Out In The Middle With Scott
Back to Out In The Middle With ScottFrom inside the camp
This blog comes to you direct from within the BLACKCAPS camp as we gear up to take on Pakistan.
We all came in to camp on Thursday and while the guys who played in the Test series were looking a bit tired after the second Test they’re in good spirits.
The enthusiasm within the team is high and we’re all looking forward to getting stuck in.
The call up to the BLACKCAPS for these ODIs and the World Cup squad may mean I have played my last game of the summer for the Yahoo!Xtra Northern Knights.
The New Zealand selectors have named the team for the first two games against Pakistan but because there are 15 in the World Cup squad they’re going to change the team every two games.
That may give me the opportunity to head back to play a game or two for ND.
I’d like to think I can stay in the team for all six games but they may leave me out and bring in a couple of guys like Kane Williamson, Kyle Mills and Luke Woodcock who aren’t in the team for the first two games.
Whichever way it plays out there’s no question about it we are cramming plenty of cricket into the schedule between now and February 5.
There are very few days between games so there’s not much of a break but that’s the way the cricket world operates these days.
And I think after this series there’s only a day or two later we head off to India for the World Cup.
It comes to individuals being responsible for their recovery these days.
You have to make sure between games you rest up the right way and do the right things and get ready to go again.
It’s been good to have four days playing for the Yahoo!Xtra Northern Knights, ideally I’ll get another six matches against Pakistan which will mean 10 games under my belt as we head into the World Cup which is all I can really ask for.
Some of the boys have obviously been playing Test cricket which means a lot of time in the middle and you’d like to think that will mean the guys will hit the ground running when we touchdown in India.
That’s crucial for a tournament like the World Cup.
Momentum plays a big part in achieving the highest level of success.
We play Kenya first up in the World Cup on February 20.
That will give us a good hit out and hopefully give us an opportunity to lay a solid platform to kick start our campaign.
And then it’s into our old foes Australia in our second game.
I’d actually prefer to play Australia or South Africa early on in a tournament under sub-continent conditions.
They potentially won’t have the slow bowlers that we have and many other nations do so it might be an opportunity to sneak one by them.
I know that if you can win a game against Australia it can set you up for the tournament.
The Knights had that momentum up as well after our first two games and despite losing our last game in Whangarei the side is going well.
There were definitely a lot of positives that came out of the loss to the Wellington Firebirds.
It was a really slow wicket and tough to bat on but we did well to get back into the match, James Marshall batted fantastically as did a couple of the bowlers Graeme Aldridge and Bradley Scott.
In the end we probably should have won but we fell just short.
It was a good opportunity for us to go three from three but that wasn’t to be.
After the rained out game in Invercargill we’re still in a pretty good position.
The Knights are back at home in Whangarei on Sunday against the Wizards and have the added bonus of having Kane Williamson back in the team.
Kane was amazing for the Knights last season so I’d like to think he can continue that form.
He’s a fantastic player and I think along with Brent Arnel they’ll add a bit of extra spark to the team who are already fizzing this season and they’re every chance of picking up another win and solidifying a spot in the semi-final race.