The Bears have made a strong start in the North Group but suffered their first defeat last Friday when dropped catches cost them dear against Northants Steelbacks at Northampton.
A feature of their home wins over Leicestershire Foxes and Derbyshire Falcons was fine fielding, both in terms of catching and on the ground. First-teach coach Troughton expects normal service to be resumed as the Bears head into a big weekend with away games against The Outlaws tomorrow then Yorkshire Vikings on Sunday.
I like the squad we have now with the options we have. I think we have the weapons to win games batting or bowling first.
Jim Troughton
“It has
been a decent start to the group for us with two wins at the Fortress,”
Troughton said. “Then we slipped up at Northants which was down to some
lapses in fielding and that is something we will be revisiting and talking
about after every game. Fielding is so crucial to T20 and you have to keep your
standards high.
“It was
disappointing to lose but you are not going to win every game in a long group
phase and what matters most is how you react. Now we have a great opportunity
to bounce back with a road-trip of three games, starting with Notts and
Yorkshire, two good teams who we always seem to get close together, and then another
tough game at Leicestershire.”
Tomorrow’s
game should be a cracker, bringing together two of the North Group favourites.
The Bears will be aiming to emulate their eight-wicket win, secured by a
brilliant unbroken stand of 121 in 80 balls by Ian Bell and Sam Hain, at Trent
Bridge in last year’s competition.
“We
know it will be a great atmosphere at Trent Bridge on a Friday night,”
said Troughton. “Notts have some powerful players and a strong track
record in T20 so it will be tough but we have got players who relish that sort
of atmosphere.
“I like the squad we have now with the options we have. I think we have the weapons to win games batting or bowling first. We have exciting batsmen and a bowling unit capable of squeezing opposition and building that vital pressure.”
