It was brilliant to speak to some of my England team-mates as they celebrated in the dressing room at Trent Bridge in the hours after winning the Ashes.
I spoke to them on FaceTime when six or seven of the players were still there, and it was very good of them to get in touch with me, because they didn’t have to do it.
They made sure I knew I was part of the team effort to win back the Ashes, even though I played in only the first two Tests.
I would have loved to have been involved for the whole series, of course, but at least I can say I played my part in an Ashes victory.
If people had told me two years ago that I would break into the England side and score runs in Test cricket, I would have taken that any day of the week.
A run of poor form is not going to change how I think and feel about my cricket. I’ll look at my game, see how I can get better and maybe tweak a few things, but I won’t change how I practise or how I work.
You’re always going to feel a bit flat for a few days after you’re left out but it has been brilliant to rejoin a Yorkshire team who are going for two trophies this summer.
Our objective is to retain the County Championship title and win the Royal London One-Day Cup.
It’s been great having Tim Bresnan around, too. ‘Brezzie’ has 23 Test caps and has played 119 limited-overs games for England, winning two Ashes series and the World Twenty20.
But there were also times when he was left out of the side and felt he was unlucky.
He’s a pretty laid-back guy and he’s told me that these things happen, that I should just accept it and not get too down about it.
It’s a great example for me to follow and, hopefully, I can score the runs for Yorkshire that will get me back in the England reckoning soon.
Gary Ballance is proud to be an ambassador of Liberty Mutual Insurance. For further information, click here.
