Steven Finn has said he is frustrated by his tag as a genuine speed merchant after he was overlooked for England’s tour to the West Indies
Alex Winter10-Apr-2015Steven Finn has said he is frustrated by his tag as a genuine speed merchant after he was overlooked for England’s tour to the West Indies and consigned to a spring in north London with Middlesex instead of the Caribbean. Finn spoke out at criticism that he has lost pace and said he should be judged on the wickets he takes.Finn, 26, last played a Test match in the opening game of the 2013 Ashes at Trent Bridge and has since battled back from the subsequent tour of Australia, where he was dubbed “not selectable” after a chronic loss of form. Despite returning to the England one-day set-up he is yet to break back into the Test reckoning. But he believes speed, or a lack of it, isn’t the issue.”I’ve never been a bowler to bowl 90mph all day,” Finn said. “That simply has never happened throughout my career. It frustrates me when people talk about, ‘you’ve lost pace’ – I haven’t. I bowl the odd spell up above 90, which is something I’m working towards, but consistently my pace is the same as it has been.”Because there’s other bowlers out there who are bowling 95mph on a regular basis, it’s like we’re searching for that and it’s fallen on my head that I’m the guy who can bowl very quick spells, so why aren’t I doing that all the time? If you’re taking wickets why does it matter if you bowl 87mph or 93? That to me is baffling and I find it stupid.”Finn, who has taken 90 wickets at 29.40 in 23 Tests, returns for Middlesex’s opening game of the new County Championship season against Nottinghamshire at Lord’s determined to find form ahead of England’s Test series with New Zealand and Australia. He was “gutted” to be left out of the West Indies squad and defended his record over the winter, which will forever be remembered for the 10 balls murdered for 44 by Brendon McCullum in Wellington during the World Cup.”I shrugged that off pretty quickly,” Finn said. “I came back in the next game and took three for 20-odd. I was England’s leading wicket-taker in both the tri-series and the World Cup. I’m not going to say I was hard done by.”I had a good sulk on me for about four days after I was told I wasn’t in the Test squad. I thought I might be in with a shout but I have to look on the plus side and I’ve had a few good weeks back at Middlesex working on things, getting to know the squad again and enjoying it again – I have my most fun when I’m playing here. Hopefully that will allow me to express myself in the opening weeks of the season.”If I bowl anything like I’ve done in the past I think I’d have a chance of being back in the team. I’ve come back with the goal of being the bowler I want to be – that’s quite a loose phrase but I know what I’m capable of and have been working towards that and if I can bowl like I can do in the first few matches of the season, hopefully that will put me in a good position for the summer Tests.”The place in the West Indies squad Finn might have filled has been taken by Liam Plunkett – a similar tall quick who has fought back from career problems himself. Finn is convinced the problems of 2013-14 – hitting the stumps with his knee, changing run-ups, the lot – are well behind him and he can push hard for an England Test spot once more, bowling with the freedom Plunkett now enjoys.”I’ve been told I’ve been doing nothing wrong but to be left out of the tour obviously I am doing something wrong,” Finn said. “The selectors have just told me to go and take wickets and enjoy bowling for Middlesex and I’m very much in their thoughts.”I feel like I can compete in international cricket – I did that this winter. It’s just finding a way to go from being a fringe player to in the team, I was there a few years ago but I’m not looking back thinking I want to be the bowler I was then, I want to be the bowler I know I can be. And if I do that I’ve got a great chance of being in the England team.”I know what I need to do. I’ve been working to get my action in a good place so I can go out there and just let the ball do the talking, that’s all I can do.”