Jonathan Trott will resume battle in the Ashes series later this month with his two greatest mentors on opposite sides of the fence Down Under.

Trott, awarded a benefit by Warwickshire in 2014, will pass the 50-Test milestone for England during the coming series.

The Bears batsman will be striving to keep the Ashes safe in England’s possession – to the delight of one man, who he pinpoints as having helped make him the cricketer he is, and the consternation of another.

The series will be conducted with former Warwickshire head coaches highly influential in the two camps – Ashley Giles as an England selector and John Inverarity as chairman of selectors for Australia.

So Trott will be doing everything he can to mete out more disappointment to Inverarity whose three years in charge at Edgbaston (2003-2005) were crucial to the player’s attempts to settle in England after leaving his native South Africa to carve out a career here.

“A lot of people have helped me along the way,” he said. “But I think most of all I’d pick out Ashley Giles and John Inverarity. Ash has been a great help and worked really hard with me to carry on the work I had done with Invers.

“John is a really intelligent guy and a great coach and helped me a lot at that stage of my career when I needed it.

“There are different ways for players to get into Test cricket – some players pretty much learn their way as they go.

“Everyone finds their own route forward and I took the county cricket route and that worked really well for me. County cricket is a tough school and a great learning ground.

“I always had the belief that I could be successful and was willing to put the work in and had the desire. Then I was lucky to get the opportunity at Warwickshire which brought me into contact with some really good people.”

Trott has taken most steps up in his stride since making a dazzling start with the Bears by scoring 245 in a 2nd XI trial match in 2002.

The following year he scored 134 on his championship debut at home to Sussex and was then a key component of the championship-winning team in 2004.

Elevation to Test level followed in 2009 when Trott scored a debut century in the Ashes decider at The Oval to help England secure a 2-1 series victory.

ICC Cricketer of the Year in 2011, he has now played 48 Tests, scoring 3,744 runs at an average of 47.30 with nine hundreds, while 68 one-day internationals have brought him 2,819 runs at an average of 51.25.

For the Bears, meanwhile, he has scored 7,947 first-class runs (average 46.47) and 3,911 List A runs (45.47). He is also the county’s top T20 run-scorer (1,871 at 40.67).

“The years have flown by since Bob Woolmer first asked me over,” he said.

“I think I first came to Warwickshire’s notice when I played for Western Province and got runs against Griqualand West who had Michael Powell in the team.

“I was invited over for a trial and got some runs in a second-team game and then it really grew from there. It hasn’t been easy at times but professional sport tests you in various ways and you have to face up to those tests and deal with them.

“It’s strange to think I am going to have a benefit next year.

“I remember when I first came over Trevor Penney having a benefit and then Keith Piper having one. Mine seemed a long, long way off.

“But it’s a gesture from the club that I very much appreciate. I am very grateful for everything Warwickshire have done for me. Birmingham is very much my home now.

“Whenever I am playing for England I always keep a close eye on how the Bears are doing.

“Sometimes when you come back to your county you feel as though you need to get back up to date when you have been away for months at a time, but it will always be my home.

“Hopefully there is a lot of Test cricket ahead of me yet so we will see what happens in the future but yes, I’d like to play some more cricket for Warwickshire,” he added.

“The Bears’ players, staff and supporters have been fantastic to me.

“I love living in Birmingham and had no hesitation in committing my long-term future to the club by signing a three-year contract extension last year.”

‘The real jeeves’ up for award'

‘The Real Jeeves’ by Birmingham Post cricket reporter Brian Halford has been long-listed for the 2014 MCC/Cricket Society Cricket Book of the Year award.

The book, which came out in July, tells the powerful story of former Warwickshire player Percy Jeeves, a brilliant all-rounder who appeared destined to play for his country but instead died for his country at the Battle of the Somme in 1916.

Jeeves was the man after whom writer PG Wodehouse named his famous manservant character, having seen the cricketer play for Warwickshire against Gloucestershire at Cheltenham in 1913 and been impressed by his immaculate conduct and attire.

But while the characters Jeeves and Wooster went on to provide much entertainment in the world of fiction, the true story of ‘The Real Jeeves’ has now drawn great praise including: “Memorable” (Daily Telegraph); “One of the finest cricket biographies I have ever read” (David Warner); and “A wonderful new book...Halford recounts magnificently and with aching poignancy the terrible fate suffered by Jeeves and his comrades in the trenches.” (Yorkshire Post). The MCC Book of the Year long-list will be reduced to a short-list in January.

* Brian Halford wil be discussing ‘The Real Jeeves’ with England selector and former Warwickshire director of cricket Ashley Giles at Rugby Library tonight (Thursday) at 7pm. Admission free.