Glos can tame the Bears
Source -
epost.co.uk
Carl Greenidge believes Gloucestershire possess the means to derail Warwickshire's Twenty20 Cup express in Bristol this evening.
Top of the Midland/Wales and West Division, the Bears have yet to taste defeat in county cricket's most popular format this season.
But something will have to give when the Midlanders collide with a Gloucestershire side also boasting an unbeaten record.
And Greenidge believes the home team can supplant the Bears at the top of the table.
"We're on a roll in one-day cricket and fancy our chances against anyone," declared Greenidge, who has spearheaded Gloucestershire's attack during a remarkable sequence of eight successive limited overs victories.
"We won six on the trot in the Friends Provident Trophy and almost made the semi-finals.
"We showed people what we are capable of with that run and we'd like to think we can go one step further and make the knockout stages in Twenty20."
He added: "We didn't want to make too much of our unbeaten run coming into the shorter game, because they are such different formats.
"But we've now won our last two and confidence among the lads is extremely high.
"Warwickshire will also be confident after making such a good start, but there's no reason why we cannot beat them at our place.
"This is a very important game for both sides and, whoever wins will be in a strong position."
Now considered something of a specialist in the short format, the 29-year-old paceman has proved hugely effective with the white ball in recent seasons.
His clever variation of length and pace make him ideally suited to the game of cat and mouse that is Twenty20.
Greenidge's incisive return of 3-20, including the prized wickets of Justin Langer and Marcus Trescothick, was chiefly responsible for Gloucestershire's startling eight-wicket triumph over Somerset at Taunton on Wednesday.
He reasoned: "It's all about trying to stay one step ahead of the batsman. He's trying to hit you out of the ground and you have to be cool under pressure and not become flustered.
"You have to think all the time and be switched on. I just try to mix things up as much as possible and keep the batsman guessing. So far, it seems to be paying off for me."
In the injury-enforced absence of Jon Lewis and Steve Kirby, Greenidge has forged an effective new-ball partnership with Zimbabwean World Cup bowler Anthony Ireland.
He admitted: "We probably wouldn't have been the first choice pairing at the start of the season, but we're now in the side and we do seem to complement one another.
"Anthony kept things tight at one end against Somerset and I benefited from the pressure he built. That's how a partnership should work."
Gloucestershire will delay naming their side pending a fitness check on Hamish Marshall. Struck a painful blow on the right knee during Monday's victory over Worcestershire, the New Zealand batsman was replaced by Kadeer Ali at Taunton.
Warwickshire will be without batsmen Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott, both on England duty in today's Twenty20 international against West Indies at The Oval.
T20, Twenty20 and Twenty20 Cup are registered trade marks of the England and Wales Cricket Board Limited (the “ECB”).
Products and services on this website are not offered in connection with, or with the endorsement of the ECB
