Royal London One-Day Cup final: Nick Knight previews Lord's clash
Friday 18 September 2015 14:00, UK
As Gloucestershire and Surrey prepare to face off in the Royal London One-Day Cup final, Nick Knight looks at some of the key players and areas where the game could be decided.
The Sky Sports pundit, who was part two victorious Warwickshire sides in one-day cup finals at Lord's, gives his views on the contrasting approaches taken by both sides, the impact of Kumar Sangakkara at Surrey and whether Gloucestershire will benefit from their County Championship game with Kent being washed out.
There are also mentions for Surrey's young brothers Tom and Sam Curran, the unfortunate Zafar Ansari and Gloucestershire's in-form opener Michael Klinger…
On the different approaches of the two teams…
"Both sides will obviously reflect on how well they played in the group stages and both sides did it slightly differently. Surrey in all games, they batted first, posted a good score and defended and by complete contrast, Gloucester did it exactly the other way, they liked to chase.
"Very different styles and very different ways of getting success and in many ways it makes the toss quite intriguing because it's almost irrelevant as whoever wins it will either bat or chase which is the way their respective teams have had success.
"It'll be interesting to see what happens at 10 o'clock tomorrow but both teams have found a method, a mantra, of being successful so I'd be surprised if they went away from that tomorrow."
On an intriguing toss…
"That's going to be the interesting part because it is an early start and if you go back over time, over the history of these Lord's finals in mid-September, there was a time that when you won the toss, you generally bowled first because it was a huge advantage.
"Now my understanding is that the weather forecast is pretty good so it might be that the sun is out and if Surrey win the toss, history throughout the competition will tell you that they will bat first.
Live Royal London One-Day Cup Cricket
"If it's overcast, murky, a bit of light drizzle around in the morning then that might make that toss decision quite interesting. It may persuade a side who have batted first throughout the competition to approach it in a slightly different way."
On the influence of Kumar Sangakkara…
"It's absolutely huge. He's one of the best players in the world and has been for many a year. Whenever he opens his mouth and talks to younger players they'll be all ears, listening intently. He has an enthusiasm for the game still, I expect tomorrow he'll be hugely excited about playing in a Lord's final.
"He's obviously contributed massively on the pitch and off it, and I think he's almost the perfect overseas player. In this day and age it is difficult to get overseas players who can be there for most of the season and have an impact over that period of time. It's a massive signing, a huge signing, an exciting signing and not just for him as a player but for the club in general.
"Perhaps it's no coincidence that they're having an exceptionally good year. They're still going to have to wait to find out who wins Division Two but obviously they're going to go up to Division One, where they'll feel they belong. It's hard to say that the signing of Sangakkara hasn't had a huge influence on that."
On Gloucestershire's unplanned rest week…
"I've been thinking about this a lot. It's something we debate about when it comes to these showpiece finals, whether it is better to have a rest and get your head around the one-day disciplines and practice in the nets when it's raining, as Gloucester will have had the chance to do. Perhaps have team meetings on strategy and planning.
"All of that has a place, but my only personal preference is that I'd rather be playing. I'd rather be putting in a performance and take with me the confidence of a performance in a championship game.
"For Surrey, it wasn't in a winning cause but it was very nearly in a winning cause and if they could have just won that game I think it would have been brilliant for them even though they've put in a lot of legwork and been out in the field for a long time.
"These guys are pretty fit and pretty resilient and used to putting in one final performance. If you can't raise yourself for a Lord's final then there's real problems. I think form and confidence are key elements going into a big final."
On Surrey's Curran brother, Tom and Sam…
"Like all of us who follow the game, I've seen snippets of them in the games I've covered of Surrey. There's an excellent balance with Sangakkara and a core of senior players and established players and then a group of very exciting younger players like Jason Roy, the two Currans and Zafar Ansari, who will unfortunately miss out, but he would come under that bracket as well.
"They're lucky really, they've put together a side that has that exciting youth and will feel the excitement of the day playing at Lord's in the final and the two Currans will play a part in that I'm sure. Sam Curran is 17 years of age and runs in and bowls at 84 or 85mph and swings the new ball.
"He's becoming a handful and making a real name for himself and Tom is doing the same. So I'm really excited about them, I hope they have a good day out and inevitably we'll talk them up and look forward to seeing them play. They're an excellent addition to the side."
On Zafar Ansari's injury...
"I've dislocated fingers, broken fingers and you can't second guess this one. There's a slightly different nature to them all really. Some are more serious than others, I couldn't second guess it but I, like everyone else I'm sure, just feel for him and hope that it's not something that is going to keep him out of this great opportunity.
"Whether he would have played, I don't know. I suspect he wouldn't have played, not at the start of the tour but it would be a great experience for him. He's the type of player they seem to be wanting to go with, an all-round three dimensional player contributing in all three formats of the game.
"You have to feel desperately, desperately sorry for him but let's hope that the next few weeks we hear some good news and he can take his place on that tour."
On Michael Klinger's incredible form…
"Those of us who have seen him play - and you have to remember that he has been playing over here for a while now - know that he is a very good player. He's not one of the heralded Australian batsmen of the last few years in terms of international cricket but he's a handy player and someone who has regularly contributed to Gloucestershire cricket.
"He will be at the forefront of the Surrey bowler's minds. They'll have team meetings - 'How do we restrict Klinger? How do we get Klinger out?' He will be the key wicket, no doubt, and the danger in that for Surrey, and I'm sure they won't, is that they will focus all their attention on one player and another player that sneaks in, these finals have a habit of being quite a surprise at times.
"They have some very good players, you don't get to a final on the back of just one performance or one player. They've obviously all performed well over a period of time."
On Gloucestershire's one-day traditions…
"Gloucestershire have a rich pedigree in this format of the game, one-day cricket and they're very good playing in finals. It's obviously a lot of new faces but the club history is something the players will be very aware of and thrive off I'm sure."
On dealing with the occasion of a Lord's final….
"I always think that as a team, you have to get yourselves into a mental state that it is just another game, don't do anything different in your practice that you wouldn't do in a group game or a quarter-final.
"Try and do the preparation you do normally, don't heighten it too much in your own expectation. Try, if you can, to do everything you would do for a normal game even though it is such a big game."
On which side has the edge…
"My hunch is Surrey because of the big names, the stars, the balance of the side and the confidence that they've got from playing good championship cricket. Generally, their form has been very good throughout.
"I would have to go with Surrey but Gloucestershire with their good one-day pedigree, as I mentioned earlier, and their good in-form players can't be written off. I would have to say Surrey but good luck to both sides."
Watch the Royal London One-Day Cup Final between Surrey and Gloucestershire from 10am on Saturday, Sky Sports 2. You can also catch the game with a NOW TV Day Pass.
