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If I was going ...it had to be on my terms

Emotional Roy on fight to keep England place

From Richard Gibson CRICKET CORRESPONDENT IN BLOEMFONTEIN

IT IS the morning after the night before, and Jason Roy is suffering from a lack of sleep. Five hours is his estimate, having gone to bed feeling emotional. These turbulent past few months, he says, have been riddled with self-doubt.

Roy entered the series against South Africa without a fifty in 14 international innings, and under pressure to prove he still had the game to serve England in their World Cup defence this autumn, amid increasing competition for places at the top of the order. His response at Manguang Oval on Friday, as dusk case of just being positive. The big was overtaken by a floodlit sky, was thing for me was to go out on my to bat not like a man with something own terms. How do I want to be to lose but one with everything to remembered in the game? Do I gain, hitting a 79-ball hundred. want to be remembered as a guy

‘I tried to impose myself, which I who had a great career, smacked it don’t think I’ve done over a period everywhere, then all of a sudden of time, so it was a nice feeling to go had a year or whatever of crap, and out there and just be myself: chew was a completely different player? on some gum, give it the full Do I want to be remembered as bravado, say a few things to the that, or as a guy who went out there opposition, get in the fight a bit,’ and attacked the bowlers?’ said Roy, adding that a chat with The year of 2022 provided Roy former Surrey team-mate Kevin with plenty of mental health Pietersen before the 27-run defeat had helped shape his plan.

‘We spoke about being free, not worrying about the outcome, just playing my game. The top of my game is better than what a lot of bowlers can do to me, so it was a challenges but, having turned to Surrey psychologist Andrea Furst for help, he arrived here for the SA20 this month in a good place.

‘Last year I came back from the Pakistan Super League playing some of the best cricket I’ve played in a T20, scoring hundreds, enjoying the environment,’ he said.

‘But I got back from there and all of a sudden hit some sort of… whatever it was. I pulled out of the Indian Premier League because I needed to work on a lot of things in my head. A couple of months in I started being happier as a person.

‘But cricket kept going badly — the Hundred happened, which was a disaster, and then I got dropped from the T20 World Cup squad and lost my central contract, got put on an incremental contract. So it was just all these things, it was like an avalanche. You start doubting yourself as a player… become reserved, which is just not me.

‘Being where I was at mentally, and the (young) lads tearing it apart, that wasn’t easy at first, but then you realise that that was me once upon a time, and the journey they are embarking on is incredibly special,’ said Roy after his 11th ODI ton.

‘The initial feeling was: “Oh, these guys are overtaking me”. But then it’s, “Pull your head in. You’ve had a great career, you are playing well, if it stops tomorrow, I have had a load of fun”.’

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2023-01-29T08:00:00.0000000Z

2023-01-29T08:00:00.0000000Z

https://mailonline.pressreader.com/article/283313231587317

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