Kent spinner Adam Riley plays down talk of an England call-up to face India
Published: 08:00, 26 June 2014
Kent spinner Adam Riley says he doesn’t ‘believe the hype’ as the clamour for an England call-up to face India grows ever louder.
With England set to begin a five-Test series on July 9, 22-year-old Riley was watched by selector Angus Fraser in Tuesday’s 10-wicket win over Derbyshire.
Riley finished with match figures of 7-118 to go eighth in the LV= County Championship Division 2 standings with 31 Championship wickets, at an average of under 27, and has 47 wickets in all competitions this summer, which he began as understudy to James Tredwell.
Kent assistant coach Matt Walker said: “If he gets the opportunity I’m sure he’ll do brilliantly. He reminds me a bit of Graeme Swann and Richard Dawson - spin, tall, great control. To me he’s the stand-out spinner in the country. I think England will be pushed hard to find someone with more skill and potential than him.”
For his part Riley revealed: “When I came in after warm-ups Angus Fraser was talking to Rob Key - I didn’t speak to him too much. It was just nice that someone’s come down to watch me that might be influential somewhere along the line.”
He added: “Every player has the ambition to play for England. I don’t always believe the media and the hype, pushing me for the next Test, but the attention is nice. I’m just trying to enjoy the moment and not get carried away.”
He added: “The media attention has all come so quickly, it’s been a bit of a whirlwind. I’ve played half a dozen games and I’m starting to feel like I belong in the Kent first team. Anything else that comes along is a bonus.”
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Alex Hoad