Joe Leach has pinpointed the “favourite day” of an illustrious career with Worcestershire spanning more than a decade before hanging up his spikes.
The all-rounder regards September 28, 2017 with great fondness as he capped his first year as captain with a 137 run home win over Durham to seal the Division Two title and promotion.
Leach also enjoyed his most prolific season with the ball as he finished with 69 first class wickets to add to the 59 and 65 in the previous two seasons.
It had not been plain sailing with Worcestershire starting the season in fine style but then hitting a mid-summer slump.
But the then Director Of Cricket Steve Rhodes pulled off a masterstroke in signing Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin for the finale of the season.
He picked up 20 wickets in four games and scored 214 runs at an average of 42.80 as Worcestershire came up on the rails to top the table.
Leach said: “We’ve had some unbelievable days, some great success, and obviously a few lows in there as well.
“But if I had to pick my favourite day in my career then that last day against Durham, when we won Division Two, would be it.
“It was just a culmination of things, my first year as captain, the emotional energy and effort you put into that.
“I’d obviously had a really good year personally as well and not only to get promoted but to win Division Two off the back of a few wins and a couple of amazing performances, Nottinghamshire away and steamrolling Durham here was amazing.
“Just a culmination of everything led to that day and to lift the trophy here at New Road in front of the members was special.
“We had a really good start to the season and then a really poor middle block and were awful in the Blast that year.
“We signed Ashwin and he was a big contribution. I remember we had a week off in August and there was a massive reset as a group and it did us wonders.”
Leach also played a major role three years earlier in what became known as “Shantry’s match” as promotion was again secured at New Road with a win against all odds against Surrey who had been on top for most of the game.
Shantry and scored a century and took 10 wickets but Leach weighed in with two crucial half centuries.
He said: “That is certainly right up there as one of my top days. Jack rightly so takes all the plaudits, but it was a special day as well.
“It was my first promotion. We were up against it from lunch-time on day one, something like 100-6.
“To get some runs in both innings when we were up against it was really pleasing and then it was a great day when we turned things around and got over the line.”
Leach admits being part of the Worcestershire set-up for many, many years has been special.
He said: “I think the over-riding memory is going to be the place really. It grabs all of us doesn’t it, the players, spectators, people who work here.
“We speak a lot about special it is and it certainly grabbed me. That will be the abiding memory, the way this place makes you feel.
“Everything about the place makes it an extremely special place to work.
“I know it is the right thing to do in retiring from a cricket point of view. The body is not right and I wanted to leave knowing I could still perform. I didn’t want to limp through the ticker tape at the end.
“But I’m going to miss the lads, I’ll miss the culture, I’ll miss the whole place, there is absolutely no doubt about that. But you have to move on and that’s where we are.”
Leach added: “It is hard to have regrets because I achieved and played far more than I ever thought I would.
“I’ve been captain, been lucky enough to be a senior player, I did it the hard way at the start of my career, I’ve probably experienced the whole gambit of it.
“Things happen for a reason. Obviously, the batting has my career has gone on, I probably haven’t scored as many runs as I would probably like, that is the only thing I would say.
“I can offset that with the time and energy I had to invest in being captain and a leader and an opening bowler and the number of overs I’ve had to bowl. Something had to give.
“That would be the only one slight thing given my potential in my mid 20s and felt like I had cracked just before my stress fracture. I was batting at number eight and after that I never really regained my form.
“Although I played some nice innings, I’ve certainly become a bowler who bats rather than an all-rounder.”
Regarding the future, Leach said: “I haven’t made my mind what I’m going to do. I’m just going to take a little time. I don’t know how long it will be.
“I need time to figure what life looks like after cricket because it is all I’ve ever wanted to be and ever known. It is trying to figure out where my skills are and where they fit in the world.”
