Blast our strongest format, says Moores
NP0307BLASTPP Peter Moores believes Notts Outlaws are about to embark on their strongest format as they prepare to defend the Vitality Blast trophy.
Despite a winter of transition, with veteran players having departed and fresh blood coming through, Notts have impressed in the County Championship and made the quarter-finals of the Royal London One Day Cup.
However, they have seen less of a turnover in their Twenty20 side, with younger players such as Tom Moores having already broken through in the team which lifted the trophy last year.
On top of that, overseas players Dan Christian and Ish Sodhi are back for the duration of the campaign, giving head coach Moores cause for optimism.
“Of all the teams’ formats this year, this is probably the one that is closest to what it was last season,” he said.
“We’ve lost Brendan Taylor but we’d already made transitions last season in T20. We introduced some younger players and went on and won it.
“On paper, this is our strongest format. There’s stability from last season.
“There’s been changes in other formats but we’ve been competitive in the Championship and the 50-over comp.
“What we’re hoping for now is that experience of last season giving us a good start to get into the knockout phase, which in some ways is the hardest thing.
“Over 14 group games you have to gain momentum. If you lose one, don’t panic.
“We lost the first two games last year and recovered. You want a system that works with an understood batting order and bowling order.
“The way we play will be the same. We’ve got very aggressive batters. We want them to play their game. We’ve got good death bowlers in Harry Gurney, Jake Ball and Luke Fletcher.
“We’ve got slow bowlers that can perform. The key is for everyone to play well.
“We’ve played a lot of Championship cricket and one-day cricket. It’s a fresh comp we can really get stuck into.”
Veteran Australia international Christian is back for a third season at Trent Bridge, having captained Notts to the title in 2018.
New Zealand leg spinner Sodhi has enjoyed a tremendous 12 months since coming to Trent Bridge. Since winning the Blast, he has worked under Shane Warne in the IPL, as well as the small matter of becoming the number one ranked T20 bowler in the world.
Moores feels having two returning overseas players is a major positive for the team.
“It’s like you’re welcoming back lost friends. They bring a buzz to the place,” he said.
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“Dan and Ish are really good players. Dan has experience of playing around the world and he’s a very good captain.
“Ish is moving fast as a player. Since winning with us, he’s been to the IPL and become the number one ranked bowler in the world.
“He looks very confident. I’m really hopeful he’ll have a good tournament.”
Notts begin their campaign at home to Birmingham Bears on Wednesday, 6.30pm start.