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There is no surer sign that you are a badger, or cricket tragic, that you spend so long talking about the game you almost miss your train.
But it’s not all geeking out over which number 11 has the most Test runs. Becoming obsessed will also make you a better player.
I realise it’s in my interest to tell you that; but hear me out.
You see, watching a lot of top class cricket has a kind of osmosis effect on your own technique.
By watching you get to see exactly what good technique is like (or at least effective technique, which is the same thing). It’s why coaches demonstrate a skill before they get kids to have a go: It’s a crucial part of the learning process.
So you sit in the stands in the sunshine watching excellent cricketers ply their trade and in return you learn about style, the rhythms of the game and the tactics that work.
Then, seeing as you are quite the obsessive by now, you get the urge to find out if you can do the same things as your heroes.
Of course, you can’t.
At least, not at first: these guys have years of insanely focused practice behind them. They are dedicated to their profession because in elite sport you have to be. They are the very definition of badgers. They are just motivated by the need to pay the rent.
You can’t emulate that at club nets.
What you can do is copy the motivation they show.
The only difference is yours is driven by an internal – badger-like – passion for self-improvement. A professional attitude even if you are an amateur. There is nothing stopping you being that way the moment training begins.
Yes, you have a lot of catching up to do, but catch up you can.
It takes planning, hard work, dedication and a big slice of luck.
But it all begins by being a badger.
You could even argue that that is where talent really begins.
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