Ward flying high at Surrey

"He got some harsh treatment about his technical faults, but Ian works hard and wants to keep improving. All he can do is keep scoring big runs."

That is exactly what the stocky opening batsman did last month, with 440 cascading from his bat in eight first-class knocks, at an average of 73.33. Two unbeaten centuries, batting fourth, won matches against Kent and Yorkshire to keep Surrey top of the Frizzell Championship and set for a third title in four years.

Those performances have earned Ward the Evening Standard Cricketer of the Month Award for July, for which he receives a bronze statuette and a magnum of Veuve Cliquot champagne.

"That's fantastic news, I'm honoured," beamed Ward. "We've been playing exceptional fourday cricket as a team but things have gone well for me personally. Once you get a purple patch, you've got to ride it."

Ward's 168 not out against Kent at Canterbury was a career-best.

With support from Saqlain Mushtaq (60) and James Ormond (43 not out), Ward held his nerve to steer Surrey from 208 for seven to 410 for eight and an improbable two-wicket victory.

A week later at Guildford, he repeated the trick with 124 not out in a six-wicket victory over Yorkshire - though the champions have since gained some measure of revenge with their Craig White- inspired, 10- wicket thrashing of Ward's side in yesterday's much-postponed C & G Trophy semi-final.

Ward is one of cricket's late developers and the rejections he suffered as a youngster give him that extra edge and dedication.

He said: "I was made redundant by Surrey, dumped, sacked, call it what you like, when I was 18 and spent four years in the wilderness doing other things, playing club cricket at weekends. Cleaning aircraft was not really what I wanted to do but it has made me appreciate life as a cricketer."

Ward's re-engagement by Surrey at 22 was partly thanks to the Evening Standard. Alec Stewart's elder brother, Neil, persuaded Ward to join Malden Wanderers and his impressive batting through the 1995 season helped them lift club cricket's big prize, the Evening Standard Challenge Trophy at The Oval.

And shortly afterwards, Ward and his Malden team-mate, 17-year-old Ben Hollioake, joined the Surrey staff.

Hollioake's death in a car accident earlier this year affected everyone at Surrey and Ward said: "I had known Ben for a long long time and what happened was unbelievably sad.

"I miss him hugely, not just as a cricketer because he was an even better man."

Ward, who lives at Ripley with his wife Joanne and son Robert, has a black labrador dog called Lennox.

"It was Ben who picked that name. He dominated my life more than I realised," said Ward.

When Ward retreated from the Test arena last autumn, he turned to Neil Stewart.

He said: "Neil is a fantastic friend and coach. He helped me enormously last winter.

"I would love another chance to play Test cricket. I loved every second of it.

"You can only learn from playing at that level.

"That is why I play this game. If I thought I didn't have a chance of playing Test cricket then I'd get another job, though maybe not cleaning out aircraft.

"What I know I have to do is to keep scoring runs, lots of them, and hopefully help Surrey win the Championship."