'Older, more mature, better' - how Banton built breakthrough knock

Tom Banton thinks he is older, wiser and, quite simply, better these days.

It is coming up to seven years since the England batter first caught the eye as a 19-year-old by hitting a stunning 71 from 37 balls to help Somerset chase 204 against Surrey in the T20 Blast.

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If the pure numbers from that day were not enough, one reverse flick for six off Sam Curran - now an England team-mate - made some smart judges take note.

The following winter Banton was picked by England for their tour of New Zealand.

He kept his place the next summer, in Twenty20 and 50-over cricket, picked as the fresh face to help take the 2019 World Cup winners on into a new era.

Banton made 58 against Ireland and 71 in a T20 against Pakistan, but they were his only scores above 50 in 15 matches.

Another five caps came and went in 2022, making this current run the 27-year-old's third go at international level.

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His match-winning 63 not out in England's five-wicket win against Scotland on Saturday, with his side's T20 World Cup hopes on the line, may not have been his highest score, but it was his best knock for his country - a breakout innings in which he finally delivered on all of those talents by truly defining a match on the biggest stage.

"I think just a bit, obviously older, more mature, got a better understanding of my game," Banton said, asked what he is doing differently this time.

"When I came onto the scene, I remember at the start of that summer I was just about scraping into Somerset's second team.

"Then six months later, I was playing for England and traveling all over the world, which was great, but I've got more of an understanding.

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"I have kind of, I don't know, just grown. I've learned a lot about myself. Not even anything to do with cricket."

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Banton's recall came at the start of last year with this World Cup in mind.

Despite largely playing as an opener for his county and in The Hundred, he was picked by England to bat in the middle order because of his ability to attack spin - the style of bowling which dominates the middle overs of T20 internationals at the venues of World Cup co-hosts India and Sri Lanka.

At that time, only India's Abhishek Sharma, the number one-ranked batter in the world, was scoring faster against spinners than Banton. Banton's average of 44.1 against slow bowling was the best of any English batter.

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Scoring 54 not out to secure a T20 series win in Sri Lanka before this tournament hinted at what was to come. The Scotland innings was a bright spark amid the uncertainty around how good England actually are.

"It's [batting at number four] is different, I won't lie," he said.

"You come in probably against spin, or towards the end of the powerplay, depending how we go.

"The biggest one is like adapting to the scenario or the wicket.

"I found Wankhede [the Mumbai stadium, venue for England's win over Nepal and defeat by West Indies] a bit hard.

"Today [Saturday], I feel like it was a pretty good wicket."

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Banton is disarmingly human - a welcome trait within the current set-up.

He was one of those most guilty of what captain Harry Brook's described as being "too careful" against West Indies, having been out tentatively chipping a catch.

He speaks openly and will admit his doubts, which were there with that innings following another low score against Nepal.

"As any human would do, there's obviously those doubts but I think Baz [coach Brendon McCullum], Brooky, the coaches and everyone in the team backs everyone.

"It's T20 cricket, people are going to go up and down, that's just how T20 cricket is sometimes.

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"You've just got to keep backing yourself, keep training hard, keep working hard on your game and luckily it came off for me today."

But against Scotland, Banton's innings perfectly encapsulated his growing maturity. His first nine deliveries were all from pace bowlers, and he scored only five runs.

When facing spin for the first time, he took one single and then hit his first boundary from the next delivery.

When Scotland's left-arm spinner Mark Watt entered the attack, Banton hit the first two balls for sixes over long-off and the fourth over mid-wicket.

It was a batter clearly playing to his strengths, even if he insists it was not premeditated.

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"It's just reading the game and adapting - that's the biggest word at the moment in our changing room," he said.

"On a flat wicket, we're one of the best teams in the world but if we want to win the World Cup, especially if we're going to Sri Lanka, you're only going to have to adapt.

"Sometimes it's just about winning and winning ugly."

In total, Banton took 28 runs from 10 balls delivered by Watt. He eased 35 from 31 deliveries bowled by the rest of Scotland's attack.

Across the match six dismissals when batters were attempting sweeps across the match - the bounce of the Kolkata pitch bringing danger.

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Rather than following suit, Banton put away his trademark shot - he tried it once to Watt early on, but never again - and instead targeted straight boundaries.

"Everyone sets up the field [square to defend Banton's sweeps] straight away now and on a wicket like that it was probably perfect, because I wasn't even trying," he said.

"That wasn't even in my mind to try and hit it there.

"You've got to keep evolving as about and keep learning and keep trying to hit it in different areas."

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