Surrey could dominate for a while, says bowling coach Sidebottom

HUW TURBERVILL: Leaders Surrey went into this round of Championship games 32 points ahead of Nottinghamshire. They are hot favourites to land their first title since 2002

^{Ryan Sidebottom thinks Surrey could dominate county cricket for a while}

Unlikely Surrey stalwart Ryan Sidebottom is enjoying life at his new county, believing they have similar potential to Yorkshire’s County Championship-winning side of 2014 and 2015.

Leaders Surrey went into this round of Championship games 32 points ahead of Nottinghamshire. They are hot favourites to land their first title since 2002.

Sidebottom, in his first season as first-team bowling mentor, told The Cricketer: “Surrey have some great youngsters here: they have that togetherness, they know each other’s games; plus there are quality overseas players and fantastic signings like Jordan Clark and Liam Plunkett coming in. It’s just a fine team.

“It’s similar to how it was at Yorkshire. Surrey could dominate a while, it just remains to be seen how many players go to England.”

He insists all counties must see England call-ups as a good thing. “Sam Curran and Ollie Pope, at 20 years of age, they are immensely talented, and it is a huge positive for Surrey. That is what county cricket is all about, you want your players to play for your country.

^{Sidebottom enjoyed tremendous success during his time at Yorkshire}

“We also have a good battery of fast bowlers here. County cricket can be tough on the body so you do need a good squad of 20 players to win Championships.”

Sidebottom, who won 22 Test caps for England, has taken to coaching well. “It was not a case of me as a coach telling the guys, ‘You have to go to the nets, you have to bowl a few overs’… they were receptive and brilliant to work with.

“The lads have been good to me, I felt at home straight away. I work with Geoff Arnold – he is an absolute beauty to have around. He coached me at England Under-17s and 19s. He is very old school, he keeps the game simple, and that is also my view.”

Sam Curran has enjoyed having another left-arm quick as his mentor.

“As Mark Ealham did to me when I was at Notts, it’s about mentoring, talking about the game, giving him little snippets,” said Sidebottom.

COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP NEWS

“I ask, ‘Should you have done this today?’ We talk about the game, how Sam performed each and every day. It’s not rocket science. It’s just being a friend and good man-management.”

Sidebottom would have liked Curran to have been given the new ball by England, and points to how he was managed by Michael Vaughan on his Test comeback in 2007. He recorded match figures of 8 for 86 against West Indies at Headingley.

“I was at Notts then. I took a few wickets and went down to the Western Terrace and they were all cheering for me by my name. The big thing was Vaughnie opening the bowling with me. That’s why I was disappointed for Sam, they made him third change at Edgbaston. As a young man you want to open the bowling, he swings it.”

^{Sidebottom has been talking about England's performances this summer}

He has kept a close eye on England’s series against India. “Arguably the best series I had was against India in England. India had a formidable line-up in 2007. I had some really good spells. I bowled 19 overs for 20 runs at Trent Bridge, but took only one wicket. You are judged on wickets, but I was chuffed to bits with how I bowled against Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly.”

Sidebottom knows what it is like to contemplate life after playing, and he has been highlighting mental-health issues.

“I went on The Wright Stuff to talk about it. It is important – anxiety and depression can really hit people in sport: finishing at an early age, not knowing what you are going to do, with 30-40 years still to work. How I am going to look after my family, pay the mortgage and bills? It is scary. You can fall into alcohol, gambling and drugs. Winters can be hard. You need goals in life, a bucket list. Keep active.”

Read the full interview with Ryan Sidebottom – including his views on Duncan Fletcher and Peter Moores, in the September issue of The Cricketer magazine, out on Sept 14