Interview with Dion Nash

Simon Hughes (SH) interviewing Dion Nash (DN), Lords Test, Day 1, 22/7/99 Kindly transcribed by Sara.

They're standing outside the Pavilion just on the edge of the ground, Dion in his Black Caps's track suit.

SH: Would you say that it's your favourite ground? You were Man Of The Match here in 94 and you then played for Middlesex a couple of seasons after than and now you've done well again today, so I suppose it would be high on your list.

DN: Yeah, certainly. I think it's ah, certainly my favourite ground in terms of wanting to play her. It's err something special about err the home of cricket and umm it certainly seems to bring out the best in ah, well, in me anyway.

SH: What do you actually feel when you're out in the middle at Lords' in a Test match?

DN: Ahh, I think just the excitement of umm being in front of a, a huge crowd and err, a knowledgeable crowd as well, and I think umm everyone who comes to the Lords' match err really appreciates the cricket. And ahh, it's just the whole atmosphere and an- everything that goes with it. It's something special.

SH: Now err, you took three wickets today. Probably the most important of which was Alec Stewart. You bowled some good balls to him before this but you can now look at ahh, how you got him out. Talk us through it.

Plays a slowed down replay of Dion bowling to Alec Stewart. The ball's just outside off stump. Alec deflects it straight to Fleming at first slip. Celebration follows.

Dion & Simon talking over the replay:

DN: Yeah ah, it was just a reasonably good length ball which went straight into him and I umm, it sort of guided a couple down there and that one he just sort a got a little bit fine I think.

SH: That was err delight from the bowler and Stephen Fleming as well. This is Mark Ramprakash err the next wicket. Ramprakash err playing there to an in swinger. Was that a deliberate in swinger?

Stewart wicket replay segues into that of Ramps.

DN: Yeah, ahh, I sort of err thought err I'd been swing it away quite a lot and I thought that's probably what he was expecting. So I err just turned the ball around and it happened to go round.

SH: And this is Aftab Habib

Replay changes again.

DN: Yeah just quite a good ball and he sort of wasn't quite there for it and the err off pole goes.

Back to Dion & Simon standing.

SH: It looked to me as if you g-got a lot of delight out o-of getting the wicket of Mark Ramprakash. Err, obviously your colleague from Middlesex. Was that a special one?

DN: (smiles) Yeah, well I got a bit of a ribbing for getting out to Phil Tufnell in the 1st innings so err it's certainly nice to have pulled one back. And err I've got my sights set on him for the rest of the innings as well.

SH: And err Aftab Habib. It looked like a planned wicket in a way. He got out and err we had a look at the dismissals he had at Edgbaston and he got out to a fullish ball, clean bowled. Was that y'know part of a plan?

DN: I think we were conscious of getting the ball full to him early on. And I think as err as it showed his feet weren't quite moving and err I think as a batsman gets in and gets more comfortable they get going a bit better. And I think just err try and get it up there or thereabouts and it just happened to go through the gate.

SH: How different are you as a cricketer now from the man who was Man Of The Match in the Test match in 94?

DN: I think that that wa- that was my first real performance at international level and it was sort of getting me on the stage if you like. And err now I think there's a little bit more pressure from within to ahh keep, keep performing and keep to a standard. And err I think I've probably matured a lot as well with ahh having been out with injury and learnt a bit more about the game and umm certainly my season here at Middlesex helped in that. And err yeah, I think, I think I'm probably more of a complete cricketer now and err know what the job involves and what it's about.

SH: Have you actually had to remodel your action after your injury?

DN: Yeah, I've ch- I've made a few subtle changes and err just to try and alleviate the stress on my back and ahh, just to ahh make it more bio-mechanically correct I think is the are the terms.

SH: 183 for 9 England. Is it a 183 for 9 wicket?

DN: Ahh I think it was difficult today. I think we bowled reasonably well today under the conditions and the ball did swing around. Umm I think having said that Nasser Hussain showed the way to bat. He left brilliantly and y'know you're going to play and miss on it and I think you've got to be prepared to do that. But err, he played particularly well and I think hopefully that's a signal for our players, our batters to err follow that line.

SH: Well, we hold hope (?) that you, that you get out there and bowl well again and obviously you'll need some runs probably as well. So err, thanks for your time and back to Mark Nicholas.

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