All Revved up with some place to go - Yorkshire CCC star tipped for further success

“He’s got all the attributes to be able to be a very good all-rounder.

“So, let’s let him keep evolving. Let’s let him keep developing his skill-set, because he has got all the attributes to become a very good cricketer.”

Wise words from the skipper, who was delighted with Revis’s performance at the Clifton Park ground.

He clearly does not want to put any added pressure on to the 23-year-old, who, equally clearly, is still learning and developing with bat and ball.

At the same time, those of us in the media, the fan-base and outside of the dressing room will rightly wonder at Revis’s potential, for it was the sort of innings that suggested it is high.

He is certainly young enough to develop, as Bairstow said, into a very good cricketer and is highly regarded by his captain, team-mates and coaches.

“For Rev, it’s all about growing in confidence, growing in stature,” added Bairstow.

“We know he’s 6ft 5in and has got all the attributes, but hopefully it’s performances like that that can really kick him on to keep winning games.

“To know that he’s able to go out and perform like that and get 150 I think is a huge thing for a young man.

“You’ll see him grow in confidence with that, and that can only aid him in all formats.”

Revis’s innings, which followed an unbeaten 93 against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge the previous week, was his first century in the County Championship First Division and his third at first-class level.

It was a performance of which his hero, Andrew Flintoff, would have been proud as he scored at a rate out of keeping with a slow-scoring contest, his 150 made from just 187 deliveries with 18 fours and two sixes.

Every batsman needs an ally or two, and Revis found one in Ben Coad, the No 10, who typically did not hang around either as he also struck a career-best - 89 from 110 balls with eight fours and three sixes as the pair added 169 for the ninth-wicket, a record against Essex in first-class cricket.

It hoisted Yorkshire from 273-8 in response to the visitors’ first innings 368 and up towards a closing score of 459, Coad then taking three wickets and Revis one as Essex were dismissed for 131 second time before the hosts knocked off a 41-run target.

“It was a great effort by the pair of them and a match-changing partnership,” added Bairstow.

“I think Coady’s highest score previously was 60-odd, so to go out and get 89 was a tremendous performance.

“As for Rev, to play an innings like that with the team under a little bit of pressure as well, and to navigate the tail after scoring 90-odd at Trent Bridge, was really pleasing to see.

“He suffered a back injury at the back end of last year, just when he was hitting his straps, so naturally it was going to take a bit of time for him to regain his confidence, especially from a bowling point of view, but everyone knows the talent that he’s got.”

That back injury, a stress fracture, no less, kept Revis out of the closing weeks of last summer and necessitated a winter of rehab.

Yorkshire have managed him well with the ball this season, confining him to shorter bursts as he works his way back to full power, with his 23 overs across the two innings at York the most he has bowled in a fixture this year.

Anthony McGrath, the club’s head coach, believes that as he regains strength and confidence in his body, Revis will flourish even further as a genuine all-rounder as the season advances.

He was pleased with how he came through his overs at York.

“He’s been a bit frustrated with his bowling this year, obviously because of his back injury and coming back from that, but I think we saw a consistent Matt Revis with his bowling this week, which everyone knows he can be,” said McGrath.

“I think he’s a far better bowler than he’s shown, but because of his bowling workloads and his back, he’s only been able to bowl shorter spells, and we’ve used him as a kind of impact bowler.

“I think once he gets that robustness back into his body, which he’s starting to get now, then you can see him bowling longer spells going forward. And, if he bowls those longer spells, he’s going to bowl that fuller length more often than not.”

Revis, who is nearing 1,500 runs and 50 wickets in his fledgling first-class career, brings valuable balance to the Yorkshire team.

He is also adept across the three formats.

“All-rounders are crucial for any team,” said McGrath. “For Rev, it’s just a case of putting it all together.

“The way he’s batted this year, you can see how good a player he is, and he’s gone and put runs on the board in the last two games.

“With the ball, he’s six foot whatever he is and he bowls with pace, so if he can put his batting and bowling together, he can go a long way.”