Godleman full of praise for Madsen's influence

Wayne Madsen is one of the most prolific batsmen in Derbyshire's history but his influence extends far beyond weight of runs.
Wayne MadsenWayne Madsen
Wayne Madsen

His 163 at Canterbury this week was his fourth century of the season, his second against Kent this summer and his 22nd first-class hundred for the county.

Only five players have scored more centuries for Derbyshire and with six County Championship matches remaining, starting against Northamptonshire at Chesterfield on Monday, the 32-year-old is on course for his best season.

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It was a desire to concentrate on his batting and boost his chances of playing for England that was behind the decision to stand down as Derbyshire captain before the season began.

But Billy Godleman, who took over the captaincy, appreciates the impact Madsen has on the team and his own career.

After he scored the first double century of his career and the highest by a Derbyshire player against Worcestershire the previous week, Godleman was quick to acknowledge the help he has received from Madsen.

For a large part of Godleman’s innings, Madsen was at the other end in a third wicket stand of 251and Derbyshire’s captain appreciates the value of sharing a partnership with his predecessor.

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“I love batting with Wayne,” he said. “He’s obviously a fantastic player and he’s a very good friend of mine.

“He’s been incredibly supportive and helpful with my personal career, so every time I get to observe his batting I’m always learning.

“He’s been a real support network away from the field, talking about batting and the technicalities of batting, the tactics of batting and game plans. Picking his brains on how he looks to play himself and how he’s accumulated runs over his career.

“He’s been very open and willing to share his experiences and knowledge with me and he’s done it in a really kind and humble way.”

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Godleman is also grateful for the advice he has received from Madsen in taking on the leadership in the four day game.

“From a captaincy aspect he has great experience in captaining Derbyshire and he’s allowed me to use his experience in any way that can help me and inform my captaincy.

“He’s always keeping a really nice balance of sharing without ever telling me what to do and that is a really hard balance to strike. Only someone with Wayne’s qualities as a human being could do that.”

Whether Madsen’s international ambitions are realised remains to be seen but as Godleman said: “We’re always in a better position when Wayne Madsen is batting.”