Who is Nick Compton?

The India-England series is due to start in a couple of weeks and is anticipated for more than one reasons. One, it would be interesting to see how England fare in India after their abject failure against Pakistan earlier in the year in UAE. Two, there are two newbies who have been named in the touring team – Nick Compton and Joe Root – who are said to be exciting talents.

Until Kevin Pietersen was included in the England squad to be touring India, Nick Compton stood a chance of making his debut in the subcontinent; now with KP’s inclusion, his chances are bleak. But he is coming to India and as reputed to be a good top-order batsman, he could be hopeful about his chances with Strauss’ place yet to be filled at the top. Ian Bell might be on fatherhood leave for the second Test, and Morgan’s central contract does not exactly guarantee him a Test spot.

But, who is Nick Compton? Yes, he is the grandson of the great Denis Compton, but is also someone who has made his mark while playing for Somerset. Compton, originally from Durban, moved to the UK where he joined Harrow on a sports scholarship scheme. He first came in public eye when he was fruitful for Middlesex in the U-19 team in 2000. Compton joined Middlesex in 2001 where he was named most promising Middlesex player for the year, owing to his U-19 and Second XI performances. The following summer, he was picked to represent England in the U-19 World Cup, where he scored 133 runs in 5 games at an average of 23.

Compton’s batting statistics with Middlesex
	Matches	Runs	Average	100/50	Highest score
First-class	51	2,834	34.14	8/11	190
List A	53	1,429	40.82	4/5	131
Twenty20	29	252	11.45	0/1	50*

Compton was handicapped by injury in 2003 and hence couldn’t make his first-class debut for Middlesex that season. However, he did against the Cambridge University Centre of Cricketing Excellence, in May 2004. He struggled until 2006, but established himself finally that season with six centuries and thus earned himself a county cap. He scored 1315 runs in that season at an average of 46.49, topping his county’s run-charts. Compton’s form and consistency had him picked to represent England A in Bangladesh in 2006-07, where he impressed the selectors with his performances on the tour and was on the brink of getting selected for England. Juvenile and young, he blew the opportunity as adrenaline blurred his vision.

The forthcoming couple of years saw a dip in his form, which he regained in 2009 when he scored 860 runs. Compton wanted to pursue a new challenge after having worked through a form slump and thus, moved to Somerset. Compton has, since then, impressed in all forms of cricket, scoring runs in multiple formats. Compton was the only English batsman in the 2012 season to score 1,000 runs in the Championship, having scored a whopping 1494 runs at an average of 99.60 and won the PCA Player of the Year award for the first time.

Compton’s batting statistics with Somerset
	Matches	Runs	Average	100/50	Highest score
First-class	37	2,990	65.00	7/15	254*
List A	33	949	35.14	1/9	104
Twenty20	29	481	22.90	0/1	74

Compton’s accumulated 2592 runs in the last two first-class seasons, at an average of 76.24, has validated his selection for India’s tour. He is known to have worked on his technique with perseverance for the last two years. Apart from possessing a sound technique, he is also known to be a good player of spin; how good, we will know if he gets a chance to prove his case against India. Recognized as a good top-order batsman, he will be favourite to take Andrew Strauss’ opening position alongside Alastair Cook, although so could Joe Root. It would be an interesting series, with some budding talent hoping to prove their proficiency against India in their backyard. How successful they will be, only time will tell. But if Compton gets a chance and excels, it would be a shame if you didn’t know who he was.