I see that bowlers in domestic games have raw materials that are international players. Sonny Baker and John Turner are two of Hampshire (although Turner has been on loan at Lancashire), and England has been confirmed despite having few top-notch cricket behind them.

Baker, Turner and others with attributes that bother the best batsman will know that even a spell is enough to win their call. There are precedents, too. Stokes first saw the Spinner Shoaib Bashir Bowl in a clip on social media, and then shared it with Key and McCullum on his WhatsApp group. Not long after, Bashir was in England.

Another difference between my time and now as an international cricketer is England’s attitude towards franchise cricket, especially the Indian Premier League (IPL).

There is a recipient now with a lot of power that cannot deny profitable franchise opportunities. Who can blame the players for this? After all, this could be a short-lived career.

This is the opposite of what I want to propose my name at the 2013 IPL auction. I thought I was likely to be picked up. I quickly bowled, performed well in a white ball series in India, giving great players a standout and just won the T20 World Cup.

At the end of 2012, when we won 2-1, we took the famous Test Tour in India. I had to seek permission from the England and Wales Cricket Board to attend the auction and received an email within five minutes of submitting the form telling me that I would not allow it, but head coach Andy Flower could explain why.

That night, I was in Kevin Pietersen's bedroom (the first English player to discover IPL power) and Eoin Morgan and Eoin Morgan's bedroom. I was called to see flowers, and as I walked out the door, KP told me to tell Flower if I liked him to attend the auction.

This is a brief meeting with Flower. He told me that I had to play county cricket at the start of the second summer to back up the show and to play Test cricket at the start of the double ash year. I was told. Test cricket is the pinnacle for me and I will do anything to get a spot in England.

Time has changed. Now, how exciting it must be a player who has succeeded in international cricket.

Every time you walk into the court, you feel like you have the opportunity to push your name forward and be the subject of the next cut of WhatsApp Group, an administrator in England, and Key and his associates think “we can’t ignore this, can we?”