Keaton Jennings predicts a big reaction from Durham as they gear up to face the Notts Outlaws at Emirates Riverside in a day-night Royal London One-Day Cup match (2pm start).
After two days of intensive training at Emirates Riverside, Durham are prepared to face a side they beat emphatically in the 20-over format just two weeks ago.
Jon Lewis’ side have won one and lost two of their One-Day Cup campaign so far after losing a reduced overs game against Worcestershire Rapids last weekend.
But Jennings says the mood is unequivocally positive in the camp and the young side are heading for a return back to winning ways.
“The guys are positive and enjoying it. We have trained hard today so hopefully we can come out tomorrow and pull off a performance off the back of a few hard training days,” he said.
“We try and back our skills but unfortunately in the last few games, it hasn’t quite come off. With a young squad and guys that haven’t played a lot of one-day cricket that’s going to happen.
“Each batter wants to read the game and then move the game forward and I think that’s something we haven’t done as well as we would have liked in the last few games.
“The way we have tried to go about one-day cricket this year is be positive and aggressive. One of Jon Lewis’s big things is to have a reaction and make sure our skills are at the right level in order to compete.
“There are some big positives; Coggers [Paul Coughlin] has been brilliant and the amount of ground he covers in the field is scary! A guy like Rhino [Ryan Pringle] getting his first hundred as well was superb.
“If we put a couple of good performances in tomorrow and Friday [in the Natwest t20 Blast game against Northants Steelbacks], we’re right back in the mix around the top of the tables.”
Jennings has featured in all limited-overs fixtures this season and starred against the Outlaws two weeks ago, returning excellent figures of 1/15 in the middle overs to stifle the visitors’ batting.
His fast-improving medium pace has seen him become an all-round option for head coach Lewis.
And Jennings is enjoying the added responsibility and learning from another middle-order batsman and medium pace bowler, Paul Collingwood.
“I enjoy responsibility, with responsibility comes more pressure and more emphasis on you as a player to score runs and take more wickets, so hopefully me and the other guys can put performances on the board that will get us over the line,” he said.
“Colly’s a great guy to learn from. He’s played a lot of international cricket, so to try and emulate him and learn in his path is great. He’s still one of the fittest in the squad!
“He’s a great guy to have around and he’s been brilliant for me and a lot of other people’s game.”
Young batsman Jack Burnham has been introduced to a 12-man squad for the match.
Squad vs Notts Outlaws (15 June): Mark Stoneman (c), Phil Mustard (wk), Scott Borthwick, Paul Collingwood, Jack Burnham, Keaton Jennings, Ryan Pringle, Michael Richardson, Calum MacLeod, Paul Coughlin, Usman Arshad, Chris Rushworth