Sam Billings was reinvigorated by captaining Kent this year after revealing that attempting to force his way into England’s limited-overs sides had taken its toll.
Billings had been a regular squad member in England’s white-ball resurgence up until the recent Sri Lanka trip but a settled top order meant he was often left performing 12th man duties.
Being on the sidelines for long stretches did test the affable wicketkeeper-batsman’s resolve but he found succour on his return to his home county, who he led to promotion in the Specsavers County Championship this season.
He said: “Certainly from my enjoyment side of things and enjoying the game again, there’s no doubt that the last eight months, it’s been tough but it’s been brilliant.
“I wouldn’t say I’ve fallen back in love with it but there were certainly times where (not playing for England) drains you, it does drain you.
“You feel, especially as a 12th man travelling squad member, you put as much, if not more, effort into training and around the group.
“Then 12th man, it’s a selfless task, it’s great to be around the lads and great to be in a team environment but it’s a very selfless job, you’re giving everything towards the team without getting anything back.
“Genuinely it was getting to the point where I felt like other people who were playing cricket, even county cricket, and putting scores on the board consistently were starting to probably state a claim a bit more than I could be because I couldn’t do anything.
“It’s a bit cliche, I suppose, and a bit over-emotional but certainly the Kent season would definitely go down as a highlight.”
Billings, who has been one of the most prominent Englishmen on the domestic Twenty20 franchise circuit, was never tempted to follow the lead of Adil Rashid and Alex Hales in giving up first-class cricket.
Rashid has since made a surprise return to the Test fold, which is among Billings’ aims, having been named in England Lions’ squad for a four-day fixture against Pakistan A in the United Arab Emirates later this month.
Speaking to preview the match in Abu Dhabi, when asked whether the longer format is still a priority, he replied: “Yeah, definitely. I wouldn’t be here otherwise.
“When I’ve played red-ball consistent cricket, I’ve really enjoyed it.
“There’s no doubt for me that I think I can do it. It’s just a combination of that balance which has probably been far more white-ball over the last couple of years. Something had to give.”
England are flush with Test glovemen at present so Billings knows his best chance is probably through sheer weight of runs.
He is therefore taking inspiration from Jos Buttler, who was recalled into the Test side as a batsman following a starring role in the Indian Premier League earlier this year.
Billings added: “If I go and dominate the IPL like Jos did then there’s no reason why I can’t say ‘there we go’.
“I have performed really well on those global stages, there’s no reason why I can’t translate that into all formats of cricket. It’s about just consistency of performance.”
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