The tension and excitement mounts

We were looking to train early in the first week to get the girls used to getting up early and playing in the conditions. All our ODIs start at 9.30am because it gets dark quite early here, so we’re just getting used to the earlier starts! This means we’ve had some quite long afternoons, so on Friday we organised a trip to the local supermarket where we all stocked up on crisps, sprite, biscuits and chocolate éclairs!

That night we went to an official meeting at the main stadium where we went over the logistics of the tournament – all very amicable. On Saturday morning we held a light training session and gave the bowlers a rest. So instead we had a group of Under-17 schoolboys bowl at us in the nets. It was a great experience for both parties, but unfortunately they came off worse because I hit one of them in the back! I felt awful, but he got some treatment from physio Sue Hughes, so he was happy!

In the afternoon a group of the girls went to a local orphanage to meet the kids. The players were all moved by what they saw and it’s a shame the schedule is so tightly packed because we would all have liked the opportunity to go. That evening was our big night out as we headed over the road to Pizza Hut. Having had rice, noodles and curry all week, it was a welcome change! We all pigged out on garlic bread and “country feast” pizzas! Then we all had an early night in preparation for our first of two practice matches against India ‘B’.

We set ourselves a 6.30am wake-up call to ensure we got the bus packed on time and were ready for a 7.15am leave, at which point the heavens opened and I thought our first practice match was likely to be cancelled. All the girls rushed back upstairs to collect books, magazines and waterproofs, but much to my delight when we arrived at the ground there had somehow been no rain even though it was only twenty minutes away.

I won my first toss of the tour and elected to bat on a really good wicket and what looked to be a quick outfield. We were looking to use our whole squad for the game to give them all a chance to play in the heat and humidity. We got off to a solid start before losing two wickets in quick succession. Me and Claire Taylor batted well together with her going on to reach 52 before retiring to give others an opportunity to bat in the conditions. I hit a quick 46, swept really well, including a few reverse sweeps – something I’ve been working on over the winter so I was quite pleased. We finished on 260 with all of the girls having the opportunity to bat and we were happy with our first run out of the tour. India ‘B’ got off to a brisk start, being 100 for 2 off 20 overs but the bowlers came back really well with Holly Colvin taking five wickets to bowl them all out for 163. It was a really pleasing performance bearing in mind we haven’t played together since August.

It was another early start for us on Monday as we were playing our second warm-up game, this time against India ‘A’ at the main stadium. I lost my first toss of the tour – am sure it won’t be my last – and India ‘A’ elected to bat. We gave a really professional bowling and fielding performance and we got them all out for 66 with the bowlers sharing the workload. The most pleasing part of that being Ebony (Rainford-Brent), who took her first wicket in three years. She bowled a brilliant spell of 2-8 off five overs. We lost two early wickets in our reply, then Claire Taylor and I saw us past the required runs in 15.1 overs.

It was a quick turnaround for me after the game because it was the official press conference for the series. I was on the panel with Karen Rolton (Australian captain) and Haidee Tiffen (New Zealand), all answering various questions, but nothing too controversial.

I’m writing this by the pool sunbathing in the 30c heat before I go in for my massage at 11am. We’ve got a light training session this afternoon before our first official game tomorrow against India at the main stadium. The team are really excited about it and we can’t wait for the tournament to get underway.