The story is typical of those who witnessed the making of Jason Roy. “We were playing Henley in the quarter-finals of the National Club Twenty20 Championship in 2009, and we thought we were out of it when they scored 191,” recalls Chris Murtagh, then Reigate Priory’s captain.
“We shouldn’t have worried. Jason, only 19 at the time, scored 138 not out from 60 balls and we won with four overs to spare.”
Then you ask Neil Kendrick, who coached him at Whitgift School, in Croydon, for his memories of Roy’s youthful cricketing prowess. “The main one is when he was 17,” Kendrick says. “We played Charterhouse in a T20 match, and Jason made a 28-ball hundred.”
Kendrick, the former Surrey and Glamorgan left-arm spinner, is Whitgift School’s head of cricket performance. He runs the sport’s department alongside David Ward, the head of cricket, and also a former Surrey player.
Kendrick, speaking from Barbados, where Whitgift are on tour, says: “It was quite a surreal, but memorable, experience this week because the boys watched Jason’s fantastic World T20 semi-final innings on television while we were sitting in the pavilion at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown during our lunch break.
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“He is certainly a wonderful role model for Whitgift cricketers. I first came across Jason when he was in Surrey’s under-11 squad, and was involved in the process of him being offered a scholarship at Whitgift at 13. He was very raw when I first saw him, and it was a bit of a punt to take him on the scholarship. But it was obvious he had talent as a strokemaker. He was a brilliant fielder and all-round athlete who also excelled at rugby.”
“On that day he scored only 15 or 20, but you could still see that he had something about him
Graham Thorpe, one of Surrey and England’s best postwar batsmen, has had a big influence on Roy’s development at county and national level. Thorpe, holder of 100 Test caps, first coached Roy as a 17-year-old when in charge of Surrey’s second XI and, subsequently, has worked with him as part of the England Performance Programme, England Lions and the senior team.
“Initially I saw some talent but I also saw some rough edges,” Thorpe says. “I remember I gave him six matches for Surrey’s second XI, to show what he could do, and Jason scored two hundreds, and quickly. He was also fiery, with a lot of passion, but I liked that. He has worked hard on his temperament and has improved in that regard. There were a few plant pots kicked over in his earlier days.
“I didn’t try to change him too much technically. I didn’t want him to lose his ball-striking or his attitude. I could see he would certainly be suited to one-day cricket, and it’s of huge credit to him that he has stayed true to himself in the way he plays, even after some low scores. As I do with a lot of young batsmen, we used to talk about it being his career and the importance of backing your natural instincts and not to die wondering. He’s a good kid and I’m really pleased for him.”
Roy’s 78 from 44 balls against New Zealand helped to propel England to their second World Twenty20 final. Kevin Pietersen, a team-mate at Surrey in recent years and another significant influence, was player of the tournament when England, under Paul Collingwood, won the World Twenty20 in 2010.
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“Playing in a world final in Calcutta, in front of a massive crowd, won’t faze Jason at all,” says Murtagh, who also played with Roy for Surrey’s second XI and was in Reigate Priory’s team when Roy made his debut for the first team at the age of 14, against Banstead.
“On that day he scored only 15 or 20, but you could still see that he had something about him.”
Roy, indeed, had come through the club’s colts system, under Jim Harmer, after joining Reigate at ten when his parents came to England from South Africa.
“Even at that age he was fearless and hit the ball very hard,” Murtagh says. “He hit it cleanly too. He never consistently made big scores but his quick scoring meant he was often a match-winner. That’s a real asset, at any level. He was great to captain, and always gave everything. He’s still part of the scenery at Reigate. He lives here, and his parents and sister have got involved with the cricket club. A lot of his close friends are those he’s played with here.”
Durban-born he may be, but Roy is very much the proud product of Reigate Priory, Whitgift School, Surrey County Cricket Club and, indeed, county cricket, impressing in all formats after making his debut in 2008 and still a teenager when hitting Surrey’s first T20 hundred in 2010. “He’s a free spirit,” Kendrick says. “He doesn’t overcomplicate things and he keeps his mind clear.”