It's a long old learning curve

It's hard to believe that eight days into the tour we have already lost the one-day series. We have moved from Chennai to Hyder and now Delhi, and are currently on day one of a two-day practice match before going to Lucknow for the Test.

The loss of Claire Taylor following an injury sustained during pre-match training has been a considerable blow to the team. On form and with the mental toughness to stick around, her departure has increased the already large gap in our batting line-up. Jackie Hawker subsequently joined us yesterday afternoon and is having a run in this game.

To put an optimistic angle on the results would be to over-estimate our performances to date. The batting has simply not been good enough, and has been accompanied by far too many extras in the field. Our bowling, usually strong, has lacked consistency. Since the first game in Chennai there have been improvements, but the batting in the third ODI reached a pitiful level. Failure to improve from here would be nothing short of a disaster.

We have made a very positive start to the practice match, bowling out the India Board XI side for 101 in 41 overs with Helen Wardlaw (Yorkshire) Dawn Holden (Notts) and Sarah Clarke (Surrey) bowling effective and at times wily spin. It is with our batting that we have something to prove to ourselves, and today must witness players getting scores. Opener Caroline Atkins started the innings well, reaching a much improved 42, as we finished the day on 98 for four.

With four new caps there is an element of 'greenness' about the squad, but the unity of the group gives new-found openness, and a positive attitude in laying the foundations for better performances in the long term.

Those of us who have been in the squad for a while tend to joke about forever being on a learning curve, and that it would be more than nice to reach a point of having learned and actually perfoming to our ability, but it is truer now than ever before that we are all learning - new techniques, new approaches, new ways of thinking. But we must perform better than we have so far in the next game and beyond.

India is a fabulous country and a forever stimulating environment to play cricket. The people are warm and generous - if curious about a group of 16 women and two men wandering around with coffins and suitcases - and always eager to please! Things often do not go quite as we expect, but they go, and the group have kept a humorous outlook on it all. The schedule is hectic - in the next seven days we have six days of cricket and a day of travel. Onwards and upwards I hope.