By Rob Barnett
James Taylor thinks his small stature is no big deal and should not stop him having a successful England career.
The 5ft 6ins batsman yesterday made an impressive first senior international fifty as the tourists ran Sri Lanka close at Colombo’s R Premadasa Stadium.
Taylor’s 90 in 109 balls featured a sensible mix of cautious and attacking strokes, the latter yielding two maximums and six fours.
The 24-year-old right-hander had to wait 15 months for his third one-day international appearance, to go with the two Test caps he won in 2012.
The son of a jockey, Taylor is used to answering questions about his stature, having taken county cricket by storm since the age of 19 first with Leicestershire and now Nottinghamshire.
He could follow the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Aravinda de Silva as batsmen to make their mark on the international game.
"I'd like to think I'm not the smallest ever guy to play cricket," Taylor said today.
"I don't believe size matters. I can pack a decent punch for my size - and, as long as you can hit the ball over the rope, it doesn't matter what size you are."
Taylor played yesterday as a result of Alastair Cook’s one-match ban, batting at three after county team-mate Alex Hales replaced Cook at the head of the order.
Taylor top-scored for England, but their 265 all out in 50 overs was not quite enough as Kumar Sangakkara’s classy 86 and Angelo Mathews’ unbeaten 51 saw Sri Lanka to a five-wicket win with two balls to spare.
The result leaves the hosts 3-1 up with three to play as the series moves to Kandy for the next two games.
"I've waited a year and a half since the last time I played for England," Taylor added.
"In my first game for a while in an England shirt, I was delighted to score a few... in what could have been a one-off opportunity for me.
"But, unfortunately, it wasn't enough for the team's cause.
"It was bitterly disappointing to get so close in the end, but I reckon we were probably 20 to 30 runs short."
Taylor seems set to keep his place for the next match, on Wednesday, which will be another opportunity to press for a spot in England’s World Cup squad due to be named later this month.
"That's been my ultimate dream for the last few years - to get into that World Cup squad," he said.
"I hope I get another go (in Sri Lanka)... and can put in another couple of decent performances to get me on that plane.
"I'm really not sure when my next opportunity comes.
"If I get another go in the next game, it's up to me to take it again - and hope we can post a total the team can defend to get back to winning ways."