Casey-South Melbourne captain Luke Wells has a knack of making big hundreds. His 18 first-class hundreds is testament to that. The Englishman recently sat down with Nick Creely to chat about his career at Sussex, playing cricket in Melbourne, and his life away from the game.
“It does feel like a family club, and there’s a real passion and deep drive to bring the club forward.”
At just 27, it’s obvious that Luke Wells is about to enter the peak of his powers as a batsman.
The Casey-South Melbourne skipper and Sussex opening batsman already has 18 first-class hundreds next to his name, at an average of 37 batting in the hardest position for an English County player.
His Sussex pedigree runs deep, with Wells’ father Alan one of the great batsman to play for the County, while his uncle Colin, was a fine all-rounder for the club for well over a decade.
“I’m from a cricketing family – Dad racked up about 20,000 runs in 21, 22 years and played one Test for England, famously, and got a golden duck against Curtly Ambrose,” he said with a chuckle.
“A lot of people say he was unlucky to not play more – a lot of people from the era say he’s one of the finest English players around. Malcolm Marshall once said he was the best English batsman he’s bowled to.
“Cricket’s always been a massive part of me.”
But, coming off a self-described lean year for his County in 2018, one that still netted over 600 runs, including a century, Wells took up an offer to jet out to Australia and captain the Swans in Victorian Premier Cricket this season.
It’s a decision that has freed him, and taught him plenty of lessons about enjoying the game and making a difference to a club that has struggled for on-field success.
Wells has been utterly irresistible with the blade in the early stages of the season, already notching up two mammoth centuries in just five innings, but, more importantly, has driven arguably the youngest squad in the competition to overcome a torrid two-win season in 2017/18, and start believing in its game.
He said that a strong culture and eagerness of his group to want to learn has been obvious – to Wells, being in finals contention isn’t a surprise at all. He’s enjoying the club so much, that he’s already locked in to return in 2019/20.
“I didn’t know much about the culture (at the club) to be fair, I found out pretty quickly – guys wanted to tell me how they’re a talented group that have potentially underachieved in the last few years, particularly with the batting. There’s loads of talent, so I completely agree,” he said.
“It’s a great club, Casey, and there is a lot of caring people, and I really feel like everyone cares about the club, whether it’s from the fourths to the ones, and everyone in between.
“It feels like a family club, and there’s a real passion and deep drive to bring the club forward – they organise social events, and try and support each other, so it’s a really mixed club. It has opened my eyes into how a good club should operate, there’s not one selfish person in the entire club.
“To me, the hardest part of a strong culture is producing selfless players, so that was already ready-made when I arrived.”
On a personal level, Wells has worked hard with the likes of Nick Jewell, Craig Lambden and Prabath Nissanka at Casey Fields on bringing his own ideas about how to get the best out of cricketers, something he’s learnt along the way as a full-time professional.
“It’s very easy for coaches and people around the club to want to chastise the players for making mistakes, and I personally don’t believe it’s the best way to get the best out of players,” he said.
“I’ve come over here, I guess, to help give people some confidence, and try and pump their tyres up, and encourage them to stick to their strengths.
“I would never nail a bloke for playing a poor shot, I’d ask them questions – if they’re really scared of making a mistake when they go out to bat, they’re less likely to make good decisions anyway, so I suppose I’ve been working on that.
“I’ve also spoken to the guys about not worrying about the opposition and who they are – we played Fitzroy Doncaster recently, and I had at least 10 people talk to me about this guy who plays for them (Trent Lawford), he won the Ryder Medal, and I was like ‘I’m sure he’s a good player, but I couldn’t care less to be honest’.
“I only care about what we do, and I want the guys to narrow their focus a little bit, and not worry about things out of their control – that’s been a big thing, and I’m confident I’ve got batsmen and bowlers thinking about their own plans.
“I tell the guys a lot, that I don’t care about the outcome, and that’s something I’ve learnt a lot and reinforced by Jason Gillespie, my coach back at Sussex – it’s a cliché, but just sticking to the process, so I won’t get the guys thinking about the ladder, or finals, because there’s a lot of cricket left to be played.
“Watching the guys go about their business now, I feel like they’ve made good strides.”
While Wells has faced some of the finest bowlers in the world in his 125-match first class career to date, he praised some of the talented at the building Premier Cricket club, some of which he believes has the capabilities to take another step.
“It’s definitely a young club, I’m the oldest at 27, and I’m getting used to that – I’m really impressed with the talent,” he said.
“Nathan Lambden has all the raw materials to be a serious prospect – I’ve spoken to him a lot, and it’s about channelling his aggression, and not wasting energy on unnecessary things.
“I want him to bowl fuller, attack the stumps more, because he has the height, pace, he swings the ball, has the aggression and has a good bumper, so all the raw materials to suggest he should be playing up a level. He just needs to attack the stumps in red-ball cricket, and not ball back of a length as much.
“He’s desperate to improve – I’ve never seen a guy as committed as he is, he does Pilates throughout the week, stretch sessions and all this stuff to get himself right.
“I’ve been also impressed with Devin Pollock, he’s got a really good head on his shoulders – in almost every situation he’s asked to bat in, he’s delivered. Lachie (Sperling) is a fantastic stroke maker, and he could really go on and become a really serious senior player.
“I could keep reeling off names, Michael Wallace has done really well, and there’s plenty of players – I’m trying to focus them on becoming more consistent, and thinking about what they’re doing ball-by-ball.”
Wells said it was pleasing to contribute on a personal level to the Swans’ successes so far this season, including scores of 121 against Fitzroy Doncaster, 154 against Dandenong and 51 against Prahran, and hopes it can give him the confidence to go home to more testing conditions and bounce back for his County.
“From a personal point of view, coming off my worst season of County cricket – which was weird because last year I was the leading English run scorer with about 1300 runs – it was nice to come out here and remind myself that I’m a good player,” he said.
“Before this year, I’ve scored nine hundreds in three years, and I think that’s one of my great abilities, that when I get in, I can make big scores.
“You can get out early in England, it does swing and seam with a duke ball, especially four-day cricket in the UK, which is played in a block at the start of the season and at the end of the season, so you go back in April when it’s dreary and cold, and you’re asked to bat on bowler friendly conditions, and that’s the same at the end of the season.
“This year, maybe only two guys got 1000 runs, whereas a bunch of guys got 50-plus wickets, so the bowlers dominated this year – it was tough for me personally this year, but at 27, my best years are certainly ahead of me.
“I’ve played a lot of cricket now – we play 14 games a year back home, so I’ve got around 120 games now, but I think they come into their prime about now, so I want to keep scoring big hundreds, and contributing to Sussex wins. It’s up to us to get up to Division 1 and winning trophies, that’s my entire focus.”
And he admits that playing for England is the ultimate goal, like all County cricketers, but it’s all about mindset, and not allowing himself to drift too far ahead.
“I do back myself – it was a shame I didn’t back up my 2017 season this year, if I had a similar year, I may have been in the mix,” he said.
“Something I do a lot, which is a weakness of mine, is when I look too far ahead, I get myself in trouble. When I’m playing well, I get too excited, and conversely, if I’m playing poorly, I think the other way.
“It’s my challenge to come out here and focus on what the team needs, and I need to keep reminding myself of that – if I’m completely focused on the job at hand, I believe I can go up a level, but the reality is, I need to put together several seasons to be able to do it.
“Of course I’m desperate to play international cricket, but if I’m thinking about it too much, I’ll fall into trouble.”
Wells is well renowned for batting fielding teams into the ground, with his best score a mammoth 258 scored against Durham back in May 2017, and said that his approach in the middle is key to longevity.
Batting long periods of time isn’t exactly simple, it requires extraordinary application, and an ability to adapt, grind and eventually, capitalize.
“The key is being able to switch on and off each ball – if you’re in between balls, and you’re super focused and uptight, you waste mental energy, so I try and do that,” he said.
“I have really fixed routines every ball, whether it’s how I twist the bat or tap the ground, all these little things, they keep me in the moment.
“It’s almost a form of mindfulness, which is really important.”
Another area of Wells’ game which is a real work in progress is his leg-spin, something that has been on show in Australia this season so far. While 54 first-class wickets at an average of just under 50 isn’t sublime, it’s a weapon he is adamant can add another dimension to his game.
“I work hard on it – I’ve had a weird bowling career. When I first started I bowled off-spin, so in my junior days I bowled leg-spin, and I realised it was a lot better,” he said.
“A few years ago, I got about 25 wickets in Division 1 with my leg-spin, and I actually bowled well, but I had a really bad knee injury, which I’ve battled with for a while now.
“I was becoming more of a genuine bowler, but now, I’m finding my way again, so it’s been quite stop start. It’s a huge asset to have, but I haven’t got the wickets I wanted out here yet.”
Outside of the game, Wells is constantly thinking about what’s best for his young family, but for now, is enjoying playing cricket in Melbourne to “escape the English winter”, with the Englishman out here with his French partner, Marion, and nine-month old baby boy in Carrum, overlooking the beach.
“My little boy is probably going to be bilingual when he grows up, because my missus only speaks French to him,” he said.
“We’ve been put up by the ex-chairman of selectors in a house right by the beach out here, so we’re really enjoying our little Aussie adventure.”
While cricket is his main focus, and how he supports his family, he said that at the back of his mind, life after the game is something he does need to come into consideration.
“I’m doing a history degree with the English Open University, which I do in the English winters. It’s something I do like to work on, so when cricket does finish, I’ve got something to fall back on,” he said.
“It’s all about finding the balance – cricket’s my profession, but it goes quickly and at times when it doesn’t go well, it can be stressful, especially with mortgages to pay and a little one to look after.
“I play a game at the end of the day and I’m there to enjoy it, and I’m privileged to do it.”
And Wells said that English cricket is providing plenty of support for the players when the time does come that their careers are over.
“We’re really lucky in the UK, we have the PCA (Professional Cricketers Association), and it helps in terms of getting us thinking about life after cricket,” he said.
“Every County has somebody that looks after them, and they fund half of our studies, and there are scholarship awards, and if you show you’re committed to personal development, there are conferences about life after cricket, so there’s loads of support for us.
“I’ve noticed that change since when I started – when I first started, it was a bit taboo to think about it, whereas now it actually helps your cricket, because you’re not stressed.”
Wells’ Casey-South Melbourne takes on Greenvale on Saturday in a one-day match, as they look to break into the Victorian Premier Cricket top-eight.
