Ed Barnard is remaining at New Road this winter and one area he will be working on is increasing his pace which bowling coach Matt Mason believes will be beneficial to his potential England prospects.
The Supporters’ Association Player Of The Year has spent two of the last three winters in Australia playing grade cricket for Queanbeyan and Scarborough respectively.
But during this close season the 21-year-old will be put through his paces at the County’s headquarters and at Malvern College when the players report back in mid November.
Barnard picked up 47 County Championship wickets in 2017 in addition to scoring nearly 600 runs.
Mason said: “Barny has decided to stay here and get stronger because we believe he has got the talent to play at the next level (England) and to do that he probably needs to be a little quicker through the air.
“He will be doing some more strength work and work with me over the winter. We are going to try and find that (pace) for him which will make him even more of a formidable player for us.
“I think it is important he does because he is not the tallest, he is not the six feet, five inches giant you often see running around.
“He is very skilful and if we can add an extra yard of pace to that skill, it becomes a very tough proposition for batsmen and playing on different surfaces which he needs to be able to do especially if he wants to play up a level.
“Is he best with the new ball or first change? I honestly believe Barny can do either. He is one of those guys who is naturally talented, can do anything. Anything you throw at him,he will do it well.”
