Aiden Markram was thankful to the Durham dressing room for making him welcome & hopes his association with the Club hasn’t come to an end.
The South African opener returned home last week after featuring in the first four Specsavers County Championship matches of the season.
Markram endured a difficult start with successive ducks before producing a classy 94 against Leicestershire, the basis from which Durham were able to secure a remarkable victory after being asked to follow-on.
His four match spell was cut short even further by the complete abandonment at Northamptonshire, while Durham weren’t required to bat again at Derbyshire after their lower order managed to secure a draw.
The 23-year-old admitted it was an education in coming to play county cricket, one he hopes to continue in the future.
“I thoroughly enjoyed it. It’s been my first time playing county cricket & I’ve learned quite a bit,” he said.
“I would have loved to have done much better than what I did. It was always going to be difficult. I’m not using that as an excuse. It did open my eyes up to different conditions & you do have to adapt, especially opening the batting.
“At the end of the day, it’s all about not making the same mistake again & I eventually got to the stage where I didn’t make the same mistakes twice.
“I’m happy to leave knowing a bit more about the conditions & how things operate here. Hopefully in the future there will be another chance to come back.”
Markram saved particular praise for the dressing room at Emirates Riverside, who helped him settle in during the four-game stint.
“The best part of cricket is getting to know the changing room & the guys here are great,” he said.
“They enjoy their cricket & play it hard but off the field they take time out to get to know you & they welcomed me well.
“I’m very thankful to the guys, they’ve made my time here easy & I’ll definitely keep in touch with them.”