READING Blue Coat School student James Rogers has his sights set on a professional career after making his Middlesex 2nd XI debut recently.

The 17-year-old – who has represented Berkshire in his age group since the Under 11s and plays his club cricket for Datchet – has also been training with the elite player group at the 2016 County Champions.

He said: “My aim is to become a professional. I progressed a lot over the winter and I hope to keep progressing over the summer.”

“I had a nervous start against Gloucestershire. I bowled 11 overs for 49 and a feel I learned a lot – especially from the experienced players in the side. These games are all about learning to make myself the best cricketer I can be in the future."

Rogers, who bats three for the school where he is deputy head boy, feels he is a “late developer” and trains with Middlesex for three hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

He also paid tribute to Berkshire’s director of youth cricket, Mark Allum, saying: “He’s helped a lot throughout my career, especially with my fast bowling. It helps that Blue Coat is the outdoor centre for Berkshire Youth Cricket.”

The school’s head of cricket, Phil Davies, added: “James is a very driven character and has shown real maturity in balancing his time between his studies and playing.

“We all really want him to do well and have a summer full of cricket, picking up lots of wickets for the school and for Middlesex.”

Rogers – who said his favourite wicket was Zimbabwe international Herbert Chikomba in a game for Blue Coat against the MCC in 2016 – hopes to study Sport and Exercise Science at Leeds University, but before that will take a gap year to focus on his cricket.

He will spend three months participating in a Gap Year programme at the Darren Lehmann Cricket Academy in Australia, and the remainder of the time will involve training and playing with Middlesex.