Matthew Fisher has only been playing Championship cricket for a fortnight but in Yorkshire they are more confident than ever that he has the attributes to become an England fast bowler.
“Matt Fisher: I think he is going to be an unbelievable bowler,” said Tim Bresnan after his introduction to Championship cricket against Nottinghamshire and Warwickshire, voicing what Yorkshire – and England – have privately been hoping since Fisher first came on the scene.
Bresnan, not the sort for overstatement, in fact quite the contrary, told the Telegraph & Argus: “He is 17 years old, and he is swinging it both ways at 85mph and has a sharp bouncer as well. He looks a really good prospect. ”
Yorkshire have six players in the Caribbean but the confidence that their England production line will continue is evident. Bresnan himself has returned to England’s ODI squad against Ireland in Dublin and Alex Lees is regarded by many as a future England opening batsman.
But it is Fisher, already a central part of England’s U19 side, who became Yorkshire’s sixth youngest Championship debutant this season when, at 17 years and 161 days old, he faced Nottinghamshire in a draw at Trent Bridge, who is carrying such expectations at a young age.
He is used to that. In June 2013, aged 15 years and 212 days, he became the youngest post-war county cricketer when he played in a 40-over match against Leicestershire. He was still 15 when he was first included in an England Under-19 squad for a triangular series against Bangladesh and Pakistan that summer.
His chances of further 1st XI cricket must give way for the moment to more serious matters as he takes his A levels But first of all, the 17-year-old fast bowler must concentrate on another type of examination – his A-Levels at Easingwold School.
Bresnan, who at 30 still has miles in the tank, has been an England stalwart until injury disrupted his career and he knows the challenge of meeting expectations at a young age, having made his debut at 16 in a one-day match against Kent.
“I think I see a lot of where I was, but Matt’s probably got a yard on where I was at that age,” he said. “He’s probably a lot quicker and probably has a lot more skill than I did. He’s got plenty of enthusiasm. I think he needs to work on his third spell, but he’ll get that with experience as he gets a lot older.”
