Dan Lawrence’s journey from cricket-mad kid to England’s new Test opener

Dan Lawrence, England’s newest Test opener, will roll into action at Old Trafford on Wednesday, more than two years since the last of his 11 Tests. Barry Hyam has been keeping an eye on him since he turned up on the Essex age-group pathway as an under-11, the cricket-obsessed son of the Chingford groundsman, who lived in a flat above the ground and liked to doodle before he went out to bat.

It wasn’t until Lawrence got a little older that he started to stand out. “At a young age, you can see the batting talent and skill, but you can’t immediately see who is going to make it,” Hyam says.

Related: Sri Lanka’s Test return to England has gone under the radar but is long overdue | Mark Ramprakash

“It is not until you can see the application and dedication players put in that things become clearer. One of the biggest things with Dan as he started to come through into second- and first-team cricket was that confidence and belief in his ability.

“Ultimately, really deep down, that belief comes from within, but we like to think a small part is the environment we set up, the playing without restraint we try to encourage in our young players.

“He is such a lovely nice lad, but just had that really strong self-belief. It doesn’t come across in an arrogant way, he believes he has the ability to adapt to any situation.”

That enviable self-belief was clear when, aged 17, Lawrence scored a hundred in his second first-class game, bashing 161 against Surrey, where he now plays, at the Oval, becoming the third-youngest player to hit a Championship century.

It was there again when he flamed five consecutive sixes off a Shoaib Bashir over in the Championship in June. And bubbles away as he tackles his newest assignment, opening against Sri Lanka, shoe-horned into position because of Zak Crawley’s finger injury and England’s desire to get the young man with the Bazball spirit into the XI.

“I haven’t done it for a while,” he says. “But I’m really excited to get out there with Ducky [Ben Duckett] and hopefully put on a show.”

Now the Essex Academy director and second-team head coach, Hyam’s career shadowed Lawrence’s for a while. He was head coach of the emerging player programme Lawrence joined at under-14, then took over the second team as Lawrence started to find a footing there. He has no doubts Lawrence will be able to adjust to the new role. And it won’t be for the first time.

“In the early stages of his second-team career we encouraged him to open the batting as often as he could because then he got to play the better bowlers and against the newer ball,” Hyam says. “Then, when he started to play in the Essex team, Alastair Cook and Nick Browne were in position and that opportunity wasn’t there for him to open.

“He became a real strength in that middle-order and we built around him. But I strongly believe he can adapt again. He’ll do it in his own way. After all, when batting at three or four, he will have had times throughout his career when he has had to come in early and face a new ball.”

When Lawrence left Chelmsford at the end of 2023 to move to the Oval, the sighs of disappointment from Essex fans could be picked up on the live stream, but he didn’t leave them without a final show of fireworks – three hundreds including a beast of an innings at Blackpool against Lancashire that had spectators scattering for safety.

The move has been a successful one for both parties. Essex are happy with his replacement, Jordan Cox, and Lawrence has bolstered the already star-stuffed Surrey lineup, averaging more than 50 in the Championship and being set free to bowl his egg-whisk off-breaks, taking 15 wickets.

It is an action Lawrence sometimes squirms at when he sees it. “It feels completely normal to me,” he says. “Then, when I watch it back, it could be quite tough to watch sometimes, but what comes out of the hand is generally pretty good and that’s all I focus on.”

“He always fancied himself as a good bowler,” says Hyam, “and even though he has a very unconventional action, he gets lots of spin and shape on the ball. Over the last few years he has added consistency to his bowling.

“His batting has developed, too. He’s had to adapt his technique a little bit, having been exposed to international cricket. There is slightly less movement, he is more still and more balanced, and reaps the rewards.”

Hyam will be keeping a close eye on events at Old Trafford. “As coaches we spend a lot of time with kids coming through the system and we follow their progress closely, even when they move on. Anyone that knows Dan knows he comes from a really good place, he’s a very caring and considerate young man.” As well as a talented one, who has had to wait patiently at the door for another chance.

This is an extract from the Guardian’s weekly cricket email, The Spin. To subscribe, just visit this page and follow the instructions.