MORTLAKE captain Todd Lamont wants his side to steer clear from the “crash and bash” mentality of Twenty20 batting in this Sunday’s Sungold T20 quarter-finals – unless the situation calls for it.
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The Cats won through last weekend’s South West Cricket T20 tournament without hitting a plethora of boundaries, defeating Terang, Pomborneit and Simpson to book their spot in the inter-association cup.
“Batting, you don’t necessarily need to hit boundaries,” Lamont said.
“It’s just batting sensibly. It’s just knowing your limitations. If you can’t hit boundaries (don’t try to). Just assess the situation.
“It’s not all crash and bash; it’s bat to the situation.”
Lamont said with the big grounds in the Warrnambool and District Cricket Association-hosted event, boundaries could be even more difficult to come by, putting a greater emphasis on smart running between the wickets.
While the Cats’ captain put last weekend’s triumph down to an even spread of contributors, two batting performances stood out.
Josh Barr batted through the innings in the Cats’ thrilling three-run semi-final win over Pomborneit, while Lachie Wareham did the same in the grand final against Simpson, which Mortlake won by 61 runs.
“We didn’t play our best cricket, but we did enough to win,” Lamont said.
“We were pretty lucky at times to get through.
“We had even contribution from everyone. We had a few young kids play a role. We didn’t really rely on anyone too much.”
Mortlake, which has won four of the past five SWC division one premierships, has made just one other appearance in the Sungold T20 Cup.
Two summers ago, the Cats made it through to the semi-finals, before going down to West Warrnambool by four runs.
“Hopefully we’re in a bit of a better position this time with the experience we got from it,” Lamont said.
“There’s a few changes (to the side from two years ago). I reckon there’ll be at least five changes … but the core will still be the same.
“I’d say the team we take will probably be a bit younger than the one we took last time.”
The Cats could take up to eight bowling options into their Sungold Cup quarter-final against Stoneyford at Davidson Oval on Sunday morning, giving them plenty of options for their bowling attack.
In the other quarter finals, WDCA representative Russells Creek will take on Tyrendarra, GCA team Panmure will face Macarthur and West Gambier will take on last summer’s runner-up Buangor.
The winners will then go on to play semi-finals and the final on Australia Day at Allansford’s Uebergang Oval.
Susie Giese
Susie Giese is a sports reporter at The Standard in Warrnambool
Susie Giese is a sports reporter at The Standard in Warrnambool
