James Faulkner talks about the IPL, his slower balls, bouncing back from a drunk-driving episode, and bad haircuts
Interview by Arun Venugopal26-Apr-2016This is your fourth team in the IPL, but obviously the high point was your stint with Rajasthan Royals. How have you found the Gujarat Lions set-up so far?
It’s been different. Obviously, I was with Rajasthan for three years. [Three years there] made you very used to what happened around you. You’ve got the same sort of squad pretty much every year, the same support staff, coaches and senior players as well. We all knew each other inside and out. Obviously it’s going to be new any time you come to a new franchise, or whether it’s a new team. So you are playing county cricket or Big Bash, there are going to be different challenges and different relationships you have to build with team-mates. You know their game as well and what they are trying to achieve. That’s all part of the challenge and so far we have started well as a team.How long does it generally take for you to develop a sense of attachment with the team?
Ah, it doesn’t happen quickly. It all depends on the players you know already. I am lucky here I knew a lot of their players, especially their international players, but I even knew a lot of the Indian locals as well, having played with them in other franchises, whether it was way back at the start at Pune [Warriors] or Kings XI [Punjab] when I wasn’t obviously playing. But I was training with them and spending time. [At the] end of the day it’s up to the players to gel and it is up to the coaching staff to get them to gel as well.When you are playing alongside a few ex-international captains like Brendon McCullum and Dwayne Bravo, what are the things you learn from a leadership perspective?
Nothing has really stood out too much for me. Probably it’s just that we are all in it together, so all the senior players are trying to help the young players improve their games and at the end of the day we can all improve as a group. That’s what stands out. For the younger players who haven’t played any games in the IPL, talking to those players – they probably idolise a few of them, which is great. It’s healthy for any team.Anyone who idolises you in the team?
() I am not too sure. I am just trying to help as much as I can. I encourage the younger players to ask questions and [share] little pointers every now and then when I feel like it’s the right time.
“I just haven’t had the opportunity to bat. If you look at how many balls I have faced in the last 12 months, it’s not many”
Is there a system in Gujarat Lions where each senior player takes a younger player under his wing and mentors him?
No, I think it just naturally comes up. With any player you notice something with which you help them. You are not there to tell them off or make them change their games too drastically. It’s just little things that they can [work on]. At the end of the day they are responsible for their own games. If they want to take your advice they can. If they don’t, no issue at all.Talk us through the different kinds of slower balls you bowl. The back-of-the-hand delivery seems to be a clear winner.
Yeah, I have tried to play out with a new one off late, just to have another option. That’s just an offcutter. It all depends on the wicket. [On a] slow wicket you can bowl different sorts of deliveries. On quicker and flatter wickets they are not as effective, so you will have to really try and out-think the batsman compared to when it is slower and turning, when you can bowl the same sort of balls consistently.Did starting out as a wristspinner make it easier for you to bowl the back-of-the-hand one?
When I was young I would bowl spin in the backyard with Dad and then I just sort of developed [it] into my game with hours of bowling in the backyard. That’s pretty simple, so it’s one of my weapons now. It’s just a matter of trying to find other deliveries to keep the batsmen guessing.How do you extract the amount of bounce you do from that delivery?
For me, it’s all about not just putting it there. Instead of just putting it there when I am bowling the ball I get more revolutions on it. That’s where you get the bounce and the spin. It can be harder and challenging here in the IPL, especially with the dew factor, it’s hard to hold it. I bowled one the other night [in Mumbai] that came out not very good. It’s hard to get that feel and grip on the ball sometimes in certain grounds around India.Have you had an opportunity to swap notes with Bravo on slower deliveries?
Yeah, he’s got a beauty, so I have spent some time in the nets talking to him about certain fields, asking how he bowled it. I can’t actually bowl it like him, but it’s one of those things you have to get if you are trying different deliveries to improve your game.In the recent past, your bowling seems to have grown in strength, but the batting has been a little patchy. Do you think bowlers around the world have worked you out better now?
I just haven’t had the opportunity to bat. Whatever the teams I have played in, the top order have got the runs, so you can’t really go out there and score runs if you are only getting to face four-five balls. I tend to look at it as if I am batting down at 6, 7 or 8, I am not getting to bat a majority of times in many games. If you look at how many balls I have faced in the last 12 months, it’s not many.”It’s different cricket over here [in India]. The fans love the game, and you can’t explain that to your friends and family back home about how crazy they are for all the players, all the teams, just cricket in general”•Associated PressDoes your father, Peter Faulkner, a former first-class player himself, share cricketing advice with you?
He shares his advice, but he lets me do my own thing. He is supportive of what I am trying to achieve and that’s to play the best cricket I can in any format. We talk cricket, but, to be honest, when I am not playing I enjoy my time at home with my friends and family.You said you will regret the drunk-driving episode for the rest of your life. Is it something that’s past you now? What have you done to get over it?
Yeah, it’s nearly a year – it was June or July. It’s ages ago now. I have just got back to playing cricket and tried to play as well as I could. From the incident, the next game I played [in the Royal London Cup 50-over tournament] I switched on. We [Lancashire] won that T20 [Natwest T20 Blast] after that.How did you manage such a quick turnaround from an incident like that?
It was just about obviously owning up to it, putting your hand up to apologise and then putting it behind me and try and improve as a person, and improve as a player as well. I have enjoyed cricket after that even more, so that I can get away from it all. Obviously it was a tough time and yeah, at the end of the season we won the T20s, which is great. I felt like I did owe my team-mates something as well while I was there, so doing that was satisfying.How did your family react to this incident – your parents and girlfriend?
I had support from everyone, whether it was family or friends or team-mates. That’s what friends and family are there for. Everyone makes mistakes. It’s just a matter of your owning up to it and learning from it and not making the same mistake twice. I had support from everyone. [My parents and girlfriend] were just as supportive.
“I want to try and play as many games for my country as I can and perform as well as I can in tight situations”
How much did the alcohol management counselling session help? Have you tried to stay off the bottle completely like David Warner has recently?
No, for me, it’s the same thing. You celebrate your success as you celebrate your downtime. I had one [counselling] session with Tim Paine, who was there [with him during the incident in Manchester]. We were trying to celebrate his engagement. That was it. I have put it behind me since that.You said last year that you would ideally like to spend a lot more time with your sisters? Have you managed to find time to do that?
Yeah, it’s hard. My sisters, one of them has just finished uni and got a degree and the other one, I have hardly seen, so it is hard. When I am back home as well I am not in one specific spot – you travel around Australia. It’s the same with all the players that fly for inter-state games. It’s very hard for them [my sisters] as well because they have got their own lives to live and their own studies and full-time job to do.Given the kind of adulation cricketers receive while playing in India, how do you ensure you retain perspective and stay grounded?
It’s just one of the things [when] you come to India and play the IPL. It’s different cricket over here. The fans love the game, and you can’t explain to your friends and family back home about how crazy they are for all the players, all the teams, just cricket in general. I think it’s fantastic. I definitely do enjoy playing in front of the crowds over here because of that factor.How has your girlfriend found the experience? How does her presence help you on tours?
It’s definitely massive bonus if you have a friend or family or girlfriend over at the moment – someone around for company. Obviously here in Rajkot, it’s quite hard for the overseas players. I know some of the Indian players are struggling as well. Yeah, she is holding up. She has done enough travel now. She understands that this isn’t a holiday, it’s purely work and that [it] comes down to performance. She is supportive and she is studying at the moment, so she is busy doing that.You are a big Aussie Rules football fan. What are the things from the AFL that you have learnt and tried to incorporate into your own game?
I haven’t seen much AFL over the last couple of years purely because I was never home to watch it. I haven’t really brought anything to my own game. It’s a different sport, but I am into sport and games. Probably enjoyment is the only thing I have brought into my game.”Me and Virat get on fine and he said the same thing to the press as well. There is nothing there. It’s just a contest and he likes getting into a contest.”•Cricket Australia/Getty ImagesYou seem to have had your fair share of banter on the field, like a few chats with Virat Kohli recently.
I think [with] every player, not every player, but it’s just friendly banter at the end of the day. Me and Virat get on fine and he said the same thing to the press as well. There is nothing there. It’s just a contest and he likes getting into a contest. That’s what makes him one of the best players in the world.Are you comfortable taking the piss and being at the receiving end of such banter?
Oh, I have copped plenty of banter. Don’t worry about that! Definitely, I enjoy it as well. It’s part of it.Is your current hairstyle inspired from that of the volleyball, Wilson, in , as someone pointed out on your Twitter page?
() I had asked for a number two [on the shaver] on the side. Next thing I know I have got a number one. I just let him go with it. That [the haircut] was in Mumbai. I am not too fussed about it. I normally let the hairdresser do what they want to do. Yeah, couple of weeks hopefully away from a good haircut.Is there a culture shift now in the Australian side with many younger players like you being a departure from the archetypal beer-guzzling, macho player of the past? Most of you appear to be a lot more metrosexual.
I am not too sure. I didn’t grow up in that generation. I think now what you see is a lot more cricket being played, so that’s definitely a lot harder when it comes to that. [There are] so many different formats around the world, and T20 has changed the dynamics so greatly. It’s obviously fantastic. You will have to ask players who have had played in both generations, but I think the big factor is that there is so much more cricket.Speaking of so much cricket, it’s perhaps natural to fall out of love with the game at times. How do you rekindle that love?
I think it’s about enjoying your downtime as well. We don’t get many days off – we had yesterday off and then we train today, play tomorrow and then we go pretty much flat out after that every second day with travel. You have to spend time with your mates and relax and try and forget about it [cricket], switch off and get ready to switch back on again.I have got my girlfriend here in India at the moment. I watch movies. That’s probably the main thing I do. We had a couple of days in Mumbai last week. We spent some time around the pool, trying to relax and get out of the hotel room. [We] went out to dinner and restaurants and came back ready to play.What are the benchmarks you set for yourself as a cricketer? Are you working on something specific to get better at red-ball cricket?
Personally, I want to try and play as many games for my country as I can and perform as well as I can in tight situations. A measurement of that is how many games you are involved in or you win as a group. Whether I bat well or bowl well or have a poor day while winning, that’s how I measure myself.It’s hard to do that [get better at red-ball cricket] when I am not playing any. I haven’t really played much Shield cricket in the last few years. I have played a lot of white-ball cricket and obviously we won the World Cup in Australia. So yeah, just concentrating on winning the game I’m playing in at the time.