Fri, 23 July 2010
Victorian wicketkeeper Matthew Wade says his team-mates are looking fitter and stronger than ever ahead of the 2010/11 domestic season.
Wade only took part in the first day of pre-season training before heading up to Queensland to play with the Australia A squad and has noticed a change within the squad upon his return.
"I've been away and I've come back and the boys are flying," he told cricket.com.au.
"David Bailey has got them running really well. They are running as well as I've probably seen them run in the three years I've been here.
"All the bowlers look fit and strong, which is a good sign this time of the year, so we are looking forward to getting into some games now. "
As well as running, the DEC Bushrangers take part in three weight sessions and two skill sessions each week and now as they near the end of pre-season they are mixing it up with some player-inspired activities such as paintball and a Melbourne-based version of the "Amazing Race".
"Peter Siddle arranged for the guys to go to paint ball, which was fun for a little while I think until they realised the paint balls actually hurt," Wade laughs.
"Our last one was an Amazing Race around Melbourne where we had to run around and collect information. It was good fun.
"Our group won. I was with Peter Siddle and he ran the whole thing, but I was kind of lagging behind. He was the star in that again."
Wade's personal form has been good of late. He was instrumental in the Twenty20 win over Sri Lanka A in Townsville, belting a brilliant 80 in the 27-run victory.
"The next three or four weeks is important for me," Wade admits.
"I'll be doing pretty hard running and weights sessions for the next two or three weeks to build it up to where I want to be.
"You've got to have something different to all the other keepers in Australia so I'll be working on a few different things with my keeping and batting, but it's nothing out of the ordinary I've just got to try and bring my game up to another level this year and keep improving."
The DEC Bushrangers dominated state cricket last season, winning both the Sheffield Shield and the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash titles and finishing runners-up in the Ford One-Day Cup, and Wade believes they can do it again this year.
"You don't want to be standing still because all the other teams are looking to knock you off," he says.
"At the moment we are training harder than we ever have before and are looking to go in for a big season.
"I suppose you can't predict those results but if we stick to what we do best try and improve in areas we know we can we'll be looking to tie up again.
"We're never satisfied. We've got people that are driven to do well, whether it's playing for Australia or winning more titles, our blokes are focused on improving our game."
Victoria have benefited previously from having experienced international players like David Hussey and Cameron White available to play some state games as well as with the Australian national team.
This is a luxury that all states will have this season, with the schedule allowing for all national players to play some domestic matches.
However, Victoria haven't been without changes ahead of the new season.
Opening batsman Nick Jewell has semi-retired and big-hitter Aiden Blizzard moved to South Australia at the end of last season.
"Aiden Blizzard is a good striker of the ball and it would have been nice to have had him, but he has chosen to go to South Australia and better his career which is fine," Wade says.
"I think it is becoming more and more regular now in state cricket that people are going to move for opportunities, which is absolutely fine.
"Everyone is looking to play for Australia and do really well so there are no grudges held at state level for players going for the right reasons."
The first test for the DEC Bushrangers will be the Airtel Champions League in South Africa in September, where they will come up against the likes of IPL team Chennai Super Kings in the group stages.
Wade says while everyone is really excited for the tournament and the match time is useful, the team must also be mindful of the extra playing time.
"I think it's a good thing early doors to have some more cricket under your belt, but in terms of the whole season we have got to be really smart managing our players through the season, because you are playing effectively an extra month and a bit of cricket which can hurt you with in the middle of the season with injuries and bowlers.
"It's an advantage early on and then we've got to look after our blokes to get them through the whole year."
