Scott Borthwick on his Durham Cricket return, captaincy, Kumar Sangakkarra and life back in the north east

It's four years since he left the North East for the 'big, bad world of London' and on his return, it has been easy to fall back into some familiar rhythms.

Same ground, same nets. He has the same shirt number, the same county cap and perhaps most importantly of all, the same spot of the dressing room where he made his first significant steps in professional cricket.

Durham Cricket is nevertheless in a very different place to 2016 and much to Borthwick's relief, he's also discovered that the local coffee scene is going from strength to strength.

Borthwick's tastes had become somewhat more refined after four years in the capital and fears this would prove to be a big miss on his return have thankfully proved unfounded (Tynemouth coffee is his personal favourite).

By and large though, the region is much as he remembers it.

"The north east is a special place, people leave but generally we come back!" he said.

"We're passionate about our area and we're very passionate about our club.

"I came through here from the U11s and there's a bunch of us who have done that. So playing for Durham means everything to us.

"It's the one club in the north east and we're all desperate to do our best for it.

"It's the people, isn't it? We are a friendly bunch and you notice that when you get on the tube in London. You try to talk to someone and you look like a bit of a weirdo!

"It's a special place that drags you back."

Sentiment, though, is only one part of the story.

Borthwick, like so many of the players who left in the aftermath of the club's enforced relegation, is back because there is a genuine belief that Durham have the ambition and depth to challenge for trophies again.

The move to Surrey brought another County Championship medal and some vital experience, but Borthwick is the first to admit that the results on the whole were not quite what he had aimed for.

There's a candour when he admits he perhaps was trying a touch too hard in his first season at the Oval, and in the second some encouraging progress was derailed by a wrist injury.

He is 30, now, adamant that the best years of his cricket are ahead of him and for that, he needed the right platform.

An aspirational Durham Cricket can be exactly that.

"Both sides of the move were ultimately about cricketing reasons," he explained.

"When I went down to Surrey, that was for cricket, the chance to perform at the Oval as a batter who bowls leg spin was the best one for me at the time.

"Four years later, coming back is exactly the same.

"Yeah it's home and it's the north east but it's also about me still only being 30 and having my best cricket ahead of me.

"I'm desperate to get Durham back up to Division One and pushing for trophies again. I was lucky enough to play with some very talented cricketers when I came up through the ranks and we were always competitive in Division One.

"That's the challenge for us and for me going forward."The captaincy brings added responsibility but the timing seems good.

It's by and large a familiar dressing room and while Borthwick's experience on this front is limited, a decade at two thriving counties means he has always been learning from the very best.

"Kumar Sangakkarra, Hashim Amla, names like that, I've been very lucky," he said.

"I've also been lucky to play for some fantastic captains. Coming through at Durham I was lucky to play for the likes of Dale Benkenstein and Paul Collingwood, two fantastic captains.

"I've already had a couple of text messages from Colly, asking if there's anyway he can help so I'm sure we're going to have a good chat at some point.

"There's loads of people I'll be taking snippets from but I also want to put my own stamp on things.

"With someone like Kumar, it was just how calm he was and how chilled he was," he added.

"He never let things affect him.

"He was very level headed, very chilled and actually it was similar with Rory Burns. He was really impressive in how he spoke to the dressing room, he got his message across calmly.

"Gareth Batty's style was very different, he was a screamer and shouter! But he was such a passionate bloke and you take snippets from it all.

"I think I'll be leaning towards the Sangakkarra style but I'll try and do it my own way.

"I am full of energy, they call me badger for a reason and I always try to play with a smile on my face. Hopefully the lads can follow suit and be competitive. We want to play with a smile on our face."

Borthwick believes his batting has improved over the winter and a century at Edgbaston last week bodes well for the months ahead.

The 30-year-old is expecting to utilize his leg spin more, too. He jokes that it's easier to say this when you're in charge but he is serious about the craft and has 208 first-class wickets to prove it.

There is a challenge in getting used to bowling long spells again, and finding real consistency in his action, but it's another area where he clearly feels he can step up to help the team.

Perhaps this is the biggest difference between then and now.

Borthwick is no longer a youngster making his way, but a seasoned professional brought back to Durham to deliver.

He is raring to go.