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For English cricket, 2024 was a year of pace bowling regeneration. A year after Stuart Broad’s departure, James Anderson was unsentimentally pushed into retirement. Ollie Robinson probably also played his last Test.
In their absence, England sought to build a new bowling attack, underpinned by one idea above all: pace. Gus Atkinson, uncapped at Test level until July, has now become the leader of the attack. Brydon Carse, who possesses similar attributes of speed, bounce and seam movement – rather than swing – has also become a crucial member of the team, while Olly Stone has also been recalled. Then there are Mark Wood and Jofra Archer to add to the mix.
During the one-day international series in Antigua, England released the latest member of this new wave of fast bowlers, John Turner.
Aged just 23, Turner clearly fits the bowler profile England are looking to develop to play in all forms, generating good speed and crisp bounce through repeatable action. He knows he benefits from a regime eager to utilize such qualities.
“The whole Pace project, as they call it, is really exciting,” Turner said after his first two one-day internationals. “There are quite a few of us. »
Although Turner has only played five first-class matches for Hampshire, he hopes his first international experience will also be the prelude to winning a Test place.
“Being in and around is really exciting, to try and put my name in the hat for a place in the Test team, or the T20 team,” he said. “I think I’m very raw, but I’m still very young. I have a lot to learn, a lot to improve, but this is the best place to learn.
For Turner, it was an improbable journey. He grew up in South Africa and attended Hilton College, one of the country’s great sports factories, with alumni including Mike Procter and current Protea Lungi Ngidi. His coach, former South African player Dale Benkenstein, encouraged Turner to pursue opportunities in England. With a British passport – his mother is English – Turner moved in 2021, combining playing for Hampshire and studying a degree in economics and finance at the University of Exeter.
Turner was a full-time student there, although he received special dispensation to miss most classes and tutorials during the summer term.
“It’s been a tough balancing act, but it’s been pretty cool at the same time,” Turner said. “When I was away, I would just watch the recordings and take notes. And some friends helped me a little with that.
In August, Turner had to return to Exeter to take a final exam, which he had previously missed due to cricket duties. After finishing a game for the Trent Rockets in Birmingham, “I went straight to the car, drove to Exeter – got there at 2:30 in the morning, took my test at 9:30 that morning. And then I got in the car, went to Nottingham to play a match the next day.”
Turner earned a high rating of 2.1: a testament to his hard work and ability to compartmentalize. Although he plans to eventually study for a master’s degree, he now focuses solely on cricket.
Turner’s economist acknowledges that his national selection reflects England’s emphasis on attributes rather than averages.
“Cricket is a game of statistics, but you need those attributes to prove yourself or succeed at the highest level,” Turner reflects. “It’s obviously very exciting that someone sees something in you, probably before you see it yourself.
“Whether I have it, or other kids have it, no one really knows until you’re put in that environment and you succeed or you fail. And I think the message is just go out and have fun, there’s no pressure on us.
“You see guys doing really well in county cricket and not necessarily getting opportunities in the national set-up. And you feel compassion for them, and it’s hard to get by and you’re almost not big enough or not tall enough, and you’re labeled. This is why you are not going to succeed. But on the other hand, I am lucky to benefit from it and I hope to make the most of it and seize every opportunity that is given to me.
Such opportunities have not always presented themselves at Hampshire – which has a series of extremely competent, but slightly slower, seamers. “England want to create a set of fast bowlers who bowl at certain speeds. But Hampshire want to win, and it might not fit the same picture at that time.
Turner was first selected for a national team 14 months before his debut; A year ago, he was part of the team throughout the white ball tour of the Caribbean, although without taking the field. During the wait, Turner had seen jokes on social media about whether he actually existed.
Apart from the qualities he showed in a fresh spell of the ball in the second ODI, which took two wickets, Turner also showed a quirk: his habit of sticking out his tongue when he released the ball.
“I’m stuck with it, unfortunately,” Turner said with a smile. “It ruins almost every photo. It’s something that’s been going on for as long as I can remember. So the first photo I took of myself doing that, like actual competitive cricket, was maybe when I was 12 years old. Unfortunately, it’s something I can’t get rid of.
Not that England are in a hurry to get rid of Turner. Despite the promise of his first two ODIs, his honest self-assessment was that he hoped to be quicker. Turner’s average speed was 84 mph, while he hopes to average closer to 90 mph.
“I’d rather have the ’80s,” he said. “I know I can do it. It’s just, what am I not doing? I have to understand that and put that into practice and I hope to achieve that.
“I haven’t played much cricket recently so that could be a factor. Conditions, but also nerves – a little tense. So I think several factors probably play a role. But yeah, it’s not something that really stresses me out.
“It’s something to improve on. And then it’s just about trying to hit the deck, hard, making life uncomfortable for the batsmen, using everything the surface has to offer – so whether it’s going to pinch or stay low, pop up – trying to take advantage of it.
These are qualities that led Benkenstein to compare Turner to Glenn McGrath. Such a comparison is hardly fair for a cricketer whose career is so embryonic. Yet England believe that late next year they could well take Turner to McGrath’s homeland for the Ashes tour.
