Alex Hales says Nottinghamshire Outlaws want to prove themselves on 'big' T20 Finals Day
Friday 19 August 2016 15:22, UK
England's Alex Hales says Nottinghamshire Outlaws have a great opportunity to prove themselves on T20 Finals Day, live on Sky Sports 2.
Hales was part of England's Test squad which drew their series with Pakistan earlier this month and was involved in a controversial dismissal, for which he was fined part of his match fee.
However, the 27-year-old is now looking forward to returning to club duty this Saturday when Notts will battle with Northants, Durham and Yorkshire to be crowned NatWest T20 Blast champions.
Asked what the T20 Finals Day means to him, Hales told Sky Sports News HQ: "[It's] really big. It's a great opportunity for the club as well with the strength of our T20 team. We probably haven't done ourselves justice in the last few years of the tournament so we will be looking to put that right."
The Outlaws will face Northants in the semi-final for a place in the evening showdown, and Hales admits the opposition boast an impressive batting attack.
"[They're] packed with big hitters," he said. "I guess on Finals Day the team that turns up are the team that are going to win it. I guess we have to make sure we are on our game from ball one. We have got our momentum with us. We've enjoyed a good run in the last month or so in this tournament, so hopefully we can keep that up."
Having only finished Test duty with England last week, Hales has been called up for the One-Day series against Pakistan, which begins on Wednesday, live on Sky Sports.
The batsman said cricketers are now accustomed to switching between Test matches, ODIs and T20, and is excited at the prospect of playing T20 at Edgbaston this weekend.
"I think there are three different formats now - all very different skill sets and mind sets," said Hales. "So it was nice to swing the arms in the last couple of training sessions and hit a white ball again. So it's something I'm very much looking forward to."
Hales will be joined at Edgbaston by West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell, who has been allowed to play for Nottinghamshire on T20 Finals Day after helping Jamaica Tallawahs win the Caribbean Premier League.
Russell, who was involved in Notts' wins over Worcestershire and Derbyshire in June, said: "It's a good decision, I'm happy to be here. It's Finals Day. I've never experienced it.
"With me playing here it is good exposure for me and I can maybe showcase the experience I got here. It's good to always be active playing cricket. Well done to them for allowing me to be here."
Russell was part of the West Indies side that beat England in the World Twenty20 final in April, and could face Durham's Ben Stokes, who was hit for six successive sixes as West Indies snatched victory from England, in the final.
Stokes was involved in a bitter feud with Russell's international team-mate Marlon Samuels, but Russell insists the England bowler will recover.
"I'm happy to be a world champion but at the end of the day that's just how the game goes you can either be hero or you be the one that cost the game," he added.
"It's not the end of the road, he's a young guy as well, he has a lot more to give and you never know he could be the star for England in the next T20 World Cup."
Watch 2016 NatWest T20 Blast Finals Day live on Sky Sports 2 from 10.30am on Saturday. Here's how...
