Was it cathartic putting your health
problems down on paper? The main
part of my story is the last two years –
they’re the most interesting bits to me,
personally. The cricket is the cricket. But
getting that stu down on the page, I
found fascinating, in a weird kind of way.
I’m pretty strong in my head with where
I’m at, because I’m incredibly lucky to have
survived. Arguably I shouldn’t be here, and
a lot of stars aligned for me. You can be
who you want to be on social media, but all
the intricate things nobody knows about,
they’re in the book. Within three months
of having the operation I couldn’t move
my left arm above my shoulder because
the wires would come out of my heart.And it was the right thing to put your
side of the Kevin Pietersen story... I
think it would have been remiss of me not
to. It was my Test debut, so it was a shame
how it turned out. It certainly wasn’t down
to me. He was a fantastic player – I loved
watching him – but it was tough work
in the changing room. It was a fantastic
partnership! We put on a hundred on mydebut. I did what I needed to do and he put
on one of the better knocks in Test cricket.And how is your health now? As long
as I don’t get too stressed or consistently
nervous, then I’m fi ne. But I can’t do
excessive exercise. That hampers me
massively with work. The world is not my
oyster – there would be a lot of di erent
things I’d be trying if I was fully fi t. I was
a fi tness fanatic – I was addicted to the
gym, from an ego point of view, for looking
good as well as my power game. If I wasn’t
on the cricket fi eld I was in the gym. My
other release was going out, seeing my
mates and drinking. I can’t really do any of
that, and it took me a good six months to
adapt. I have a monitor inside me. When
I go to bed I have a device by my bed and
it will alert the hospital. But you know
yourself if something’s wrong. The two
times it’s happened to me I certainly knew
about it – I shot across the room when I
was doing a Q&A, and when I was in the
pool I burst through the water.Are you allowed to coach? Yes,
absolutely. I did some work with
Northants, and then I went on tour with
England Under-19s for a month. That
gave me confi dence about my body.
I did three hours’ non-stop throwing
at the lads in 30-degree heat. That’s as
excessive as it’s going to be in coaching.You’re also scouting... is administration
the way ahead for you? I wouldn’t call it
administration! But I’m really delighted
to be involved as an England scout. It’s
something I’d love to be involved with
in future, too. It’s the next step forward,
looking at the next best players. I’ll be
going all over – north, midlands, south.Why is it that English batsmen are
unable to rein in their attacking instincts
at times? The one-day game is taking over
with its attacking prowess. Sometimes
batsmen lose sight of batting for days;
they’re thinking only in hours. To get big
runs in Test cricket you have to stay at
the crease and apply your technique.
Not so much at the top level, but slightly
lower, a lot of batsmen are trying to run
before they can walk. Players forget that
you have to nail down those basics, or
you’ll get exposed early on in the season
in England. The lads who went too hardat the ball at Lord’s discovered that.Do you foresee statistical analysis
playing a big role in selection? [ECB
national selector] Ed Smith is a very
intelligent bloke, and he’s got some great
contacts. Stats might play more of a role
as he moves further into the job. It’s very
early days. So far he’s done an excellent job
bringing in a couple of fresh faces – Dom
Bess and Jos Buttler. That was very much
from leftfi eld. What a class performer Jos
is, to do that in Test cricket when he’s had
no red-ball preparation whatsoever. He’s
a very clever cricketer, and Ed saw that. I
played from age 17 with Jos – age group,
Lions and England. I very much enjoyed
batting with him – di erent cricketers but
very energetic batsmen.You were a fi ne player of spin. Will you
be helping England this winter in Sri
Lanka and the West Indies? I’d love to
help – whether that’s age groups, Lions or
whatever. It’s going to be a tough winter.
It turns in the West Indies as much as
anywhere now, and it bounces too. I
toured there, and our group of lads did
really well. We need to give our players as
much experience in turning conditions
as we can, especially at a development
level. When I was picked I couldn’t have
been in a better place – I went to the
subcontinent virtually every winter,
playing on turning wickets, from 17 to
when I fi nished.Do England need to be putting
specialists at short leg? I think you have
to love it to do it. You can’t be scared,
because you can’t be on the back foot,
and you need to have positive movements
towards the ball. I think we have to realise
every position is a specialist position –
but especially there and at slip. We saw
at Lord’s people coming in and out of
the slip cordon. Slip fi elding is an art; not
everyone is good at short leg. You have
to have the right person for the job.Will The 100 be able to attract new
cricket fans? We need to get over the
negativity we have in the UK about
everything. But I would have liked to
know a little bit more about it. I think it
will be a success if we attract the best
players in the world. And they love
coming to England.Interview by
Huw Turbervill
and James CoyneJames Taylor was a classy batsman against spin whose career was cruelly
Facing up ended by a severe heart condition. He has just released his autobiography
GEOFF BARTON/GARETH COPLEY/GETTY IMAGESCut Short
By James Taylor
with John
Woodhouse, is
published by White
Owl and available
for £GOOD ACTION
James Taylor plays
pétanque against
The Cricketer in
Cleaver Square | thecricketer.com