But after spending any amount of time with Sonny Baker, it’s hard not to feel energised by the emergence of a fast bowler who has already caught the eye of Andrew Flintoff and been handed an England Lions cap before making his bow in the County Championship.
He signed for Hampshire from Somerset back in August 2024, and spent this winter working under Flintoff in Australia.
Baker took three wickets on his first-class debut (Photo: Getty)
Not bad going for a cricketer who says his dad had to book him into karate classes in order to improve his coordination in his formative years.
“My coordination came pretty late, so my dad thought karate would be a good idea – I eventually learned to use my hand and my feet at the same time.
“Once I had sorted my coordination, I did a bit of youth development rugby before focusing on cricket. I can’t say I was a terrible sportsman – it’s always better to be self-deprecating than blow smoke up your own arse isn’t it? I would just say that I developed a bit later than a lot of cricketers. Some people seem to have an England cap on their head by the age of four.”
“My dad always wanted to bowl really fast, and I think in club cricket he was probably pretty sharp,” he says.
“My dad’s attitude would definitely lift the side. His aura and competitiveness was what really drove his team-mates on. What he didn’t have in skill he made up for with other stuff.”
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The Aussies would call it “mongrel”, and it’s something that Baker demonstrated on his trip Down Under with the Lions, bowling over his coach in the process.
For his part, working with Flintoff and playing alongside his son, Rocky, is an experience that the young quick won’t forget in a hurry.
“Rocky is a good lad too, a really solid guy. He’s a bit like his dad, he’s a character but he’s also a very talented youngster – can I call him that? He’s not that much younger than me. Actually, he’s so young that I think I can!
For the time being, Baker can put international ambitions to one side while he tries to establish himself in a Hampshire side that boasts perhaps the most formidable pace line-up of any side in Division One.
The late developer, meanwhile, is in a rush to make up for lost time.
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