Lancashire are enjoying a 10-day pre-season training camp in Sri Lanka – and new vice captain Steven Croft admits he would not be where he is today if it wasn’t for the cricket-mad country.

Croft and his Red Rose team-mates are preparing for the new season in the sweltering heat of Colombo, a place where the 30-year-old all-rounder once called home.

In 1993, Croft’s father accepted a job in the city and took Steven with him.

A mad keen Blackpool football fan, the game of cricket had rarely registered on his radar. Out in Sri Lanka, he had little choice but to get into the game.

“There’s not much football going on out there, but cricket is everywhere, and that’s where I got into cricket really,” he said.

“They are cricket-mad out here, and any bit of spare land is taken up by a game.

“There can be as many as five games going on just one bit of land. They just love it.

“I was a mad footballer, and I don’t think I’d even picked up a cricket bat before I went. So I thank my dad for getting me into cricket that way.

“I lived out there for three years, 1993-1996. I went to school at Colombo International High, and I’m looking forward to going back to hopefully see a few familiar faces.”

One familiar face Croft will be catching up with is also no stranger to Lancashire fans – Championship-winning all-rounder Farveez Maharoof.

“We are going to catch up with Roofy while we’re out here,” he said.

“He’s very popular in our side, and we’re really looking forward to seeing him. I’m sure he’ll show us a few nice places that we didn’t know about.

“He fitted in really well with the side in 2011. There’s no bones about it, we didn’t have a lot of cash to spend, but he came over and wanted to get back into the international side.

“It’s an ideal opportunity to come over when your national side is also touring, and it’s the same with Peter Siddle this time.

“With the Ashes later in the summer, there’s a bit of extra on it for him.

“Roofy got his call-up, and we were delighted for him because he gave his heart to Lancashire. He was really popular and fitted in well.

“He was an overseas player, but you just took him for one of the lads.

“He always asks if we need someone, and if it came about it would be great. His skills in Twenty20 are up there.

“It would be nice one day to see him in a Red Rose shirt again.”
(Manchester Evening News)