Chris Jordan found his niche as a death specialist in T20 cricket for England after initially breaking through as a bowling allrounder in Tests and ODIs. Jordan's career looked to be going nowhere at the end of 2012 when he was released by Surrey, but he made his international debut less than a year later.
Following is an interview given by Jordan to Asian Voice.
How does it feel coming into second year of The Hundred as defending men’s champions?
It’s a good feeling! First and foremost to win the first competition. I guess everyone was gunning to be the first and luckily we were but that does come with added responsibility. Everyone will be looking to beat us this year and we obviously have to be prepared for that. Do our due diligence, take it a game at a time and just try build momentum as the tournament goes on. I think we jelled quite nicely as it went on last year. We’ve more or less retained a high percentage of the group as well and added a couple of very quality overseas so I think that all makes for good ingredients to hopefully get off to a good start again and build into the season.
You obviously had a great start last year but so did the women’s team as they also made it to the final but just fell at the last hurdle to Oval Invincibles. What do you think collectively you did well?
It was amazing to see the girls do so well. Actually - and I think a lot of the guys would say the same - but because they played before us and they played such an exciting brand of cricket, the manner of which they were winning games actually inspired us to go and back that up on the day. Especially when we were at the Ageas Bowl, more often than not the girls would win and then we’d be under a pressure to win as well but I thought it brought the best out of the group.
So yeah, it was great to see both teams get all the way to the final. Unfortunately the girls didn’t get over the line but I don’t see them being too far away this time around either.
What stood out to you most about last years competition?
It was definitely fast pace, everything was happening at a rate of nots. I also think, touching on what I spoke about just now, having the girls play before us I thought was great for the sport. The girls played some amazing skill and at times really inspired us to then with that intensity in the next match and I’m sure a lot of the other teams would say the same. The girls staying to watch as well and doing laps around the pitch was great. I think it was very inclusive from that point of view, it all created good harmony.
In what ways can we make the game (cricket generally) more open and accessible?
To be honest, the type of conversations we’re having within communities even just in and around the sport I think is provoking people to think in different ways. I think The Hundred set the tone last year, especially with having women’s games before the men’s games - that was quite inclusive. I think so much is being done and obviously there are improvements to be made but the mere fact that people are thinking in that way and actually making an effort to try to find little ways to improve the game and make it more inclusive and accessible, I think that in itself will bring the results.
Are there any stand out players from last year that you’re looking forward to seeing again this year?
I’m looking forward to playing with Tim David, he obviously had a couple of games with us last year but since then he’s just gone from strength to strength. He’s a real entertainer and a top guy as well so I’m looking forward to having him in our team and hopefully him winning a lot of games for us.
Obviously the IPL has recently finished, have you any thoughts on how the comp went?
As a whole it was a great competition, they did well to host it all in Mumbai and moved on to Kolkata and Ahmedabad. It was an awesome competition, it always is an awesome competition to be a part of.
Obviously from a Chennai Super Kings point of view we didn’t quite have the season that we would have liked, for whatever reason we just couldn’t quite get momentum. Even when we won a game we didn’t quite back it up. It’s obviously disappointing but you have to move on, take your learnings and try make improvements going forward.
How do you think competitions like The Hundred can grow in a similar way to the IPL and attract some of the best players form around the world?
I think first and foremost the hundred balls and it being a slightly different dynamic creates interest in itself. You’re see it attracting a whole different type of audience which is exciting for us (players). It could even go into other countries and evolve the way cricket is played, obviously it’s still bat on ball but it’s so much more fast paced and you’re seeing a few different trends starting to come out as well so it could be quite catchy from that point of view and keep going from strength to strength.
The Hundred is cricket’s newest competition that fuses blockbuster entertainment with world-class cricket, inviting everyone to fall in love with the game. Find out more about The Hundred and book your tickets at the hundred.com.
