New Delhi, Aug 12 (IANS): At just 23, Jordan Cox has already lived through a career's worth of highs and lows in the span of a year. As he prepares to join England’s Test team for the first time next week, the feisty cricketer from Kent is poised to bring his unique brand of energy, fearlessness, and versatility to the national side.

When Cox received the call from England coach Brendon McCullum, he walked through Battersea Park with his girlfriend. A typical Bazball quip accompanied the news of his selection for the Sri Lanka series: “We want aggressive cricketers, which is what you have been doing. Oh, and bring your golf clubs,” Cox revealed his conversation with McCullum to ‘The Telegraph.’

Cox, a scratch golfer, might not yet be capped by England, but he is no stranger to the pressures of international cricket. He was an unused squad member on the T20 tour to Pakistan in 2022 and was on standby for this year’s World Cup. A “revolting” finger injury during last year’s Hundred tournament delayed his inevitable white-ball debut. But now, with Zak Crawley sidelined by injury, Cox finds himself on the brink of a Test bow—albeit as an understudy, for now.

“I didn’t quite get a game in Pakistan,” Cox told The Telegraph. “I loved the experience, but I was gutted. This time, I’m not going into the Test squad thinking about getting a game. If that happens, great. But I’m thinking, ‘How much experience can I get and how much can I learn from these few weeks, playing with the best players?’”

Cox’s journey to the England setup has been anything but straightforward. Before this season, his focus was primarily on white-ball cricket, as his red-ball returns for Kent had been modest. However, a crowded wicket-keeping roster at Kent, which included England aspirant Ollie Robinson and Test keeper Sam Billings, prompted Cox to make a bold decision—he moved to their rivals, Essex.

The transition was far from smooth. Cox’s finger injury was so severe that it forced him to play as a specialist batsman for most of the season, delaying his return to wicket-keeping—the very reason he had left Kent.

“It didn’t feel great, leaving Kent,” he admits. “I’ve left some of my best mates, which is sad and emotional. But I wasn’t getting the guarantee to keep (wickets) at Kent, and I wanted that. To get injured at that time, I was wondering if I had made the right decision.”

But Cox’s determination and adaptability shone through. He settled into Essex’s No. 4 spot, replacing the Surrey-bound Dan Lawrence, and his batting flourished. His red-ball average, which was 34.5 at Kent, doubled to 69 for Essex. In his first meeting with his old county, Cox made 116 not out from 89 balls, and in the second, he hammered 207 from 255 deliveries.

“Kent had been my club since I was 10, so it did feel brave to accept a new chapter and challenge,” Cox said. “Moving to a new club, I had to impress and prove to people that I could do this. It was a high-profile signing. I had to fill Dan Lawrence’s boots. I didn’t want people to say Dan Lawrence was really missed.”

Two key factors influenced Cox’s decision to join Essex. The first was Jason Gallian, the former England batsman who has been Cox’s coach since he was 13.

“Jason is my coach,” Cox explained. “We will still work together regularly, and he knows my batting better than anyone else, so being close to him is great.”

The second reason was Essex’s winning pedigree. The club’s track record in both the Championship and the Blast appealed to Cox, who was eager to be part of a successful team.

“I was gutted when Sir Alastair Cook retired because I would have learned so much from him, but Dean Elgar has come in, and I’ve learned loads off him,” Cox says. “He’s definitely one of the reasons my game has gone to another level. He’s helped me learn how to bat for long periods. I used to get to 20 and get bored. Now I want to be a guy who can block to save a game if that’s the best result for the team or go crazy.”

Cox’s first summer at Essex was abruptly halted when he had to have his appendix removed during a Championship game against Surrey. Initially told he would be out for up to three months, Cox defied expectations by returning to action in just five weeks.

His comeback was marked by a match-winning 46 not out from 29 balls, followed by an unbeaten 61 from 30 balls as Oval Invincibles secured passage to the knockout rounds of the Hundred.