Higgins aims to be first team regular
11 April 2018
Ryan Higgins aims to be a first team regular in all forms of cricket for Gloucestershire this season and sees his move from Middlesex as a necessary progression in his promising career.
While some might view the switch from Lord’s to one of the smaller counties as less than ambitious, the 23-year-old middle-order batsman bristles at the suggestion.
“I don’t see it as a step backwards. On the contrary, I believe it is a massive step forwards for me,” said Higgins, who joined Gloucestershire last October and has been training with the club all winter.
“I wasn’t getting the opportunities I needed at Middlesex, where I just played a lot of one-day cricket. There are no guarantees in sport, but I have come to a place where I believe I will be more valued.
“I have certainly come here to play Championship cricket, as well as in the one-day formats, and it is up to me to fight for a position and keep it.
“There is a lot of competition for places, which is as it should be, so I need to hit form quickly to earn regular selection.
“I have been working very hard on the technical side of my batting with batting coach Chris Rogers and hope to learn as much as possible from him while he is here.”
Higgins is best known to Gloucestershire fans for an amazing T20 innings at Cheltenham last summer where he helped Middlesex to a tie from a seemingly impossible position.
A blistering innings of 68 off 28 balls demonstrated his potential as a one-day power-hitter. Now he wants to prove he can play longer innings, starting against Kent at Canterbury when the 2018 Specsavers County Championship begins on Friday.
“I can hit sixes in white ball cricket,” he said. “But I am determined not to be regarded as simply a one-day player because I know I also have the ability to do well in the longer form of the game.”
Higgins, who has so far played in only five first class matches, including Gloucestershire’s pre-season game against Cardiff MCCU, also bowls off-spin and claimed five for 13 for Middlesex in a T20 game against Hampshire in 2016.
With Jack Taylor suspended from bowling this summer, the newcomer might well find himself bowling more overs than ever before.
“I could see my role with the ball as tying down one end and helping to apply pressure on the batsmen,” he said. “That can lead to wickets.
“I haven’t really thought about individual targets, other than to play regularly, but as a team we are looking to improve in all formats.
“We are not going to come out and predict we are going to lift this trophy or that, But the players have been working very hard through the winter to ensure we are competitive and win as many games as possible.”
Article written by Richard Latham for the ECB Independent Reporter Network
