Delivering the ball from the clouds, Canterbury seamer Kyle Jamieson has an x-factor that no other kiwi bowler has making him one to watch ... and the perfect bloke to answer some questions for El Niche Cache.

You have enjoyed plenty of bowling success this season, so how did you prepare for the season throughout winter to enable you to take plenty of wickets?

I firstly like to have a bit of time off, just to get away and refresh before getting ready for the season ahead. I usually then sit down with our coaching staff and put a plan in place around what the next few months will look like, what skills I need to develop and also aspects I have done well in the past and continue to work on them. 

I also work very closely with our Strength and Coditioning trainer Maxx and we try to get myself in the best shape possible for the season ahead. Some of these sessions are pretty tough but he assures me they are helping which at the time takes a bit to convince me!

Each winter tends to be a little different, and you learn things in the previous years that you feel might give you an edge with your training for the current winter. I’ve been lucky in the past to be involved with New Zealand Cricket Winter Training squad and I’ve picked up bits and pieces that will definitely help me moving forward. 

I’m also studying at the moment so I like to think in some way that this is helping as it gives me something to focus on outside of cricket. Having that life balance is key and it allows you to have perspective and not get too caught up and weighed down by the ups and downs cricket brings. 

What have you found to be the most challenging aspect of stepping up to domestic cricket?

Each format definitely brings its different challenges. Domestic cricket as a whole challenges you on a physical and mental level that you have to get used to. Personally I have found there is a lot less room for error. There are so many class batsman throughout the competition and they each bring a different skill-set and will punish you for being slightly off. Also getting used to the rigours of just about playing or training everyday for 6 months is something that brings its own challenges.

Besides your height and bounce, what are some strengths of your bowling? 

I guess I’m quite lucky that I’ve got height on my side and that it provides something that you can’t teach,  I definitely have to thank my parents for that! 

Aside from that I try to swing the ball away from the right hander and in to the left, and seam it where possible as well, but as much as some people say you do, you don’t have too much control over that. You just have to have the seam in the right position and hope something happens. I guess in general I try to keep it pretty simple, and that tends to be my best method. Run in, hit the deck hard and try move the ball. Hopefully if I do this consistently it will give me the best chance of having some success.

Which Canterbury veterans have you looked up to to help you quickly adjust to domestic cricket?

I’ve been very lucky in Canterbury to be surrounded by some outstanding players and leaders, which has made the transition in to domestic cricket a bit easier. I can’t look past guys like Peter Fulton, Andrew Ellis, and Todd Astle who have helped me immensely. Their experience is second to none, and they are all outstanding players so every bit of advice and help you can get off them is invaluable. Although he’s not with us anymore, Hamish Bennett was also a big help. 

It’s not just the guys who have played a few seasons that have helped me though, our team culture is great and allows any player to help you where need be. Tom Latham and Henry Nicholls have been great; their experience and watching them go about their work when they are back from the Blackcaps is eye opening and shows the way forward. Working alongside Ed Nuttall and forming a bowling partnership with him has been helpful and has allowed me to learn a lot. I could go through and name just about every player and a way that they have helped me, which is a testament to the set up and bunch of guys we have down here.

Being so tall, have you had a history with injuries and how have you dealt with injuries?

I’m sure like every fast bowler I’ve had some injuries along the way. I guess I’ve been pretty lucky so far to not have too many major ones, hopefully I haven’t jinxed myself! Injuries are part of what we do as a fast bowler, and I’m probably realistic enough to know that it’s not always going to be smooth sailing.

My first season I had a stress fracture in my ankle which meant I had to sit out the last couple of months which was quite tough. That was my first real taste of sitting out and missing a stretch of games, but I was lucky at the time to have some pretty special people around me to help me through it. I also had some loose bones floating round in the same ankle last season which required surgery in the off season to remove them, but luckily I didn’t have to miss any games because of it. The funny thing was it was actually from playing basketball growing up that had caused the injury and it just happened to flare up during the season. The downside to trying to get more than a couple of inches off the ground I guess!

Each person deals with injuries differently, and obviously each injury has a different rehab plan and what you can and can’t do while you sit out. For me the key is to surround yourself with good people and find new hobbies and enjoy the time you do get away. As hard as it sometimes sounds, you have to try and focus on the positives as much as possible and the time you do have off will seem that much easier.

How do you maintain your fitness in winter and how do you then juggle staying fit and not over-doing it throughout the season? 

The winter is a very important block in terms of building up your strength and conditioning. This is where you do the bulk of your work and get in to the best possible shape you can be in for the season ahead. I tend to do work with our trainer most days of the week during the winter, some days multiple sessions. A few of the other boys do the same as well so we have a good little group working away which makes it fun and a little bit easier, especially on some of the dark, cold winter mornings!

During the season the focus then moves to playing and recovery. You want to make sure you are in the best shape for the upcoming game, so ice baths, stretching, getting in the water are a regular occurrence. Then it’s about finding little pockets of time during the season to just top up in the gym. The season isn’t so much about trying to make strides in this department, more about trying your best to maintain what you have, or minimise what you lose. 

Bowling in itself is a pretty physically demanding skill set so a lot of the time it’s just about assessing how you feel. That is something I am starting to figure out a little bit more now, understanding my body and what it needs, when it needs to rest and also when I do need to do a little bit of work and top up. 

Is there anything specific with your bowling that you're trying to improve on this season?

There is always little things that you monitor, which for me is around my front arm/shoulder and wrist position, but aside from that nothing to major. Each game different things will pop up, things you’ve done well and things that maybe weren’t quite how you wanted them to be. So I look to monitor that and fine tune here and there, but for the most part the season for me is about getting in the fight and finding a way to perform a role or do a job for the team. 

In the past when I’ve tried to work on technical aspects too much or focus on them it's affected the way I’ve performed in the middle. Running in to bowl thinking about your action isn’t the best head space to be in, and it detracts from what you are trying to achieve. 

What did you learn from your experience at the 2014 Under-19 World Cup?

The U19 World Cup was an eye-opening experience and a massive learning curve. Dubai is a crazy place and I had never really experienced a place quite like it before. It was amazing to see that part of the world. From a cricket perspective it was a great introduction in to what a professional set up is like and just being able to play and challenge yourself against some of the best cricketers in the world for our age group was invaluable. A few of those guys are now playing International cricket so it’s definitely an important pathway. We didn’t go as well as we would have liked, but I’m very grateful to have been a part of it all.

What's your favourite meal to have in summer/during a game/in camp when you have eat healthy?

I don’t think I have something that I will always stick too, you generally have to be pretty flexible when you’re on the road. Although if you were to ask the boys I flat with they’d definitely say brown rice and chop chop chicken - I tend to eat a fair bit of that.

And what's your favourite food to binge on away from cricket?

Geez there’s a few! I have a massive sweet tooth, so anything chocolate is right up my alley. I’m going to go with M'n'Ms, or the Oreo chocolate. I’m definitely a binge eater of them, I’m not great at eating them in moderation!

Are the some drills/skills that you always do at trainings, if so what are they and why?

From a batting point of view I like to do top hand drills, and for bowling I do a lot of seam release drills. There isn’t too much that I would say I always do at trainings, I tend to  bowl some overs and have a hit, and then focus on something that is specific to what I want to work on at that point in time. That will vary from training to training.

What is the best advice you've been given?

It’s hard to pin-point one bit of advice that stands out above the rest. It’s pretty cliché but it is something that I’ve had a big focus on recently and that’s just enjoying what you do, and controlling what you can control. You can get so caught up in results, or doing things perfectly, but those are so often things that you can’t always control. We’re very fortunate to do what we do so standing back and appreciating that and enjoying the journey is something that is important to me. I guess it’s something that can be applied across a lot of things and it’s something I try to live by. Enjoying what you do, and controlling what you can control.

Who's the fastest bowler that you have faced and how did you handle it?

I’m going to have to go with Adam Milne and Scott Kuggeleijn. I think most people will know how fast Adam Milne bowls, he was pretty quick and was moving the ball as well which made it even tougher. I have my batting partner at the time Cam Fletcher to thank for making me face him more than I would have liked, he just parked himself up at the other end and let me deal with it! 

We played ND in a four-dayer to start this current season and Kuggs bowled with some serious gas that game. It was quick and aggressive, he picked up quite a few wickets and got me in both innings. I guess that says enough about how well I handled it - one of the better spells of bowling I have seen. 

Who is a nightmare to face in the nets at Canterbury trainings?

Will Williams would have to be up there. I swear he picks up a yard or two of pace when he bowls in the nets and he doesn’t mind overstepping the front line! He’s also been known to pick up a two piece ball from time to time and swing it round corners wreaking havoc. Ed Nuttall would have to be up there as well. He swings the ball at pace back in to your body and that’s given me and a few others a couple of nice bruises to show off.

Favourite cricketing memory from your childhood?

It’s hard to go past one of my first real memories as a kid. I would go down to watch my dad play cricket for Papatoetoe on a Saturday when I was little and would be entertained for hours throwing and hitting a ball round. Those days where you would let your imagination run wild and pretend you were playing for the Black Caps hitting the winning runs, or taking a screamer in front of a packed stadium are priceless, and the enjoyment factor of it all was right up there. If I hung round long enough till the end of the days play I could even talk Dad in to getting me some food which was always a highlight.