Rob Key: Matt Coles has potential to play for England

Rob Key believes returning all-rounder Matt Coles has the qualities to play for England and that coming home to Kent could be the catalyst for his career.

The Kent captain told BBC Radio Kent: "Matt is one of the most talented all-rounders in the country at the moment.

"He has been given everything you could ask for to be an international. It is just down to him to decide whether he wants to push hard to get there.

"There are not many people who can bowl at 85 miles-an-hour plus and hit the ball out of the park. Plus he is a good fielder."

After England's early exit from the World Cup, critics have suggested a re-think in the approach to the 50-over game.

The 35-year-old former England batsman said: "If I was him, I'd be watching England and the way they go about some of their one-day cricket and I'd be thinking I could make a massive difference to that set-up.

"It is time for him to mature and become the cricketer he can potentially be."

Key believes the Maidstone man’s career will benefit from a return to home comforts.

"What's gone is gone really. The last time I was captain and Matt was playing [in 2012] he got 60-odd wickets for us and was a massive part of our future.

"Things didn't go well for him the next year and ultimately, for him, I think being away from a family environment, which he has at home when he plays here, was a big thing for him.

"It is not until you leave somewhere that you realise how big an issue that is – being away from people and that support network which you have at home.

"People cope with it in different ways. I think he found it quite hard being away from Maidstone and being around the people he has grown up with.

"That's why, I think, for his career, it is a bonus for him that he can be back home."

BBC Radio Kent will exclusively broadcast live ball-by-ball coverage of Kent Cricket this season.