Steelbacks' Blast hero Ravi Bopara reveals pre-match injury scare

Ravi Bopara was in great form with bat and ball on his Steelbacks debut on Thursday night (Picture: Peter Short)Ravi Bopara was in great form with bat and ball on his Steelbacks debut on Thursday night (Picture: Peter Short)
Ravi Bopara was in great form with bat and ball on his Steelbacks debut on Thursday night (Picture: Peter Short)
Ravi Bopara revealed he very nearly missed out on his match-winning Steelbacks debut in the Vitality Blast at Wantage Road on Thursday night.

The all-rounder, signed in March after leaving Sussex at the end of last season, made an instant impact in a Northants shirt, cracking a chanceless 56 not out to guide the Steelbacks to a five-wicket, final-ball win over Derbyshire Falcons.

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It was the former England all-rounder's first competitive action since playing for Knight Riders in the Abu Dhabi ILT20 in February, but he looked in prime form, hitting five fours and two sixes in a high-pressure situation to get Northants over the winning line. It was his 47th T20 half-century.

But in his post-match interview, Bopara revealed he had been suffering from back spasms the night before the match, but that, thankfully, they eased enough in time for him to star at the County Ground

"I am staying with (Sikandar) Raza, and I was speaking to him on Wednesday night and I couldn't move," said Bopara, who turned 39 at the beginning of this month.

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"I literally couldn't move because I had such bad back spasms. I said to him 'I think I am struggling for tomorrow'.

"How embarrassing would that have been? I have had a couple of months off and then I am injured for the first game!

"But the medical team got me ready and I was able to get on the park."

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Bopara did indeed get on the park, and in his 463rd T20 international showed exactly why the Steelbacks have signed him for this year's Blast.

Having already shone with the ball, taking one for 21 from four overs with his medium pace, Bopara steadied a Steelbacks ship that looked to be rocking a little with the ninth over dismissal of Ricardo Vasconcelos for a classy 42.

At that point, the County still needed 92 to win from a little over 10 overs on a tricky surface, but Bopara and Raza put on a crucial 67 from 52 balls to get the team close, before Bopara and Lewis McManus claimed the 14 needed off the final over bowled by Luis Reece – Bopara’s six off the first ball of that over a crucial moment.

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He looked calm, composed and every inch the experienced international cricketer he is, but Bopara admitted that he had felt the nerves before the start.

"With it being my debut here, I was very nervous at the start of the day," he admitted.

"It doesn't matter how many games you have played, whether it be 450, 500, whatever, I was still very nervous playing my first game for the club. I am just so glad to have got the win.

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"It's always important in any tournament you get off to a quick start, but it is only the first game and we have another big game on Friday, and then we play Sunday as well (versus Yorkshire at home).

"If we can get off to a flyer and win three from three, then that would send a great message."

There is no time for Northants to bask in the glory of their victory though, as they are straight back in action on Friday night when they travel to Trent Bridge to take on Notts Outlaws, who are playing their first game in the competition.

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It has not been a happy hunting ground in the past for Northants in the past, but that is not something that concerns former Essex and Sussex man Bopara, who, despite all of his Blast experience, played his first game in the North section in the win over the Falcons.

"I haven't played there (in the Blast), so I haven't got any thougts about it," said Bopara.

"I just do what I do, and if it's my day, it's my day, and if it's not, then hopefully it's David Willey's day."

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One major downside to the Steelbacks' performance in the win on Thursday was the fact they were forced to bowl the final 15 balls of the Falcons' innings with an extra man inside the inner fielding ring.

That was down to their slow over-rate, and Bopara admitted it is an issue he and his team-mates will quickly rectify.

"It wasn't even close," said Bopara. "I was confused when I was out there and said 'why are you bringing a man up?'

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"I was told 'we've run out of time', and I said what?! This is the 18th over…

"So that was a shock to the system for everyone about how rapid the pace of this game is, and I think we will fix that by the next game."

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