Darren Lehmann

It's a hell of a question.

Do you go the Joe Root, Tendulkar, Kyle Hooper, where they didn't take their bowling that seriously, but actually at times had to bowl quite a lot, or do you just admit that there's a reason they all have such high averages? Do you look at your sort of Darren Lehmann, I wanna say Virender Sehwag.

Is he someone who has, um...

Uh, no, I didn't want that.

I thought his bowling was better.

Um, you are looking for someone, Ian, who has a great wicket taking ball, who then could've come up with something else that would've at least kept the pressure on enough.

I don't think it's Darren Lehmann, even though he has a fantastic average.

The, the two that come to mind are both left arm wrist.

You've preempted my ne- my next question on the, my final question on the championship.

I wanted to ask you about Adam Holyoake and Darren Lehmann.

They're probably, you know...

Well, they're definitely two of the most charismatic coaches at a, in, in all 18 counties, you know, with respect to all the others.

I mean, there are plenty.

There are other very charismatic characters, but they're two teams without a great deal of superstars and big names, and I just wanted to ask you, it can't be a coincidence.

You know, Darren Lehmann and Adam Holyoake have taken Kent and Northamptonshire to the point of, of promotion with, uh, uh, like a team without, you know, dazzling lights and big names.

And people will ask, I wonder, I'm asking you, how does he have produced that, those results? I mean, what, what is the effect that he has that makes players play above themselves?

I think he probably would've liked a few more runs in England, but he's actually done really well.

I've spoken to Darren Lehmann a couple of times, who's coaching him, and he's made a couple of technical tweaks and, um, the way he's, you know, approaches the game and score, scoring-

Yeah

... you know, strike rates.

... and no one said too much.

And then after about 20 minutes, Darren Lehmann, who was a properly funny bastard-

Yes

... got two chairs and put 'em in the middle-

Um, and that's what it's, that's what it's about.

And that, you know, Darren Lehmann had said at the start of the season, it's all about competition for places.

Um, and, you know, those that are there are mindful of the fact that they've, you know, they've got to sort of perform.

Uh-

You have never faced anything like this before in your life." And the whole story of, like, the way they did it.

And Darren Lehmann used him like a nu- like a, like a sniper.

Like one over on, off, one over on.

And I just, no one remembers that game, and it's just, it is...

Kent and Northants have done really well in, uh, uh, there, there's been a bit of patience.

I mean, Northants had it far better than, under Darren Lehmann last year than Kent had it under Adam Holyoake last year.

But the, the Kent revival, as you touched on earlier, is really cool.

They, they were an absolute basket case last year.

You know, relax." And they've, they, yeah, they've been really, really good since then.

Um, and they've got a huge game this week against Northants, who are in a pretty similar boat.

The, the job that Darren Lehmann's done there, um, to George's point about Notts, they, they, they've got a terrible record in the one-day cup.

I think they're one of two counties who'd never qualified for the knockout, knockouts in that competition since the hundred came in.