Swansea Lad Donald Setting Sights Far And Wide

5 Aug 2016 | Cricket
Aneurin Donald is keeping his feet firmly on the ground, while admitting he harbours ambitions to win trophies and claim more personal honours with Glamorgan in the coming years, after hitting a purple patch of form.

The 19-year-old, who grabbed the headlines with a record-equalling 234 off 135 balls for Glamorgan at Colwyn Bay, was speaking to the media in his hometown of Swansea; as the Welsh county meet Northamtonshire in a Specsavers County Championship match this week.

Donald has been tipped for the top by the likes of ex-England skipper Michael Vaughan.

But the Welshman was keen to talk about his team's T20 chances and his role in helping the Welsh county claim silverware, with a golden opportunity to make T20 Finals Day for the first time in 12 years against Yorkshire Vikings in Cardiff on Thursday night.

Glamorgan are expecting one of their biggest crowds for a domestic T20 next week.

On that quarter-final, Donald said: "I'm excited. We’ve worked really hard to get there and it’s more than what we deserved in the end. To make a home quarter-final is great so it’ll be good to get a big crowd down there and beat the Yorkies.

"It’s really exciting and an absolute privilege to play in front of a big crowd. Friday nights are so much fun and the boys really enjoy the razzmatazz of Friday night T20s. It’s really nice to be a part of."

Donald was asked about his international ambitions, after featuring regularly for England Under 19s, but the 19-year-old batsman wanted to achieve more goals with Glamorgan first and foremost, as a young ambassador for the club.

He has been winning plenty of fans with his heroics while wearing the daffodil this season.

He added: "It’s all about trying to perform for Glamorgan, push for higher honours personally but more importantly get Glamorgan back to First Division status and hopefully win a few trophies. I’m sure that would bring a few new fans and members to the club and that’s only going to be good for the sport in Wales."

When asked if he was targeting an England call-up at senior level in the future, Donald replied: "Absolutely. That’s what everyone aims to do, but obviously I’ve got a lot more runs to score and years to come before I can do that.

"It’s going to take a lot of hard work and sacrifices – but that’s the target, as it is for any player. Hopefully in a couple of years, I’ll be close to it."

Donald and his Glamorgan teammates resume the final day of their County Championship clash with Northamptonshire tomorrow (Saturday), before the T20 Blast quarter-final against Yorkshire Vikings on Thursday night (7pm start). You can secure your seats for the quarter-final by clicking here. Adult tickets £10 and under 17s £5.

Listen to Donald's interview: