With Notts Outlaws’ qualification hopes resting on victory over the Leicestershire Foxes on Friday, Director Of Cricket Mick Newell has urged his players to focus on winning and not other results happening elsewhere.
The Outlaws need to win their fourth game in a row and have one of two other results go their way to qualify for the NatWest T20 Blast knockout stages for a sixth consecutive year.
Newell is wary of the challenge the Foxes pose and how much Notts' local rivals will want to deny them any chance of a quarter-final spot.
“The game brings with it an added edge, not because of the loss earlier on in the season, but what we can achieve if we win,” he said.
“They would probably enjoy denying us a chance to progress and we need to be ready for the challenge and win the game.
“The first thing we have to focus on is winning. It would be criminal for us to lose our game if it turned out that results elsewhere had actually gone in our favour.
“We have to prioritise our performance and hope things fall beneficially for us," Newell continued.
“We have been playing well over the past few weeks and have had a settled team, something we couldn’t say over the first ten games.
“Everyone knows their role in the side already, but it is definitely easier when you have the same team for a number of games.”
Following a run of four victories on the bounce accross the NatWest T20 Blast and LV= County Championship competitions, culminating in the recent innings victory over Sussex, Newell pinpointed the earlier four day victory over Worcestershire as a turning point in Nottinghamshire's season.
“The performance against Sussex was what you hope for every time you step out in a four day fixture,” he said.
“To put such a big score on in the first innings, putting them under pressure, and to bowl them out twice is a terrific effort.
“Our recent run of form was kickstarted with the battling Worcestershire effort when two bowlers had gone down injured on the first day.
“To see Andy Carter bowling to help the attack out despite not being fully fit was a true sign of how we turned that game around.
“The players could have petered away over the three days and thought it was too difficult to win, but they didn’t do that and they pulled off a remarkable victory.
“I think that allowed some players to gain some confidence and put in good performances over the past few weeks.”
Notts Outlaws squad to face Leicestershire Foxes (from): Jake Ball, Dan Christian, Will Gidman, Harry Gurney, Alex Hales, Brett Hutton, Michael Lumb, Steven Mullaney, Samit Patel, Chris Read, James Taylor, Riki Wessels, Sam Wood.
Notts Outlaws will next be in home action with the return of 50-over cricket for the Royal London One Day competition throughout July and August starting with a weekend at Welbeck Cricket Club. Don't miss out on the next step of our summer of cricket and secure your seats now.