Worcestershire newcomer, Fateh Singh, is enhancing his cricketing experience by training with Sheffield Shield state side, Victoria, during his current winter spell in Australia.
Singh has made his mark for Canterbury CC since flying out early in the New Year with nine wickets in his last two matches in the Eastern Cricket Association first grade competition.
But the slow left arm spinner is also now going through his paces twice a week with Victoria who are currently second in the Sheffield Shield table and return to red ball action against Tasmania on Friday (February 7).
The Victorian squad contains some well known names in Glenn Maxwell, Peter Handscomb, Peter Siddle and Scott Boland as well as several other players with Cricket Australia contracts.
It is an invaluable route for Singh to take during his three months Down Under and during past winters he has also trained with Big Bash League side, Melbourne Stars.
Singh, who signed a three year contract at Visit Worcestershire New Road in the autumn, is following in the footsteps of Worcestershire pace bowler Adam Finch.
He trained with South Australian state side, the West End Redbacks, last winter when playing for Sturt CC in Adelaide.
Worcestershire Head Coach Alan Richardson said: “I know Fateh has had opportunities previously with Melbourne Stars, and has trained them, and he is involved in going net bowling with Victoria now their red ball stuff has started up again.
“We’ve seen it before with Adam Finch last year, and before that Dillon Pennington, and I think it’s all part of the great learning opportunity for Fateh out there.”
Richardson revealed the hunger and appetite of Singh to get as many overs as possible under his belt, and the weekend before last he bowled 34 overs on day one against Edinburgh CC on a flat pitch in searing heat.
He said: “The challenge for spinners in England is that they always don’t actually bowl that much.
“Fateh has tried to find those opportunities and there were times over the last couple of years for Nottinghamshire Seconds when he has bowled some long spells and really contributed.
“Also his previous winters in Melbourne, he has done some work like that and bowled a lot of overs a couple of weekends ago.
“For me, it is English spinners finding opportunities to do that. If you probably look through a lot of the spinners workloads in England, there are probably only a handful that get through a decent chunk nowadays.
“For Fateh, he is always trying to find opportunities and he knew when he went to Melbourne (to play for Canterbury) this time that would be the case.
“They started with some one-day games but now they’ve got into two day mode. I spoke to him just before that Edinburgh game and he said ‘if we bowl first, I reckon I’m going to get a decent shift in!’ and that proved to be the case and that will only help his cricket.
“It is really good for him and he will come back to us ready in March with some decent sets of overs under his belt and hopefully in a good spot.”
Richardson added: “In an ideal world, a spinner would probably bowl 500, 600, 700 overs in the calendar year but unfortunately you can only bowl a couple of hundred in England because of the conditions and your opportunities – and you have to find them from somewhere otherwise you are not going to get much better and learn your craft and become a master at that.
“Fateh is a huge advocate of trying to do that and he will always seek opportunities to do that and, if that means he goes to Melbourne for three months, and he gets a decent chunk, then so be it.”
