Having fulfilled a long-held ambition to play Test cricket, Zak Crawley says his focus has now shifted to winning a white-ball call-up for England.
Lord’s Taverners ambassador Zak Crawley is supporting the fundraising challenge of Lloyd Scott to complete the famous 3 Peaks Challenge dressed in a 130lb deep sea diving suit starting on October 4. Visit www.lordstaverners.org to make a donation.
The tall top-order batsman made his Test debut in New Zealand towards the end of 2019, and enjoyed a coming-of-age performance in the final Test of the 2020 summer, striking 267 against Pakistan, the second highest Test score by an English No.3.
The 22-year-old explained how his “goal has changed slightly” with Test success having come so quickly.
“I’d love to play white ball cricket for England,” said the Lord’s Taverners ambassador. “I’m a realist and it’s not going to be easy – there are some great players in that side and it’s one of the best teams in the world – so I need to score a lot of runs before that happens.
“But I’d love to play white ball for England in the future, so hopefully I can get my head down and push for a place in the next few years. If you asked me as a 15-year-old my ultimate ambition would have been to play Test cricket for England, but now I’ve managed to play in a couple of Test matches that goal has changed slightly.”
Crawley’s attempt to churn out white-ball runs could hardly have started better. He made 335 runs at an excellent average (41.87) and strike rate (158.01) as Kent Spitfires sealed a quarter-final spot in the T20 Blast.
“The lads looked like they had the time of their lives at the World Cup last year,” he said. “Everyone watching must’ve thought it would be such a great place to be and I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t have loved to have been on that pitch. If I can score lots of runs and make my way into that side and play in a World Cup and the Ashes, that would be the ultimate.”
