Bowler Steven Finn proved he is over the injury problems which blighted his winter and robbed him of a place in England’s T20 World Cup squad as he threw himself fully into Middlesex’s Ground Force day.

He showed no ill-effects of the injuries which ended his England tour to South Africa and forced him to pull out of the World T20 Cup as he swung an axe with full gusto while taking part in a gardening makeover project to spruce up the club’s training headquarters and second team home at Radlett Cricket Club last Friday.

He said: “I’ve been fully fit for three or four weeks now and it’s nice to be able to get out and contribute rather than sit and watch.

“Injuries are always frustrating so to miss any cricket through injury is disappointing but there is nothing you can do about it. You just have to crack on and try and get as fit as you can as soon as possible.

“I’m looking forward to starting the season with Middlesex now. Pre-season has gone well so far. I’ve bowled plenty of overs, I feel in good rhythm and ready.

“It used to take me time to get back to bowling well but now it seems to happen quite quickly once I’ve been out with injury or had a few weeks off. Hopefully I can hit the season running and we will see where it takes me.”

Watford-born Finn was one of a number of players who swapped cricket bats for shovels as Middlesex enjoyed a team bonding day by giving their Radlett HQ a gardening makeover with help from experts from the Sunshine Garden Centre.

He said: “It’s good to put a little back into the clubs that help us. I enjoy doing this type of stuff.”

The squad were split into teams to give their green-fingered day a competitive edge and they rotated their way around a variety of tasks including building a wooden entrance, creating floral borders and laying a hedge.

After putting their backs into the morning’s hard graft, the players were challenged to cook their own lunches outside for the title of being Middlesex County Cricket Club’s barbecue champions in a Masterchef-style competition judged by the club’s managing director of cricket Angus Fraser.

Finn’s team did not win that, but the 6ft 8in bowler has his eyes on bigger prizes over the summer.

He said: “Personally I want to be a regular in all formats of cricket for England, that’s my first and foremost aim, and I think here at Middlesex we need to be challenging for silverware.

“We are a club that has a group of players that are capable. We’re arguably one of the best three or four teams squad-wise in the country and we have to aim to win championships and one-day competitions. I think we’re very capable of doing that and it’s something we can aim towards and target.”

With New Zealand’s Brendan McCullum coming in to bolster the club for their T20 Blast and Royal London One Day Cup campaigns, Finn believes Middlesex are well-placed to challenge.

He said: “It is exciting. We’ve got arguably one of the top three or four one-day and Twenty20 batsmen in the world coming to play for us. That will generate an interest in us as a club which is important to get people through the gates and, when those people are through the gates, it’s important for us to put on a performance to win games and entertain and I think he’s one of a few people in the world that are capable of doing that.

“It is exciting for us to take our white ball cricket to the next level, which we need to and haven’t done over the last few years and it takes signings like that. Hopefully he can rejuvenate us and galvanise us to get out there, play some good cricket and win games.”

And he reckons McCullum’s presence will also help the younger squad members.

He said: “I’m a big fan of international players coming to play for Middlesex. It gives youngsters an insight. A youngster can learn a lot more from seeing how a senior international player goes about their stuff. To have someone like him with us is fantastic. It is a great accolade for us as a club and we have to use him as much as we possibly can because he’s a very special cricket talent.”

And on a personal level, Finn is hoping that good form for his county will bring him international rewards again.

He said: “There’s no sound like the Lord’s buzz when you walk out there on the first morning of a Test match. The buzz of Lord’s and the buzz of people in the Harris Garden and the Nursery End when you are warming up is a really special experience and something I am desperate to experience again and hopefully I will this summer.”