The appointment of Mark Ramprakash as England's batting coach must be very unusual in that he rejoins the international set-up as an active club cricketer.

Ramprakash, now 45, made himself available again as an amateur for his old club Stanmore CC in the Middlesex County League when his career at Surrey was reaching its end in 2011. The following year he turned out seven times, five in 2013 and four 2014 – an impressive and touching commitment for a batsman with 51 Tests behind him and a first class batting average of 53.14, with 114 centuries.

No doubt he would have played more for Stanmore without county coaching duties with Middlesex and other assignments. He had plenty of knowledge to pass on to his club-mates and he became a mentor for Steve Eskinazi, a prospect who marched to a Middlesex contract this summer. Ramprakash himself had once been a Stanmore newcomer, a fiery one, and now he was returning to The Common many years later as a mature character determined to give something back to the game.

Middlesex incidentally continued to look to London for their players when the Teddington and Leeds University left-hander Nick Gubbins, 20, signed a three-year contract this week.

Ramprakash, who started cricket with Bessborough in Harrow, spent 14 years as a player at Middlesex, captain for three, and another 12 at Surrey. Yet at a lower level he still delighted at batting, as evidenced by a nice brisk league hundred for Stanmore at Richmond in June. But then he was always a dangerous one-day player in his professional career as his exceptional List A average of 40.22 would suggest.

Angus Fraser, a former Middlesex and Stanmore team-mate, talked about his colleague in The Independent a couple of years ago. “For Ramprakash batting was everything,” he said. “Winning Strictly Come Dancing was nothing compared to scoring a century. Even now he still loves batting. It is why he regularly turns out for Stanmore CC on Saturdays. An abiding memory for me will always be the image of his smiling face on completing a century.”

When Ramprakash's promotion to England's staff was announced this week, Paul Downton, the ECB's managing director England cricket, said he would be a “valuable addition” to the coaching group. “Mark has formed excellent relationships with players and a strong partnership with Peter Moores and the management team, and I have no doubt he will continue to have a positive impact as we begin an exciting winter of cricket.”

A man who attaches himself so closely to club cricket cannot go far wrong...