"I didn't expect it whatsoever" - getting to know Sussex's newest signing Sean Hunt

Sussex's newest signing gives his first interview since joining the club

Sussex’s coaching staff have had their eyes on Sean Hunt for a while, monitoring his development and impressive performances through the age groups, but the club’s decision to offer him a contract came as a surprise to the 19-year-old. “I was having dinner with a good mate and I got a phone call from James Kirtley saying, ‘We’re going to look to sign you. We’re going through various protocols with Surrey’”, Sean recalls. “I honestly didn’t expect it whatsoever, because I’ve never had a contract talk at all with him or with anyone else from another county.”

For someone born and raised in Guildford, who has played all his club cricket in Surrey and who had been part of the county’s youth set-up since he was 13 (including being named Surrey academy player of the year in 2019), an unexpected approach from Sussex forced the left-arm seamer into a big decision over his future. “It came as quite a bit of a shock, being a Surrey boy my whole life. […] Obviously, it was quite hard thinking about not playing for your boyhood club. Once I settled down a bit, I was very excited and obviously you can’t say no to such a good deal.”

Sean poses with the Surrey academy player of the year award in 2019

An emphasis on identifying and developing talented young players as Sussex look to build a side capable of winning trophies in the years to come led to five teenagers making first-class appearances for the club in the 2020 Bob Willis Trophy. Nine of the 16 players that pulled on a Sussex shirt in that tournament were under the age of 24, including James Coles, who, at 16 years and 157 days old, became the county’s youngest ever first-class player when he made his debut against Surrey in September.

This youth-oriented approach was not lost on Sean when it came to making his decision. “This is quite a young side and opportunities will be there,” he surmised. “It’s good to go somewhere where there is a good chance of you playing and then improving instead of sitting on the sideline and maybe playing the occasional game. […] Getting a good opportunity to break in and then consistently play obviously helps you more.”

A selfless blessing from Surrey director of cricket and doyen of the Kia Oval, Alec Stewart, also helped resolve any remaining internal conflict Sean was feeling. “I spoke to Alec and he was pretty happy for me to go as it was an unbelievable opportunity and they weren’t in a position to offer me a contract. He said that, without thinking biasedly as he wanted me to hopefully perform in the 2nd XI and get a contract, with a contract on the table, he would take it at a click of the fingers. I think he was fairly happy to see me improve and to make that step into professional cricket.”

With his name inked into Sussex’s books, what can Sean offer his new club? Video from an England Young Lions north versus south game last summer in which he took eight wickets offers a tantalising glimpse of a tall, hulking seamer able to move the ball both ways through the air with the confidence needed to pitch the ball right up to the batsman in search of an edge or the base of the stumps.

Our latest 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙜 𝙂𝙪𝙣 🔫@SeanHunt139 took eight wickets, including this five-fer, in a North vs. South match for the Young Lions last summer 🔥 pic.twitter.com/OngZxQM3H3

— Sussex Cricket (@SussexCCC) January 20, 2021

It is a fellow left-arm bowler – Mitchell Johnson - that Sean identifies as his biggest cricketing influence growing up. “I watched him in the Ashes a few times and loved the way he bowled: quick and quite aggressive. I aspire to be like that. I don’t quite have the pace yet, but hopefully I might one day. […] I swing the ball quite a bit luckily, so that’s more my action plan with bowling. […] I’m pretty tall [around 200cm or 6’5” at last measurement] and I like to use my height as a bowler.”

His talent has come to set him apart, but Sean’s introduction to cricket was like that of countless others before him. “My dad never played cricket, but both my brothers are very passionate cricketers – mainly my middle brother who captained me when I played in the first team [in club cricket]. I was always going to watch him play, and I enjoyed watching it so I wanted to get into it, to start playing cricket,” he recounts.

“I grew up playing for Horsley & Send throughout my whole life where I broke into the first team at about 14 years old. I played three seasons in the first team there before moving to Ashtead where I played my first year in the shortened season [in 2020], which didn’t go too badly.

“I first started playing for Surrey when I was 13, progressed through the ranks there and played Under-18s in my Under-15 season and kept progressing from there. I got picked for the Super 4s regional competition where I first started meeting James Kirtley. There and in the Young Lions.”

Sean (back row, fourth from right) , at 16,  as part of the Surrey Under-18 team in 2018

Those meetings have proved fateful for Sean and ultimately brought him to where he is now. Looking ahead, Sean is clearly excited about the potential of the young Sussex players he’ll be sharing a dressing room, a number of whom he knows reasonably well. “I’m quite good friends with Crokes [Henry Crocombe] and Jamie Atkins. I’ve played against them for a few years and then been fortunate enough to play with them a couple of times. Jack Carson and Tom Clark as well, I’ve played against them. […]

“I remember when I first played against [Clark] and I think he got a hundred when he was about 16 in the Under-18s and I thought, ‘wow, this guy really can play!’ So, I am looking forward to seeing where he can go, as well as the likes of Henry Crocombe and Jack Carson who are playing first-class cricket and both doing very well. […] Coming up against Henry Crocombe you know he’s going to bowl fast and take wickets against you. You had to see him off and attack someone else, because you knew he could be a threat with wickets. It is exciting to see where they can go and where the Sussex squad can go.”

He is eager to learn as much as possible from the senior members of that squad, as well as the coaching staff. “Ollie Robinson has been away with the Test squad and I can imagine he is learning a lot from the likes of James Anderson and Stuart Broad. I’ll pick his wisdom, James Kirtley’s and then George Garton as well, a fellow left-arm seamer. It will be good to pick their brains about what they think about bowling and try and learn as much possible.

“I’ve been fortunate enough to meet Phil Salt while I’ve been out here [in Adelaide, where Sean is spending the winter at the Darren Lehmann Cricket Academy and playing grade cricket]. I met him for a coffee the other day and he explained about the opportunities there [at Sussex] and the plans at Sussex. He messaged me saying, ‘I heard you’re in Adelaide, let’s meet up’. It’s an opportunity you’re never going to deny, meeting with an Adelaide Striker and future teammate, which is very exciting. He said, ‘keep working out here,’ because obviously it’s an unbelievable opportunity to be out here playing cricket. He said, ‘keep going and everything falls into place eventually.’”

And Sean has been working. Working hard. “I think I’ve bowled 100 overs out here already and I’ve still got a few games left. I will come in with lots of match prep, loads of games, so hopefully that will help me hit the ground running.”

When he does report for duty at The 1st Central County Ground, he is clear about his goals, both in the short and longer-term. “[I want to] push for a place in the Bob Willis Trophy. Cement my spot in there as a wicket-taker. I want to be a wicket-taker, someone you can turn to if you need a wicket. Hopefully the season will go well, and I will look to build on that.

My main aim is to play Test cricket and so I need to take wickets and perform well for a few years to get a look in. So, I’ve got to hit the ground running and try and take those wickets.”

It’s a plan, that if all goes well, will suit Sussex nicely.