Andy Umeed: Somerset and Scotland batter on return to cricket
Andy Umeed was a teenager when he was released by Warwickshire in 2018 and set off to Australia to try and experience another side of cricket.
He spent a winter there but found himself falling out of love with the sport he grew up devoted to.
He left his kit with the cricket club, got a van, and decided to travel the country and start a new life away from playing.
"It was a pretty difficult time and especially after my winter in Australia I thought I wasn't going to play cricket again," Umeed told BBC Sport.
"It was my dream since I could remember to be a professional cricketer. You get there, you're doing it, and you never really think it could end.
"Then for it to all sort of come crashing down very, very slowly over the course of a year was disappointing and I probably didn't deal with that very well."
Glasgow-born Umeed joined the Warwickshire academy and played with them through the age ranks before making his debut in 2016.
The batter, who also represented Scotland at two under-19 World Cups, scored two first-class centuries for the county including the slowest on record in the County Championship in just over seven hours.
But at the age of 19 he was let go by the Bears and gradually his enjoyment for cricket followed.
"I was supposed to come back on trial and I had some opportunities, but I decided I'm going to stay out in Australia," Umeed, who turns 28 on Friday, said.
Umeed worked in bars and restaurants and started other business ventures. But like thousands of young people who go backpacking, Umeed's travels gave him a new perspective, mostly on the sport he had left.
"You see the other side of life and realise the grass is not always greener on the other side and how fortunate I was and lucky I was to be playing cricket," he said.
The Covid-19 pandemic forced Umeed back home. He started playing cricket again for fun and gradually began contacting former colleagues.
One was Tom Brown, who was setting up the South Asian Cricket Academy - a foundation to give British South Asian cricketers support to progress to the professional ranks.
"I did just decide 'I am going to get back there', how long it takes I'm not sure and how I'm going to get there I'm not sure, but I did decide I'm going to try and stick at it," Umeed said.
The academy helped Umeed and he had a trial with Yorkshire before Somerset came along. Umeed was 26 but refused for that to be a barrier, persevering until the second team coach invited him to play.
In August 2022 Somerset signed him until the end of 2023.
"There was definitely that niggle in the back of my head of I wanted to achieve more and I just wasn't satisfied with the time I'd had in the game," he said.
"It gave me a lot of determination and stubbornness to go back and really say, 'no matter what happens at least I tried this and I'm back and doing things the way I want to do them'.
"It's been pretty satisfying to be able to do that. You always want to prove people wrong."
'My strength was my life experience'
In cricketing terms, Umeed was still a young man and knew that getting back up to speed would take time. Still, he had a newfound confidence.
"I realised that my strength was that I've had a lot of life experience in the last few years," Umeed said.
At Warwickshire he was credited with being able to bat for long periods and score big runs, but Umeed has returned a different player.
"I've tried to expand my range in terms of shots but also have the courage to do it when you're in a pressure situation and not worry so much about the outcome," he said.
He made his mark in last year's One-Day Cup, scoring 613 runs as the leading scorer in the group and played two County Championship matches. In December he extended his new deal through 2025.
"I'm learning to get out of my own way a lot more now and when things are going well enjoy it and when things don't go that well understand it's going to come back again," Umeed said.
In March he was called up by Scotland, nine years after he was last involved, to play in their World Cup League 2 game against Canada.
As luck would have it, Umeed fractured his finger and was ruled out of the rest of the series and start of the county season.
But he made a prolific return to Somerset's second XI this week, scoring 176 off 224 balls against Yorkshire.
Breaking into the Somerset T20 squad - winners of last year's Vitality Blast - is an aim in 2024, as well as solidifying a place in the County Championship team.
Ultimately, Umeed just wants to make the most of the opportunities as they come.
"Every time I'm turning up, whether it's a second-team game in April at Taunton Vale or a final on Finals Day, are you there enjoying it and trying to do everything you can to make the most out of it?" he added.
"Because I do understand it's not going to last forever playing cricket."
