Horsham's Nash says making Nottinghamshire move from Sussex has '˜refreshed' him

Chris Nash has spoken of already seeing the benefits on swapping Sussex for Nottinghamshire in a bid to '˜refresh' himself and avoid thing going '˜stale.'
Horsham T20 2nd game. Sussex (batting) v Chris Nash Invitation XI. Chris Nash. Pic Steve Robards. Pic SR1714784 SUS-170626-091954001Horsham T20 2nd game. Sussex (batting) v Chris Nash Invitation XI. Chris Nash. Pic Steve Robards. Pic SR1714784 SUS-170626-091954001
Horsham T20 2nd game. Sussex (batting) v Chris Nash Invitation XI. Chris Nash. Pic Steve Robards. Pic SR1714784 SUS-170626-091954001

Apart from a handful of university matches at the start of his career, Horsham-based Nash had played the vast majority of his 184 first class appearances for his home county Sussex.

Moving to Trent Bridge, on a three-year deal at the end of last season, came as a great surprise to many, but the top-order batsman is relishing the opportunity of showcasing his talents at a new county.

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The former Tanbridge School House pupil, who grew up playing cricket for Horsham at Cricketfield Road, was released from his contract last November.

He had spent his entire domestic professional career with Sussex since making his first-class debut in 2002.

Nash scored more than 11,000 first-class runs during his career and won the Championship in 2006 and 2007, but felt it was the right time for a new challenge.

“I’ve been at Sussex since I was seven years old,” he Nash. “So to make the move was a big thing for me but I’ve been here since January and I can already see the benefits. It has completely refreshed me as a 34-year-old and to be involved with such a top club with a great coaching staff is great fun.”

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The right-hander admitted he had options on where to play his cricket but Nottingham proved to be a draw he couldn’t resist.

“When you are free to speak to other counties you have to look at the reasons why you are going to go there.

“You look at Notts winning the white ball double last season and getting promoted back as a Division One club, they are a huge club and have a great history.

“It’s a brilliant ground, I’ve always enjoyed playing at Trent Bridge and it’s been a good ground for me over the years.”

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Previous experiences of working with the Nottinghamshire head coach also counted favourably in Nash’s move.

He added: “Then there’s Mooresy (Peter Moores). That’s a massive draw for me, having worked with him at Sussex all those years ago and to reunite with him is going to be good for me and my cricket.

“It was now or never really. I’m 35 in May and to sign here for three years is going to give me a great boost and just sort of reignites everything.

“When you’ve been at the same place for so long you might go a little bit stale, so it’s been good to move to somewhere like Nottingham, where there’s a little bit of pressure.

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“It’s a big club, having won so much last year – and with such good players around you’ve got to work so hard just to get into the team.”

Amongst the attractions of the move to Notts, the opportunity of returning to the top flight was a key factor.

Nash added: “I’ve spent the last two years outside of Division One and we were out of it in 2010 as well, so it’s nice to be back. You look at the games we’re playing.”