Out In The Middle With Scott

World Cup

It’s nearly time for the ICC One Day World Cup to start for us here in India.

We get things underway on February 20 against Kenya and anyone who thinks this game is an easy win for us and just a warm up is dreaming.

We need to get things going from the first ball and more importantly we need to continue to build on the performance we put on against Pakistan in the last ODI in Auckland.

That game was the perfect way for us to finish what was otherwise a disappointing series.

As I said in my last blog we had the chance to wrap the series up but we let it slip away.

We can’t get caught out in the World Cup.

If we get just one game wrong it could be the difference between making it through to the business end and coming home early.

The mood in the camp is good, the boys are all excited about having the opportunity to shine on the world stage against the best teams in the game.

Our warm up games have produced a mixed bag but in all honesty our focus is on performing in the competition.

These games are all about fine tuning and getting our mind set right.

And that’s the biggest thing for the team right now.

If we don’t back ourselves we are going to struggle.

Players like Jesse Ryder thrive on confidence and his performance in Auckland showed just how good he really is when he gets his eye in and I think he turned the corner after some tough games and a run-in with the media over his tweets.

One of the big things to come out of the build-up to the tournament is the banning of tweeting during matches by players and officials.

This is an interesting move.

Obviously the ICC is desperate to make sure there are no controversies that have marred certain parts of the game in the past.

To be honest I don’t really know why a player or official would be tweeting during a game anyway – they should have their mind on the job.

I love being able to interact with fans using twitter as I said in my last blog but I certainly wouldn’t be sending out any messages during the game.

And there’s no way that any player or official will be able to anyway, all our phones are being taken off us before we get on the bus to head to the game.

At the end of the day we’re here for one reason and that’s to play cricket.

There are 11 players in the team who have to do their best on the field in each game we play.

We have to get it right and that means there can’t be any outside influences.

And this is the attitude we’ll take into our game against Kenya.

We have to get the job done and take care of business.

We face Australia in our second game and there’s no question about it that will be a tough game.

So we must come out firing.

I hope you get in behind us and support us as we chase the World Cup because we’re not just doing this for ourselves we’re doing it for all New Zealanders!
 

Cheers, ScottY