Worcestershire batter Ed Pollock says he has benefitted from working on the psychological side of his game ahead of another winter of grade cricket in Australia.
Pollock has flown out to again play New South Wales Premier Cricket first grade for St. George after a successful 2023-2024 campaign based in Sydney.
He experienced varied fortunes for Worcestershire last summer with the highlight his performances in the Metro Bank One Day Cup, including a memorable 180 against Middlesex.
It was the joint second highest score by a Worcestershire player in List A cricket after Callum Ferguson’s 192 from 143 balls against Leicestershire in 2018.
Pollock scored 387 One Day Cup runs at an average of 43 and he and fellow top order batters Gareth Roderick and Jake Libby played key roles in the Rapids reaching the quarter-finals.
Now the left hander is hoping another productive spell Down Under will put him in a “good place” for when he reports back to Visit Worcestershire New Road for the 2025 campaign.
Pollock, 29, said: “I’ve done a lot of work on the psychological side of things over the last 18 months.
“People talk about resilience, and stuff like that, but it’s making sure I’m in the right frame of mind to try and deliver for the team.
“As you do get older, you appreciate that you can look technically, can look tactically at things.
“But if you can put yourself in a good frame of mind then, that’s the biggest thing. That’s what I’ve learnt anyway.
“That were challenges this season with different roles, like in the T20, and obviously the sadness of Josh (Baker) passing away.
“I was pleased with how I’ve got through last season really. In the past, I might have gone searching and trying to change things. I’m a lot more at peace with the game and at peace with my game.”
The record books were rewritten as Pollock and Roderick put on 259 against Middlesex, Worcestershire’s highest ever List A stand for the first wicket.
Pollock said: “It is the obvious highlight. It is one of those when, in the moment, you probably don’t realise how good it is, the way myself and Gareth were batting.
“It was good fun and we complimented each other well that day. If I had checked the record books I might have knocked it around to get that 193 in those last few overs!
“It was a culmination of work and things falling into place that day.
“I’d spoken to Libbs about batting and he said you are going to have your bad days but you’ve got to turn your good days into very good days.
“I’ve had bad days batting over the last 18 months and when I got to 30, 40, 50 it was a case of ‘right, let’s make the most of this today.’ That was very pleasing.
“It was nice to get that score and a nice reminder of what I can do up the top of the order.”
“Everyone has those times when they are not scoring runs, but it’s about turning those spells when I am scoring runs into big performances.
“The 50 over competition I was pleased with, but you always want more, and I should have turned the start against Warwickshire in the quarter-final into a match-winning performance.”
Pollock has outlined his goals for the four-and-a-half-month spell Down Under this winter.
He said: “It is a continuation of the work really I’ve done since the back end of last season, just be very comfortable going out to play my game.
“How I’ve approached trying to be more consistent is to be more consistent in my approach.
“There has been a work within stuff that I know works for me. It’s just being more consistent in what works for me and I think over time you find that out.
“The roles I play, and opening the batting, tend to be the more volatile positions and the way I tend to play tends to be a bit more up and down.
“I’m going to enjoy life in Australia, go out and play how I play, and hopefully I’ll come back having had a good four or five months, scored some runs and be in a good place to start the season.”
Pollock enjoyed his spell captaining the Seconds and passing on his experience and knowledge to youngsters like Rehaan Edavalath and Henry Cullen.
But he was also frustrated like his team-mates by the poor weather which severely restricted opportunities at that level, and the chance to impress and stake a claim for first team selection.
He said: “I did a lot of captaining the Seconds at Warwickshire but now I’m a bit older and able to try and help guys through.
“I’ve enjoyed batting with Rehaan, and we talk a lot in the middle, and also being able to work with and have a lot of chats with Henry Cullen this year.
“I know him from Barnt Green and played a lot with him in the Seconds this year. I took a lot of enjoyment when he went on and got his double hundred at the end of the season.
“It can take you out of your own game and in amongst the youngsters to help them.
“Unfortunately, with the second team last season, with so much poor weather we missed a lot of our games.
“There were also at least three games where the pitches had got wet but we tried to get a game on and had a go.”
