Although he has just started his fourth season as Kent's director of cricket, Graham Ford is not a man to dwell on the past.

Ask the softly-spoken South African if he ever regrets his decision not to take the job as coach to the India Test side and you'll probably get a curt glance over the top of his sunglasses, a wry smile and a fairly succinct reply.

"Always in life I've tried to avoid looking back," said the 47-year-old from Pietermaritzberg. "I made that decision with India last summer, so now there's no point going around wondering what if?

"There would have been some marvellous aspects to taking a top job like that but there would have been tough times too and, had I accepted their offer, I wouldn't have experienced the wonderful high of winning the Twenty20 with Kent last August.

"I'm comfortable with the decision I made, now it's all about making the most of the future and of my time with Kent."

Ford's own off-season was interrupted by back and shoulder troubles, the legacy of throwing down so many practice balls to Kent's batsmen last summer, which left him confined to bed and in need of close-season treatment.

He added: "The back injury meant I wasn't active for quite a while but happily I'm over that now and much stronger. I ache all over from using muscles that haven't been used for quite a while but I'm pleased to be back in the swing of things."

Looking ahead to the 2008 campaign, Ford is clearly excited by the strength of the squad he has helped assemble at St Lawrence.

With Pakistan's Yasir Arafat set to return as overseas professional and close-season recruit Azhar Mahmood added to the side that won the Twenty20 Cup, Ford has every reason to believe Kent will be a force in all forms of cricket this summer.

He added: "It's never been my style to make bold predictions but what I do try to work hard on is improving the cricket we can play and helping each individual player.

"With Azhar and Yasir on board and Amjad Khan fit again and added to the mix, we have greater depth, balance and more options within the squad and to our bowling resources. The workload last season was pretty unfair at times, so hopefully this year we can spread that load and keep the quality at its highest for longer.

"It should allow us to rest guys when they need it and avoid the burn out and fatigue factor that some of the lads suffered toward the end of last season."

As for the batting, Ford believes there is real quality throughout the side with players at nine, 10 and jack capable of scoring first-class 50s.

He added: "The senior players like Rob Key, Martin van Jaarsveld and Matt Walker have set a great example and everyone in the squad is now aware that they have to stay on top of their game in order to stay in this side.

"There are areas we will look to improve on this year and ensuring we reach 400-plus totals in the first innings of our championship games is top of that list. I'd like to think we have the strength in depth and the firepower to make sure that happens."