Ben Duckett glad of progress with Northants and England

Northants batsman Ben Duckett says he is relishing the chance to play at the ICC Under-19 World Cup with England.

The 17-year-old made his Northants debut in the Twenty20 defeat by Gloucestershire in July.

Duckett told BBC Northampton: "It's a great step up and a good experience.

"I've played school cricket and done well for quite a few years. I played in Northants' second XI and found it tough, but training with England in the winter helped me progress."

Duckett continued: "I'd say that nine out of 11 play in their county first teams, so there's plenty of experience there. The team is extremely strong, so it'll be tough to get in the starting line-up.

"But it'll be quite exciting knowing that I've got another [chance to play at the Under-19 World Cup] in two years' time."

The Stowe School student will miss a month of Northants' season.

"Being away for a month doesn't really help me at Northants," he added. "But when I come back, there'll still be a few games. If I've done well, Northants may give me a go.

"[Head coach] David Ripley was my academy coach growing up and he gave me a go for the Northants first team, so he's been really good.

"It's looking promising for the future of Northants with the likes of Ollie Stone and other young cricketers [coming through]."