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Jason delighted by what he’s seen so far
Somerset Head Coach, Jason Kerr couldn’t be more pleased with how the Club’s pre-season training camp in Abu Dhabi is going.
In addition to the training element, the last three days has seen Somerset take to the field in three games in the Abu Dhabi Counties Super Cup T20 competition. An opening defeat to Yorkshire on Friday was followed by a win over Nottinghamshire on Saturday. Yesterday saw a revenge victory over Yorkshire as Somerset finished third in the tournament.
We spoke with Jason this morning to get his reaction to the last three days and also the trip as a whole.
“I’m really pleased with how everything has gone so far,” he said. “Not just during the games but throughout the whole time we’ve been over here. From a training point of view the lads have been excellent and in the three games we’ve created some opportunities in which we’ve seen different people in different roles. Some of the individual performances in the games were outstanding and I don’t think that the first week out here could have gone any better.”
How did he feel his side performed over the last three days?
“Obviously, you want to win every game of cricket that you play, but that’s not really what this trip is about. It’s not really about the results at this stage, this is all part of the process of getting us ready for the start of the season and getting that match sharpness. I think we were a bit rusty in that first game against Yorkshire. People were finding their feet and we asked people to fulfill different roles, but we saw some good performances from individuals out in the middle.
“Lammers and Bants were outstanding with the bat against Notts and it’s important that they got some time out there and we posted a really competitive score. With Lewis being rested and Craig not being ready yet, we had a young attack and we saw some glimpses of what they can do and the likes of Alfie Ogborne showed a lot of character. That’s’ what pre-season is about. It’s about the guys demonstrating the skills that they’ve been working on over the winter.
“Our second match against Yorkshire was a really good workout. We did some excellent things with the ball and Jake Ball showed his quality and what he’s going to bring to the Club. Archie Vaughan came in and did really well at the top of the order, and the partnership between George Thomas and Tom Abell switched momentum back into our favour. We know that Abes is a world class player, and it came as no surprise to us how he went about his business yesterday. Ben Green and Abes were calmness personified to see us over the line.
“The games being so close just shows that match sharpness is there and that people are performing under pressure.”
What does the rest of the trip have in store for the players?
“We need to make sure that we maximise the opportunity of being on grass. We need to make sure that the bowlers have overs in their legs and that the batters have time in the middle.
“Focus now shifts to red-ball cricket and we’ll be working on that ahead of a two-day game against Essex which begins on Friday. Before you know it, we’ll be playing Exeter University and the season will be starting. The remainder of the trip is about ensuring that everyone gets the opportunity to hone their skills so that we’re all fit and firing when we return to the UK.”
