Young English left-arm spinner Tom Hartley is gearing up to face the trials of Indian pitches with a bowling technique reminiscent of spin duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel. Hartley, selected for the five-match Test series against India, starting January 25 in Hyderabad, recognises the major differences between English and Indian conditions but is confident about making a mark with his skills.
“With the conditions being completely different to English conditions, they’ve really analysed what has done well in India and what will do well. It’s nice to see people recognise that I might be the bowler to go out in India and do well. When people have confidence in you like that, it’s fantastic. I just feel all that confidence has been passed on to me and I can’t wait to go out there. My stats might not be the best in championship cricket but I bowl very similar to Axar and Jadeja. They’re taking a bit of a punt but I feel like I’ve proved myself in the training camps that I’ve been on and I deserve to get a go,” Hartley told the PA news agency.
While Hartley’s statistics in the previous year’s County Championship were modest, with 40 wickets in 20 matches at an average of 36.57, his ability to capitalise on spinner-friendly surfaces has garnered attention. The 24-year-old spinner is one of the four specialist spinners, alongside Jack Leach, Rehan Ahmed, and the uncapped Shoaib Bashir, included in England’s Test squad.