Mason Crane has said he is “buzzing” to be back in the England set-up and that he wants to be more than a “highlights reel” leg-spinner as he makes the most of a second chance at international cricket. England begin their ODI tri-series in Pakistan against the hosts on Tuesday, with play starting at 9am UK time.
Crane was capped three times as a 20-year-old nine years ago. The last of those caps came in his Test debut in the final match of England’s 2017/18 Ashes tour in Sydney, where he took a single wicket as the tourists lost 4-0.
Speaking on a cricket podcast, Crane admitted that he had become “resigned to the fact it may not come again” as nearly a decade passed without further recognition, until he received the call for the upcoming ODI tri-series.
“I didn’t really expect it, to be honest,” Crane said. “It was a bit out of the blue. But it’s really cool and I’m buzzing.
“I think there was a period a few years ago where I was sort of resigned to the fact it may not come again, where I maybe put a bit too much pressure on myself and wasn’t particularly enjoying it.
“But the last couple of years I feel like I’ve sort of got that spark back and the ambition that comes with it.”
A fresh start at Glamorgan
Injuries ruined Crane’s 2018 season after his initial England breakthrough in 2017, and he struggled to secure a regular place at his county, Hampshire. A move to Glamorgan in 2024 changed his fortunes.
There, he thrived under the coaching of Richard Dawson, who has just left to join England’s red-ball staff as assistant to the newly appointed Stephen Fleming.
“Daws is a brilliant coach. He’s been absolutely amazing for us,” Crane said. “He has very high standards; he pushes you to become the best version of yourself, and we all sort of thrived off that.
“From a Glamorgan point of view, we’d obviously rather have kept him. But when you have someone like Daws as your coach, if we’re being brutally honest, I think you know at some point that he’s going to go on to international cricket.
“He’s such a brilliant manager of people. He’ll be amazing in any role he does.
“It’s amazing for England. And like I said, I’m sure one day he will be in a position to take over an international side. He’s that kind of calibre of coach.”
Batting form boosts his case
Crane’s return to the England fold has as much to do with his much-improved batting as with his bowling. He struck a maiden first-class century and swiftly followed it with a second, as Glamorgan finished sixth in Division One, their first County Championship season in the top tier since 2005.
“I’ve always believed I underperformed a bit with the bat,” Crane said. “When I moved to Glamorgan and started playing a lot more regularly, I kind of realised I had a few more shots.
“My confidence just grew and grew. And then this year, to get a few big scores has been amazing.
“Ironically, that’s helped my bowling because I’m now bowling in matches where I probably wouldn’t be playing in to start with.”
Crane took 34 wickets in 14 County Championship appearances in 2026 and 15 wickets in 10 Vitality Blast outings. He also played three times for London Spirit in The Hundred, taking two wickets.
Beyond the viral moments
A couple of his dismissals went viral on social media, particularly those of Yorkshire batters George Hill and James Wharton during an eight-wicket match haul in April. Crane, however, does not want to be known only for those moments.
“I don’t want to just be a highlights reel bowler, every now and then bowl a really good ball and just live off that,” he said.
“I pride myself on trying to play to the situations really, trying to work out how I’m going to get the most out of a wicket and get a particular guy out.
“I’ve also given myself a bit more freedom, I guess, with the ball now. I try and bowl more variations, but I’m also better at bowling them now.
“It’s about sort of adding as many strings to your bow. It’s really important.”
England’s ODI tri-series in Pakistan schedule
All times are UK and Ireland times and are subject to change.
- October 18 (9am): Pakistan vs Sri Lanka (Rawalpindi)
- October 20 (9am): Pakistan vs England (Rawalpindi)
- October 22 (9am): Sri Lanka vs England (Rawalpindi)
- October 25 (8am): Pakistan vs England (Lahore)
- October 27 (8am): Pakistan vs Sri Lanka (Lahore)
- October 29 (8am): Sri Lanka vs England (Lahore)
- October 31 (8am): Final (Lahore)