Head Coach Chris Guest has highlighted the value of the recent lessons learned by The Blaze with the East Midlands outfit having won five of their last six games.
Tammy Beaumont is reintroduced to the squad of 13 for the fixture against Central Sparks.
The Blaze began their season with nine first team players unavailable due to international commitments and injury, but Guest pointed to the opportunities provided to players and resilience required by the squad as two important takeaways from that period.
The latter has seen The Blaze bounce back from a tough start in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy to record nip-and-tuck wins in the Charlotte Edwards Cup as Southern Vipers were beaten by three runs and Northern Diamonds four.
Those results followed a four wicket win against Western Storm and a one wicket loss to Thunder, both at Trent Bridge, in the 50 over tournament.
“It is always nice that we’ve come out on the right side of some really tight games, and I feel like we have benefited from them,” Guest said.
“Would we feel a bit different if we had lost those games that have been close? Probably. But to learn those lessons whilst winning are valuable, and we’ve been able to have some really good conversations as a group off the back of them.
“I don’t think we’ve played great cricket, but we have scrapped our way over the line and the result of the success we had last year is that we built a winning mentality. That means that even when we are up against it, we are competitive and still in games.”
The victories have been the product of several players stepping up to mark, including the likes of Ella Claridge and Josie Groves.
Meanwhile a quintet of caps have also been awarded to mark 50 individual appearances in the last fortnight, signifying a loyal core.
“You can see certain players thinking about the game a lot more,” Guest said.
“I think it is easy, when you are two or three steps removed from the action, to switch off a little bit from the tactical side of the game.
“They learn from experience too, whether positive or negative, and when they have the success like Claridge has - being unbeaten in three run chases - they start to believe in themselves more.
“We have also got a group of players who have played with each other for a long time and know each other well. They know how to get the best out of each other and what will help us win games of cricket.
“We have got so much experience but they are still so young which is exciting.”
Guest also paid tribute to captain Kirstie Gordon, who remains the PCA’s Women’s Domestic Most Valuable Player courtesy of her contributions with bat and ball.
The 26-year-old, one of those awarded her 50th cap, has 17 wickets in nine games already this season.
“She has never been shy of confidence, but her determination to whatever is required for the side is outstanding,” Guest said.
“She is a player who performs best when she is either in a battle or our backs are against the wall, and we’ve been in a lot of those situations this year.
“Because she wants to win so much, the challenge for her is managing things when they are not going great, but she has done really well with that this year. She doesn’t get too low or too high and she has been more level as a captain.”
The Blaze’s fixture against Central Sparks will see the 20 over competition’s form sides going toe to toe with both sides having won three each.
It will also mark The Blaze’s last game of the season at Trent Bridge - their base as a Tier One side from 2025.
“It is too early to be thinking about the unbeaten nature of the game and what the table might be saying at this stage of the competition,” Guest admitted.
“And without being too cliche, we know we have got a tough game ahead. For us, it is just the fourth game of a ten-step process of making it to that final.
“But we are beginning to understand the angles of Trent Bridge, we have a better insight into how the wicket might play, and we certainly feel at home coming into regular and familiar surroundings. We have a pretty decent record here of late, too.”