Jaik of all trades

Jaik Mickleburgh and his England Under-19 team-mates are gearing up for a tough tour of South Africa in the new year.

The Essex batsman made an instant impression for his county when he made 62 against Leicestershire on his LV County Championship debut, and he has not looked back since.

"I'd been playing a few second XI games and then I got the call-up to the Essex first team towards the end of the season," he told ECBtv.

"I was struggling with a back injury about a month before the end of the season, so I didn't know I was going to be playing until Paul Grayson rang me up and told me I was in for the Leicester game.

"Hopefully that will stand me in good stead for next year and I can go on and do well, on a personal level and for the team."

He will have plenty of chances to hone his skills ahead of the 2009 season after being selected in the England Under-19 squad for the winter tour.

The hard work has already started for Mickleburgh, with a training session at the National Performance Centre in Loughborough.

"We have been working hard on the bowling machine," he said. "We have been trying out some things, particularly for one-day cricket.

"And we have been doing some fielding practice, for one-day cricket again.

"We are ready to go out there and give these guys a beating."

Mickleburgh also has his sights set on emulating two of his talented Essex team-mates.

"I look up to guys like Alastair Cook and Ravi Bopara, who are obviously playing for England," he admitted.

"They are the levels you are aiming to be playing at. As a youngster you are always looking at things like the England international side.

"Hopefully this (England Under-19 tour) can push me on personally and you never know where you might end up."