Out of an impressive group of young pacemen seeking a breakthrough to the England side, 22-year-old Stuart Meaker is the quickest. After making his full international debut on the recent tour to India, he’s part of the England Lions squad heading to Bangladesh in January to stake a claim for the next round of ODIs. Ed Davis caught up with him as part of an extended fast bowling feature in the latest issue of All Out Cricket. Here’s a sample plus a few extra bits you won’t find in the magazine.
Stuart, talk us through your call-up for the India ODI tour…
I knew England were playing at The Oval, but when David Saker phoned me up to ask me to come along and have a bowl I just thought he wanted another net bowler! I went there and they obviously liked what they saw because the next thing you know I was on a flight to India. I’d played for the Lions over the summer and I knew there was a way to progress there, but I didn’t expect it to come around as quickly as it did.
Who were the bowlers that really inspired you as a kid?
Allan Donald in his prime. He’s always been my number one hero: he was fast and scary and I always wanted to emulate him. Of late I’ve been watching a lot of Dale Steyn. He’s not far off that style; aggressive and fiery, which I like.
How important is aggression for a fast bowler?
Aggression is just a desire to do really well. You want to be able to say: “I’m better than you, I’m going to get you out.” It’s just a battle between you and that other person. When I used to play a lot of rugby I just loved putting in tackles, and it’s the same thing, lining up your opposition and absolutely thumping them in the same way. It’s such a good feeling being in that battle.
Do you feel like a part of the international set-up now, an England cricketer in waiting perhaps?
Yeah, you can definitely see the progression, the training camps are an opportunity to stake your claim, and if you perform well on the Lions tour there’s always a chance you could be that next person called up for duty when the full team play against Pakistan.
Are you looking forward to life in Division One with Surrey next season?
I made my debut in Division One cricket and you can see the differences. There’s still good cricket being played in Division Two, with some good sides, but you notice the difference in the quality of batsmen. It’s going to be interesting to see how we go, we’ve been out of Division One for a few years now so we’ll have to see how many cobwebs we’ve gained from being in Division Two! But I don’t think it will take us long before we get back into the swing of things. Obviously I want to perform well next year and get into the full England frame, be it making a case for a Test spot or sticking around in the one-day set-up – that would be fanstastic.
What’s it like learning your trade as a fast bowler on a flat deck at The Oval?
To be fair, I haven’t got a bad record at The Oval. I tend to do alright there. Obviously on your home ground you want to perform well and make it your patch, you want to protect it. You are going to have days when the pitch is offering you nothing and you just have to plug away and consistently hit the same spot and be boring. That does help when you take it to different grounds, as if you are able to continually hit that specific area on the decks where it does a little more then you’re quids in. I think I’m lucky that I’ve got that bit of extra pace so I can take the pitch out of the equation.
For more from Meaker and a host of speedsters past and present, check out issue 89 of All Out Cricket, in shops December 29.
