Jo Harman speaks to England and Kent batsman Joe Denly about how he has adapted to the various roles he has been required to fill for his country.
In the 14 months since Joe Denly made an unexpected return to international cricket, it’s often seemed England haven’t been exactly sure what he is or what to do with him.
Initially recalled as much for his leg-spin as his batting, Denly took four wickets in his first England appearance for eight years. A surprise call-up for England’s provisional World Cup squad followed, as back-up spinner to Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali, but a few weeks later, having been used sparingly – and that’s generous – by Eoin Morgan in the warm-up series against Pakistan, he was dropped from the final squad in favour of Liam Dawson, a decision which Denly conceded at the time was probably the right one.
His role with the bat has also caused confusion. In white-ball cricket the few chances he’s had have been in an unfamiliar middle-order position, and in the 10 Tests he’s played he’s yet to bat in one spot for more than three matches in a row.
A less experienced player might have found it all a bit discombobulating. But Denly, who at the age of 32 became the oldest specialist batsman to make his Test debut for England since Alan Wells in 1995 when he received his cap in Antigua in January, has remained unruffled.
“When I watch him now, he learns quite quickly. That’s what you want from a senior player in Test cricket, which he is. He’s not been picked to have 10 games to learn how to play. He very quickly corrects the things that he does wrong. He’s smart and experienced enough to have a game for all kinds of different situations, which is something that not everyone has got in county cricket. He can score quick, he can score slow, he can hang in there, he can see off the new ball, he can hit the spinner, he can block the spinner. He can adapt to the situation.”
Denly will no doubt have his hands full in South Africa against his former Kent teammate Kagiso Rabada and Vernon Philander – who average 19.12 and 18.65 respectively on home soil – but it’s just the latest challenge for a 33-year-old who’s seen pretty much everything the game has to offer, and learnt to take the rough with the smooth.
To read an in-depth interview with Joe Denly, including how he overcame the batting yips and how it feels to drop ‘the easiest catch in Test history’, buy the January issue of Wisden Cricket Monthly
