Pillans enjoying time at Foxes

All-rounder Mat Pillans has had a whirlwind start to his Leicestershire career – but is loving every minute of it.

The 26-year-old played back-to-back Specsavers County Championship games at Northants and Sussex and has then appeared in all three NatWest T20 Blast victories, playing a key role across both formats.

Pillans made a half-century at Northants that nearly brought about Leicestershire’s record Championship chase and has also taken nine wickets in his two four-day appearances.

He has also caught the eye in the Blast; Pillans’ two skilful, economical overs at the death at Edgbaston on Sunday included the key wicket of Colin de Grandhomme. His efforts went a long way to securing victory for the Foxes.

Pillans had also bowled very well at New Road on the previous Friday - figures of 0 for 30 off four quick, accurate overs on a used surface did not do him justice - and his 29 runs accumulated at Lancashire and Birmingham were also key contributions in tight contests.

Foxes fans will be hoping for more of the same as the team travels for its latest NatWest T20 Blast challenge, a televised encounter at Durham Jets on Thursday evening (6.30pm start).

“It has been good to play lots of cricket and I was instantly welcomed into the changing room here,” said Pillans.

“The guys kept really calm under pressure on Sunday and we backed ourselves as we have done throughout the tournament so far.

“It’s brilliant to be a part of the changing room at Leicestershire, we’re enjoying each other’s company and playing some good cricket so everything is going well.

“T20 is a great format to play. It’s about having fun and enjoying the brand of cricket you’re playing, and if you do that there is more chance of getting the results that you want.

“We have lots of confidence and are looking forward to a big couple of days, starting with Durham tomorrow before playing our first game at home against Northants on Friday.”

Head Coach Pierre de Bruyn agreed with Pillans’ assessment that a cool head is one of the most important aspects of performing well in the Blast.

He said: “It’s about staying calm under pressure, and Mathew [Pillans] gave us a perfect demonstration of that. He hit his line and length perfectly under pressure in those last two overs.

“Colin Ackermann came up with three big wickets too, including their openers in the powerplay. It was a great effort by the bowlers.

“They built on the start that Luke Ronchi gave us. The ball was new and hard and he capitalised on that nicely. He gave us a great start alongside Cameron Delport who played a different role because Roncs [Luke Ronchi] was going so nicely.”

de Bruyn said the key now is for the Foxes to channel all of the confidence, excitement and momentum that has been created across the opening three matches.

Durham have had a tricky start to NatWest T20 Blast; they were hit with a points deduction before the competition began and have lost their first two games.

But the Jets controlled the 50-over contest between the sides at South Northumberland CC earlier this season and de Bruyn is fully aware of their capabilities.

“We are sitting with some valuable momentum and it’s important that we use that,” he said. “Three wins is a good start and I couldn’t have asked for any more than that.

“But it is a long tournament and we are not taking anything for granted. We don't want to be getting complacent three games in. We know that there are areas that we can improve on and I won’t allow the points total to affect our analysis of the games.

“I still think we ended 15 or 20 runs short of where we wanted to be at Birmingham, so we have looked at that from a batting point of view.

“We lost some cheap wickets again in the middle but bowled extremely well and fielded well. So it’s about building on the good parts of the performance but making sure we learn from our mistakes so that it doesn’t cost us in a future game.

“We are well aware that Durham need a win and have some very good players. They will come at us hard on their own territory, so from our perspective it’s about maintaining consistency and making sure we start afresh.”

The Foxes have named an unchanged line-up in the first three games and are travelling with the same 14 players for the trip up the A1. Aadil Ali, Rob Sayer and Dieter Klein are therefore in contention alongside the XI that have been on duty to date.

Foxes (from): McKay (capt), Aadil, Ackermann, Cosgrove, Delport, Eckersley, Griffiths, Hill, Klein, Parkinson, Pillans, Ronchi, Sayer, Wells.

* Thanks to John Mallett for the photo of Mat Pillans bowling at Edgbaston.