Grant Stewart has attributed much of his batting red-ball success this summer to the approach implemented by Kent head coach Adam Hollioake.
Having only scored one previous County Championship century, the big-hitting 31-year-old all-rounder has already reached three figures twice in 2025.
Stewart blasted 182 in a hard-fought loss to Gloucestershire in May before a second-innings 130 from just 122 balls rescued last month’s unlikely draw for Kent at Lancashire.
Facing a 265-run first-innings deficit against Lancashire in Blackpool, Stewart shared a 182-run partnership with Joey Evison (77 not out), before the former eventually went, as Kent’s counter-attacking approach paid off.
“We spoke about that a bit,” revealed Stewart. “Adam Hollioake, our coach, is quite a forward-thinking sort of bloke and definitely encourages that sort of mindset.
“In those situations, you can kind of get bogged down a bit if you’re trying to play out for the draw. I guess the thing that takes the most time out of the game is getting a lead and putting a score on the board.
“That takes overs out the game, as well. It’s something I’ve worked on a bit.
“Adam has been really good in that sense for me. He’s been quite consistent with his messaging and very helpful.
“He was probably a much better player than me – but we do play in a similar fashion. He’s been quite good in giving me an insight into how he went about his business when he was playing.
“I’ve definitely utilised some of the things he’s passed onto me.
“The chats we have, they have never been too technical – they have been more around how you approach the game – and that’s something which has helped me a lot this season.”
Hollioake’s own attacking approach led to him becoming England’s One-Day captain and it appears the Kent coach is keen to let his players express themselves.
Stewart added: “He’s got no qualms with you trying to take the game on and that sort of thing.
“As he’s said to me, he made a lot of mistakes during his career. If he can pass on information – hopefully – I won’t make the same mistakes he did.
“But he did a heck of a lot right if you look at the way he played and the record that he’s got.
“It’s quite nice, learning from someone like that, and trying to get the best out of my ability.
“I feel as if he’s certainly helped me get towards that.”
Stewart started the campaign in decent form, contributing knocks of 49 and 41 in his first four 2025 innings, alongside his 182. But he had been dismissed for 19 and just two since before he cashed in again in serious style.
So, did Stewart feel set for another big score against Lancashire after he had settled into the innings?
“It’s probably the opposite,” noted Stewart, whose maiden first-class ton came from 73 balls against Middlesex in a pink-ball game in 2018. He also returned 6-22 in the same match.
“I sometimes get a bit too far ahead of myself.
“Reflecting on previous seasons, you’re thinking, potentially, you’re in and try to play one shot too many.
“The biggest thing I’ve learnt from Adam this year – even though I knew it a little bit – is just playing each ball as it comes and having a method of coming back to the present so you don’t get too far ahead of yourselves.
“Keeping things pretty simple and not trying to overthink the game, I feel as if it’s something that has been quite helpful for me so far in red-ball cricket.”
Stewart’s hundred in Blackpool also saw him shine against a Lancashire attack, captained by legendary ex-England fast bowler Jimmy Anderson.
“It’s funny,” said Stewart. “You sometimes come up against people you have grown up watching. When you play against good bowlers, you can be a bit nervous.
“There’s probably only been a few times where I’ve come up against someone of that kind of ilk where I’ve been excited to come up against them because you know what they’ve achieved in the game.
“It’s quite cool to come up against them and experience that.
“I wouldn’t say I’ve reflected on it too much, but it’s always pretty nice to sit back and be able to say you’ve come up against someone like Jimmy Anderson – since he’s done a fair bit in the game!”
Kent enjoyed a strong start on their County Championship Division 2 return.
But they have since struggled in the red-ball format and are bottom of the table.
“We, obviously, started the season quite well with a couple of wins and a draw,” reflected Stewart. “They were probably more bowler-friendly wickets.
“We’ve had a few injuries but you cannot blame it all on that because I guess every team gets injuries. We’ve had a couple of close games, and let ourselves down a bit in a few games.
“I think we have got a very strong red-ball side. I guess we’re just trying to find our method.
“As everyone probably knows, we’ve under-performed in the last few years in red-ball cricket. Being consistent and finding our (best) approach is probably where we’re at.
“Definitely with a new coach and a new look at things, I think it’s not something that will happen overnight, as much as we would like it to, but I think we’re definitely going in the right direction.
“I think we’ll be in a pretty solid place, going into the back-end of the year.
“I know we’re not at the right end of the table but we’ll be trying to get ourselves up there and putting in our best.”
Kent’s next County Championship match will start against Glamorgan in Cardiff from Tuesday, July 22.
Stewart has been on Italy duty for their ICC men’s T20 World Cup European Qualifiers this week.
