Dad had to book me into karate classes to improve my coordination - Sonny Baker's route to the top

But after spending any amount of time with Sonny Baker, it’s hard not to feel energised by the emergence of a fast bowler who has already caught the eye of Andrew Flintoff and been handed an England Lions cap before making his bow in the County Championship. 

We catch up with the 22-year-old on a sun-drenched spring day at an immaculate looking Utilita Bowl, the ground at which Baker is likely to make that long-awaited Division One entrance against Yorkshire tomorrow.  

He signed for Hampshire from Somerset back in August 2024, and spent this winter working under Flintoff in Australia. Such is England’s penchant for left-field selections - and the weight given to the former all-rounder's judgement - that the odds of Baker returning there for England’s Ashes tour at the tail-end of this year are tumbling.