George Walker is determined to shrug off the poor form which led to him relinquishing the Norfolk captaincy.

The left arm spinner took just nine wickets for Norfolk in 2012 at 39.44 each but he still led the county to third in the Minor Counties Championship Eastern Division. The 28-year-old, who also played first class cricket for Leicestershire, said: 'People ask when did you start feeling that things weren't right and I would say it was the first time I bowled in the first pre-season game outside.

'I went through a similar issue about seven years ago, it seems to affect left-arm spinners and it was extremely frustrating and upsetting.

'It is down to a lack of confidence and a lack of faith and I think I thought it was worse than it was which all adds up in your mind.

'One week I would bowl fine and then the next it would just be coming out all wrong and that affected me in all forms of cricket – not just the minor counties.

'It does play on your mind and you start to mull on ways to make it better or play through it – I would be fine in practice but then as soon as we were outside it just wouldn't work.'

The Swardeston bowler hopes to return refreshed after the winter break and added: 'I tend to try to not do too much before Christmas anyway, I'm not going to practice for the sake of practicing and hopefully the break will be worthwhile.

'I want my bowling to get back to where it was before I put my hand up for selection for Norfolk, but I haven't said I am not available.'

His successor, and fellow spinner Chris Brown, said Walker still had a key role to play for the county: 'George is the first to admit that he didn't bowl as well as he had done in previous years, but hopefully without the burden of captaincy he will be prominent in the side again,' said Brown.

'A George Walker firing on all cylinders is a potential matchwinner. I'm sure all it needs is for him to snare a few early wickets and he will get back to where he was.'