What a week for Spurs fan Rikki

First up, he’ll be at Wembley as his beloved Spurs take on Barcelona in the Champions League on Wednesday night.

Twenty-four hours later, the Surrey all-rounder will be at the famous Long Room at Lord’s for the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) Awards.

Rikki is proudly one of four players shortlisted for the PCA’s Players’ Player of the Year alongside Surrey skipper Rory Burns and Kent duo Joe Denly and Matt Henry. It’s seen as the highest individual accolade in English cricket.

Rikki’s PCA nomination is a reflection of his contribution to Surrey’s first County Championship success since 2002 this year. He averaged 31.25 with the bat and took 47 wickets in 13 matches at an average of just 21.53.

“It’s quite a week,” said Rikki, a former England Test and ODI bowler. “I’ll be there at Wembley for Barcelona and then it’s the PCA awards on Thursday night.

“Only four of us have been nominated from the 18 counties, voted by players and staff, so to get some of those votes is such an honour because it’s your peers who are recognising you’ve had a good season and contributed to the team’s success.”

Rikki, 37, was at the crease when Surrey clinched the title against Worcestershire on 13 September. They lost just one of 14 matches and bringing the trophy back to the Oval clearly meant a lot.

“It’s the one everyone wants to win, in footballing terms, it’s the Premier League,” he said.

“I started at Surrey at Under-9, worked my way through the youth system, signed my first professional deal at 18. I went away to Warwickshire for a period but always hoped there would be an opportunity to go back to Surrey and that door opened last year.

“I’m really pleased with the way it’s gone for me but it’s a massive team effort. Everyone stood up when they were needed with bat and ball and some amazing catches that can win games.

“These are the moments you look back on, turning points in games that get you the points to win the championship. Everyone has played their part but obviously being the age I am, to play my part, I’m really happy with that.”

'My dad wanted to call me Glenn'

As for Spurs, Rikki explained that we might have been talking to Glenn Clarke...

“My dad’s favourite player is Glenn Hoddle, so he wanted to call me Glenn. But five or six days earlier, one of his best mates, an Arsenal fan, named his son Glenn!" Rikki told us.

“My dad spoke to my mum and said he wanted to name me after the whole starting 11! I think my mum said ‘you are not doing that’ so he ended up going with Ricky Villa. My dad lives in Dubai now but he still has a season ticket and still comes over regularly. He loves it!

“My very first game was against Forest, the first live televised game back in 1983 (2 October). I was two. The first game I truly remember was when I was a mascot back in 1992 (28 March) against Coventry. We won 4-3 and Gordon Durie scored a hat-trick.

“I got a season ticket around 1995 but then cricket started taking over and I had to give it up. Now I have a season ticket again and when cricket allows, I get to as many games as I can.

“It’s quite a small window for me to get to games. We start preparations for the cricket season in November now, then it’s pre-season in March and we’re into the season. I love going to the games, love watching Spurs. I’m not at the same level as those lads but I can relate to what they are going through, the pressure they are under. It’s a release for me to go to games and I go to as many as I can.”

As for 2019, it’s a straight forward message from Rikki on Surrey’s aims. “We have to try to improve again, but we know teams will be gunning for us, and we’re aware of that. We’ll have to raise our game again as well.”