The Blaze wicket keeper Sarah Bryce has emphasised the importance of confidence and value of key contributions ahead of back-to-back Charlotte Edwards Cup games against Thunder and Central Sparks.
The Scotland international is included in a squad of 14 to face the North West-based outfit.
The Blaze secured victory in their opening T20 fixture against South East Stars, extending their unbeaten run since rebranding over the winter.
“I think the vibe around the team at the moment is amazing,” Bryce said, “We’ve got an unbeaten run so far and confidence is high.
“The most exciting thing is that different people in the team have stood up at different times to really make a difference when it has counted for us.
“Obviously, the 50 over game against Diamonds was incredible with Gracie B and Nadine opening up the bowling to put on such a competitive show.
“Then we’ve just had the T20 against South East stars with Boyce securing us another win, along with Tammy who’s scored us loads of runs and Glenny who has taken loads of wickets. So there’s load of different people that have stood out so far.
“In a game like cricket you can’t just rely on one player. You can win matches that way, but not tournaments and trophies.”
When asked if the team were feeling the pressure of maintaining their winning streak – which is now four games – Bryce maintained a level-headed approach and focus on themselves will be crucial.
“I wouldn’t say that we’re the team to beat as such, it’s more that we’re just trying to keep the confidence as high as possible,” she continued.
“Cricket is such a mental game so if we believe that we can win from any position then that foundation of confidence is embedded within the team and has definitely helped us to get over the line on a few occasions.
“But we’ve got to remember not to get too complacent and continue to prepare well for games.
“We’re continuing to put in the hard work alongside the high spirits, and I reckon that if we build on that, no matter what situation we’re in, we’ll always be able to get out of a tight spot.”
Bryce also admitted the helter-skelter nature of the T20 schedule can take its toll, but that preparation will help their bid to be successful this season, aided by previous games against this week’s opposition.
“It will be quite a physically challenging week with the two back-to-back games and then Monday as well,” she said.
“We’ve had to make sure we plan in advance what we’re going to do and have a solid setup for training, so we don’t burn ourselves too early before the Thursday and Friday.
“There’s also the work going on behind the scenes, analysing play, looking at past performances to know what we’re going to come up against in each individual game and then putting that all into practice in training.
“We’ve faced both teams this season, whether it’s been in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy or the warm-ups, so we know what we’re getting from both teams, and as a whole they should be two good games.
“Both teams have good players, so we’ll need to be ready to come at them, but we’ve also got a lot of competence within our group, so I reckon we’ve got a good chance of coming away with the wins.”