Upon reflection at his family home in Cardiff South, Jason Sangha has described 2019-20 as the summer he needed to have.
Team wise he struck success twice on the same day amid the coronavirus crisis, Sheffield Shield for NSW and Belvidere Cup with Sydney grade club Randwick-Petersham, but individually the 20-year-old played very little first-class cricket.
Having been a regular for both the Blues and Sydney Thunder the season before, Sangha rarely featured in the state's first XI and not at all for the Big Bash League franchise.
Instead, the right-handed batsman took the opportunity to carve out 919 runs for RandyPetes across all competitions, 297 runs for ACT-NSW Country in the domestic Second XI and produced knocks of 72 and 85 against the touring English Lions.
"In terms of my skill set, I think it was one of my best seasons with the bat," the former Australian under-19 skipper said.
"I didn't get many games for NSW and none in the Big Bash, but I think I needed this season to regroup and to think about what you've got to do to be successful at that level.
"Learning the art of scoring runs and doing that consistently. I haven't really had a chance previously because I went straight out of school and into Shield."
After taking advantage of the current forced break, Sangha said he would look to "keep improving" for next campaign and "find a way to translate" his form to "domestic cricket".
Last month, when Cricket Australia recommended to cancel all of the country's competitions because of COVID-19, the former Newcastle representative landed two different titles from back-to-back phone calls.
"It was so strange," he said.
"I went for a hit with my coach on the Monday, to make sure I was ready to go in case I was called up for Shield.
"Then on the Tuesday morning I got a call saying we [NSW] had won the Shield. An hour-and-a-half later I got a call saying we [RandyPetes] had won the Belvidere Cup."
While admitting it wasn't the ideal way to win major premierships without a finals series, NSW and RandyPetes earned the silverware by being on top of their respective ladders.
Sangha, having played in last year's Shield decider, made just one appearance for the Blues this time around.
He was co-captain of RandyPetes, who improved significantly after finishing 18th the season before.
"It was a really good challenge," Sangha said about leading the squad. "I had so much support around me."
Closer to home, Sangha had been keeping a close eye on his old stomping ground at Wallsend with the Tigers claiming the Newcastle District Cricket Association minor premiership before the play-offs were cancelled.
His parents, who run Indian restaurants in the Hunter region including Raj's Corner, have been able to continue trading under the government's coronavirus restrictions.
In the news this week:
- Toohey's News, The Podcast Episode 04: Newcastle Knights coach Adam O'Brien
- Appeal over serious Lake Macquarie crash that left two in critical condition
- Mobile phone detection camera spotted at Broadmeadow
- Month-long operation to remove containers lost from the YM Efficiency off Hunter coast to begin this weekend
