As we look forward to our opening NatWest T20 Blast fixture against the Birmingham Bears in seven days time at Trent Bridge, there’s no doubt that the competition has become one of the highlights of the season.

It’s the form of the domestic game that gets the most media attention and that’s watched by the biggest crowds, nowhere more so than in Nottingham, where we’ve been blessed with great support for a number of years.

I was around, of course, when T20 cricket first began.

I played my first match in 2004 against Durham. We were only chasing 121 to win and we actually made hard work of it, finally getting over the line in the last over with seven wickets down.

My steady 12 off 17 balls probably wouldn’t be looked upon too fondly in the modern day. I don’t think I’d get away with doing that against the Bears next Friday.

Back then we thought the Twenty20 Cup was going to be a bit of a break, a bit of a laugh; just relax and enjoy it.

But a few years in, we knew it was a serious game and – if you don’t pull your fingers out – it can be one of the worst times of the season.

With it being played in a block in those days, with a game every two or three days, if you got into a period where you weren’t winning, it could feel like a very long couple of weeks.

It quickly went from being hit and giggle to a very, very serious business and the format has gone on to change the cricketing landscape forever.

Over the course of the tournament’s 13 years, if you look at the stats on where we have got to in T20 and the amount of times we’ve reached finals day, we’ve probably underperformed, even though we’ve often managed to dominate the group stages.

It’s a tournament I’d love to win because we’re so well supported and we play entertaining cricket that fans enjoy, but we need to back that up with some silverware.

Last summer excepted, where we didn’t perform to our potential and didn’t manage to get out of the group, for five or six years prior to that we were the standout team in the regular season.

But knockout cricket is a different beast where you have to perform under pressure on the day and that’s something we’ve not managed to do.

Everyone wants to win the trophy, of course we do, that’s what we all play for, those are the things we will remember.

But our focus in T20 this year has to be on taking each game as it comes and not taking those group stage games for granted, because nobody has the right to automatically sail through.

We need to make sure we lead in that competition from game one, and it all starts against the Bears.

 

The excitement of NatWest T20 Blast returns to Trent Bridge on Friday 20 May as Notts Outlaws face Birmingham Bears in the first of seven home matches in the competition.

Supporters can witness every minute of the action with a NatWest T20 Blast Season Ticket, priced at just £84 (adults), £63 (over 65s) or £203 (family 2+2), with Membership available to U16s at £26 and U21s for £36.

Make Trent Bridge a firm fixture for your Friday nights and secure your seats now.