Kevin makes his England debut!
When England took on Pakistan at Lord’s this summer, there was more representation from Somerset County Cricket Club than you might have realised.
The Club’s First XI scorer, Kevin Mitchell, was given the honour of filling out the scorebook for the game.
We met up with him earlier this week to discuss his international debut.
How did this opportunity come about?
“I was contacted by the Association of Scorers in Professional Cricket by email back at the start of the year, saying they had nominated me to be the scorer for the second England v Pakistan Test match at Lord’s. Obviously, I was very honoured to have that nomination. I had to check with Somerset first that they were happy for me to do it and although it clashed with a four-day match at Hove, they were happy for me and allowed me to fulfil the appointment.”
How did it feel to have been nominated for such a prestigious game?
“It came as a bit of a surprise. Obviously, I’ve not been on the professional scoring circuit for too long compared to a number of my peers, so I wasn’t expecting it quite so soon. It was a surprise and a really big honour and something that myself and everyone in my family was very proud of.”
It’s every young player’s dream to play for England. Is every young scorer’s dream of scoring for England?
“I think once you embark on the scoring pathway and try to forge a career for yourself in that field, then I think it’s natural that you want to score at the highest level possible. So, for me, that progressed from scoring at the top level of club cricket to then wanting to become a county scorer. When you become a county scorer, you hope that one day you’ll get the chance to score some international games, and scoring an England game at Lord’s is obviously right at the top of that list.”
Did it make it even more special than it was at Lord’s?
“Very much so! When you talk to players, officials and spectators alike, everyone agrees it’s a very special place. To have that opportunity was something that was beyond my wildest dreams a few years ago. It was great to be able to do it.
“The occasion was certainly everything I hoped it would be. We got a nice presentation from the MCC and Mark Nicholas presented us a medal, which was a nice touch.”
A lot of players go overseas to play cricket in the winter. Will Kevin be heading for sunnier climes to score?
“I’d love the opportunity to go away and score somewhere. Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be much of a market for scorers in the franchise world. I’ve yet to see an auction for scorers! It’ll be back to delivering parcels for me over the winter and then back to scoring at the end of March in very cold Taunton!”
