We know we must put a run together
OUR first week of Royal London One-Day Cup action has really summed up the highs and lows of sport.
One victory and two defeats over five days has been something of a rollercoaster with a number of positives but also plenty of things to work on.
Results-wise, it hasn’t been the greatest start to the league section of the tournament, but it is exactly the position we were in 12 months ago after three games and we ended up lifting the trophy at Lord’s in September.
All is certainly not lost but, starting with the visit of Notts Outlaws tomorrow, we know we need to put a run together to get in the top four and qualify for the knockout stages.
The theme for the first three games is that when we have been good, we have been very good. But, and this certainly hasn’t been through any lack of effort, there have also been times when we have been indifferent.
As starts to a trophy defence go, last Thursday’s opener against Northants Steelbacks was just about perfect.
A 10-wicket victory in a rainaffected game was a super effort from the boys. We bowled extremely well to dismiss them for 150 and then Sam Hain and William Porterfield knocked off the runs with the minimum of fuss.
Against Durham and Leicestershire Foxes, we have seen just how aggressive teams are going to be in this competition.
The Foxes, in particular, came at us like it was the start of a T20 in the early stages of their innings.
Conceding big scores in those two games has been tough for all of us but we have to accept that, when the pitches are good, 330 – and above – has become the new 300.
That is not to say you are going to need 300-plus to win every match. There will be times when it is ‘doing’ a bit for the seamers or taking spin where 260 or 270 will be a good score. It’s about assessing conditions as quickly as possible and, where necessary, adapting your game.
It will be crucial we do that over the next 10 days as we play our remaining five games and try to ensure we qualify.
You may have seen in the news this week we have given short-term contracts to two young seamers, Grant Thornton and Mitchell Spencer.
Both lads played plenty of second-team cricket last season and have been around the group over the winter.
Grant has already broken into the first team in our first two Royal London One-Day Cup games and, along with Mitchell, will be looking to push on and forge a long-term career in professional cricket over the coming months.
It’s an exciting time for them and hopefully they can build on the huge amount of hard work they have put into training and take their chances as and when they come along.
It’s about assessing conditions as quickly as possible and, where necessary, adapting your game. It will be crucial we do that over the next 10 days as we play our remaining five games and try to ensure we qualify