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Andy Carter - On the mend
“My background on building
sites has installed a discipline
in me that means unless
something is physically
impossible, I will carry on.”
The stresses and strains of quick-bowling
dictate that time on the sidelines is
inevitable in modern cricket.
While evergreen exceptions Andre
Adams (39), Glenn Chapple (40) and
Ryan Sidebottom (36) continue to churn
out performances in the twilight of their
careers, the general reality is one of strained
sides, x-rayed ankles and, in Andy Carter’s
case, a broken back.
Carter possesses express pace, long levers
and an action that batsmen find awkward to
face. Since emerging from the Lincolnshire
leagues, his professional career has been
punctuated by spells of prolific wicket-
taking and time on the mend.
After six seasons of highs and lows, he
hopes his latest setback will provide a
definitive opportunity to draw a line in
the sand.
“Some people have a perception that I am
injured all of the time but it isn’t widely
known that I’ve had an underlying back
problem for two years that has meant I’ve
had to grit my teeth and graft through the
pain,” said Carter.
“My background on building sites has
installed a discipline in me that means
unless something is physically impossible,
I will carry on.
“There is no hiding place and no time for a
whinge or a moan. I prefer to get my head
down and get on with it.”
Carter’s willingness to play through the
pain made him a valuable asset at the
dawn of the 2014 season. His existing back
problem was operable but he made the call
to manage the pain with surgery pencilled
in for October.
“The physio had monitored me very
closely and he knew that I was managing
an injury as best I could,” he said.
“We knew that an operation would be
needed at some stage but I was prepared
to get through the season.
“Effectively, I was playing with a hole in
my spine but I was in a good place and
taking wickets.”
Carter’s stats make impressive reading;
70 wickets in 24 first class matches at an
average of 29.71. His prowess inT20 is
also beyond question. Beyond that, the
raw pace that saw him smash records in
the second eleven in his formative years has
been honed with guile and accuracy. He’s
also seen as the go-to bowler for blowing
away a tail.
“The last time I felt one hundred per cent
fit was during my loan spell at Essex in
2010 and I took a shed load of wickets,”
he said.
“I have a confidence in my own ability and
it’s at the back of my mind that I have still
taken wickets during a two-year spell that
I’ve had serious back problems.
“Outside of our dressing room, nobody
expected me to be in the Nottinghamshire
team at the start of the season but my spells
against Lancashire were probably the best
I’ve ever bowled.
“Every time I’ve been fit for a period of
time I’ve taken wickets and hopefully this
surgery puts my injury problems behind
me.”
Carter recalls the moment in the Grace
Road warm-up that the pressure on his
vertebrae finally told. Preparing to take his
place in a Notts NatWestT20 Blast bowling
attack in which he led the averages and
wicket-taking charts, he heard a crack and
his season came to an instant end.
“I had established a pre-match routine that
involved me bowling a certain number of
hard length balls before going through my
stretches,” he said.
“I bowled the last ball, felt an explosion in
my back and I was in agony. I knew that
something had snapped in half.”
Carter has made sound progress since
going under the knife in late July. A
successful operation has been followed by
close attention from Head Physio Jon Alty
and Strength and Conditioning Coach Paul
Watson.
“The surgeon told me that there was a one
per cent chance that the surgery wouldn’t
work but even if it was fifty-fifty I’d have
gone through with it,” he said.
“After the operation he told me that the
screw was in the perfect position.
“I’m on track and I’ve already started
lifting light weights and doing bodyweight
resistance work in the gym.
“It’s important that I don’t try to rush
ahead and I know that it will be at least
three months before I can even think about
bowling again.”
Next season marks the final throes of
Carter’s current contractual commitment
to Nottinghamshire. A new deal is more
than likely if he can prove his form and
fitness and he has no doubt that he can
begin the 2015 season in the team and
amongst the wickets.