He has long been established as one of the premier death bowlers operating on the English circuit, and his glittering white-ball winter has only burnished his reputation overseas.

But Harry Gurney is itching to return to action with the Notts Outlaws, as the left-armer continues his maiden campaign in the Indian Premier League fresh from victory in the Big Bash and Pakistan Super League.

“I am following every game closely from over here and can’t wait to catch up with the boys when I get back,” Gurney told BBC Sport.

“The start to the English season has been slightly different to recent years, with only two championship matches being played.

“Clearly, things didn’t go exactly as we would have liked but it was great to see Joe Clarke get up and running for Notts.

“The one-day competition has probably arrived at a good time and we appear to have got out of the blocks brilliantly.”

Gurney’s performances in India have certainly caught the eye, with him being named man of the match on his tournament debut for Kolkata Knight Riders with figures of 2/25.

And he has been able to test his skills against some of the finest cricketers in the world, including securing the prized scalp of India captain Virat Kohli.

“Kohli is obviously a nice one to get but unfortunately he’d got hold of me a little bit beforehand,” he confessed.

“When we played against Kohli and [MS] Dhoni at home they felt like away games, such is the love the Indian public have for them both.”

Gurney may have tasted cricketing success in across the globe, but playing on the subcontinent is a new experience.

And the IPL has opened his eyes to the ferocity of the Indian cricketing obsession.

“The main thing that stands out about the IPL is the scale of it, how well it is followed and how big a deal it is over here," he said.

“As players we feel the passion of the fans, not just on matchdays but all the other times as well as we go about our business.

“You turn on the TV and every single sports channel has got either highlights or an interview or a live game going on. It’s such a big deal and such an honour to be a part of it.”

Gurney called time on his red-ball career with an enviable record behind him, having taken 275 wickets at 28.81 over seven seasons of four-day cricket for Nottinghamshire.

But he admits that in recent years he has felt his focus drift towards the shorter forms of the game.

“I think if you’d asked me 10 years ago I’d have had dreams of playing Test cricket, but over the years it’s become increasingly clear that T20 is my strongest format," he said.

“As a bowler red ball cricket is incredibly physically demanding, so that would be a factor in my decision.

“I think I also got to a stage a number of years ago where I realised I was never going to be good enough to play Test cricket, so I think once that carrot has gone your motivation gets affected a little bit.

“I’m now in a fortunate position where I can afford to focus on T20 cricket and that’s what I intend to do for the rest of my career.”

Gurney’s potential involvement in the Royal London One-Day Cup for Notts is dependent on the fortunes of the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL.

KKR will need to go on the sort of unbeaten run enjoyed by Notts as part of their white-ball double of 2017 if they are to extend their bid for glory into the play-offs.

But the left-armer is unfazed by the prospect of performing under this pressure.

“We probably need to win all of our four remaining matches, so potentially need to win seven in a row to win the competition," he said.

“It’s been done before and it will happen again. I know from experience that these situations can sometimes bring out the best in a team.”

Gurney’s next extended stint in Green and Gold is set to be in this summer’s T20 Vitality blast, as he aims to play a part in a fifth limited-overs title campaign in England.

And although it has been five years since he last pulled on the three lions of England, he still harbours dreams of transferring this trophy-winning prowess to the international stage.

“There’s a T20 World Cup at the end of next year and I’d be lying if I said it hadn’t crossed my mind," he said.

“If I perform well in competitions like the IPL, the Big Bash and the other competitions I play in, then it can’t hurt.”

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