bowled a ball since the previous summer.
“This time around, I’ll have been playing it for four or five months – so I guess in that sense I’ll have a head-start.
“I’m also hoping that I’ll be a better bowler in the 2019 Blast than I was in the 2018 tournament.
“I’ll have been around the world mixing with amazing cricketers and training with fantastic players. I intend to learn from them and to raise my own standards.”
Gurney shot to prominence for his T20 performances by taking seven wickets at finals day in 2017, with the Outlaws taking the trophy for the first time.
He topped 20 wickets again the following year and recognition has followed from different corners of the globe.
The fame, if you like, may be new found – but the recognition is probably long overdue. Gurney, after all, made his debut for Leicestershire in the format back in 2009. He has since sustained a career economy-rate of 7.77 with 134 wickets at 22.89.
With a decade of stellar performances behind him, he’ll not be changing anything now.
“I feel I’ve been a pretty consistent performer in the T20 format for a long time now, stretching back to my Leicestershire days. But, for whatever reason, I’ve never managed to crack the franchise world.
“A little bit like London buses, they have all come around at once.
“I’m really happy to have got my foot in the door. The key now for me is to not rest in my laurels and enjoy the gravy train.
“I’ll go to these competitions hungry to perform as well as I possibly can, so in future winters I’m in demand again.
“Certainly nothing will change in terms of my preparation. I’m thorough and consistent in that regard, particularly for the T20 format.
“In terms of the actual cricket, I will have to adapt slightly to different conditions. I’m sure I’ll sit down with the captain and coach of each of these teams to get a gauge of what they expect from me.
“But I won’t be straying too far from what’s served me so well in England.
“Trent Bridge is a very tough place to bowl in T20 cricket. If I take the skills I’ve developed in Nottingham to grounds around the world, I’m not guaranteed success, but I’m sure it will stand me in reasonable stead.”
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