Russel Arnold believes mental strength is the key

Russel Arnold

Winning the Sharjah final was a relief. We went to the UAE with confidence after winning our previous two one-day series against New Zealand and England and were looking for a convincing performance. We may have fallen short of these expectations, but we at least turned it on when it really mattered.

We started badly by losing to Pakistan, a game we probably should have won, as most of our batsmen made good starts, but then failed to transform those starts into match winning innings. Sanath's and Mahela's brilliant batting against the Kiwi's ensured us an easy victory in the next game.

In our final two group games we struggled and lost some confidence. Required to chase in both games we lost wickets at regular intervals and never really threatened to win the games. Thankfully our net run rate was sufficient to book us a berth in the final.

Once in the final we were confident that we could win it. We had little to lose and knew that we hadn't performed to potential so far. If our game clicked then the trophy was ours so we focused hard on giving one last big effort.

Winning the toss was a real bonus. Batting second had proved difficult throughout the tournament. The evening dew offered the pacemen some encouragement and the white ball was unusually difficult to pick up under the glare of the lights because of the whitish colour of the playing surface.

This, however, was balanced by the fact that spinners struggled to spin the ball in the later stages because they were unable to grip the ball properly and the dew made the ball skid on to the batsmen. This actually made run scoring easier in the later stages. Thus, you could prosper batting second, but only if you didn't lose early wickets.

We were therefore delighted when we were able to bat first and then took wickets in the early overs of the Pakistan innings. Pakistan scored runs quickly, but they lost crucial wickets, the one of Inzamann being the key. We knew that Inzy and Anwaar were trhe biggest threat, as they were in tremendous form and have the ability to bat for long periods of time.

Personally, I had a disappointing tournament, although I was happy with my bowling and my fielding. My batting never really got going. I was hitting the ball well in the nets and felt in good form, but just kept getting out through the odd bad shot and some poor luck. With no runs behind you your confidence is always likely to dip a little.

When I am batting really well I am relaxed. I feel in total control. There is no need to think, as the body just reacts and you naturally strike the right balance between attack and defense.

When you are playing like that you have the confidence to look at the big picture and plan ahead. For example, in New Zealand earlier this year, when I scored an unbeaten 78 to help win the Wellington game, I came to crease and believed that I was in control. If a good over was bowled I didn't panic because I felt that I could raise the tempo when it mattered. That is the state of mind that we batsmen strive to create.

I was disappointed to have not played up to expectations, but not overly concerned. I have had my share of success throughout the year and I now need to focus on the future - to learn from my experiences and move on.

The team too will be looking to the future. After a short break we start training again next week and we know that we need to work on our consistency. To become a really good side we have to perform consistently in all departments, every day of the week. To achieve this we all need to retain our self-belief when times are tough - to be in control at all times. In other words, we have to be mentally strong.