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So we head to Brisbane with the series drawn at 2-2. Tuesday night's loss had turned this series into a real nail bitter.

It was another typical belter at Adelaide, a ground known for its great batting decks, this one, no different. Dan won the toss and we wanted to bat first, so we did.

Before play both teams lined up for a moments silence in memory of the people that have lost their lives in the bushfires in Victoria. This has been a very surreal event to be over here and living through. The news is constant, the papers are full of pics and stories and I really just can't handle it. I'm on the outside looking in and I just can't watch or read any media. It just gets to me so much, my over active imagination starts thinking of what if it was my family over here going through this. What if it was our house that had gone, if my parents, my family had been caught up in it? I just can't imagine what these people are going through. I just play cricket for a living, it's the best job in the world, I'm so happy about where I'm at and what I'm doing and then there are these people that have just lost everything, and more! My deepest sympathies go out to all the people involved and the ones directly affected. And to the people out there fighting the fires, dealing with the misplaced families, the volunteers and the people that have given so generously to the funds, you people are amazing!

Baz's shoulder had come through ok, so he opened with Gups. Good little start from these two, 69 for the first wicket into the 18th over, sure they weren't racing along but nothing helps more at the end of an innings than wickets in hand, especially when setting a total. We then lost two more wickets for the addition of 17 runs. 69-1 to 86-3 is a big setback and it took another good partnership from Taylor and Elliott to put us back into a position that we could launch from at the death. Rossco and TS are in great form, they put on 55 in 11 overs through the middle of the innings, steadied the ship and calmed a few nerves in the viewing area.

When TS was dismissed for 26 off 28 we were 141, six wickets in hand and 16 overs left; pretty handy position to launch from and look for around 260. Not to be, we lost Cumming in the next over which was a huge loss for us and him; he's been in some pretty good form in the domestic competition back home, I should know, he's taken me for a few runs this summer.
We scrapped our way to 244 with a good knock from Millsy. Rossco innings was great; he was dismissed in the power play off a ball that he generally puts about 20 rows back, just one of those things, but his knock gave us a good chance!

It had been a pretty cold day so far, easily the coldest of the tour, and in saying that we've managed to miss pretty much all of the very hot weather that has been around. We've been playing in temps of 30-38C but the days either side of the matches have been up into the mid 40's; we've been very lucky, especially bowling first in the heat.

I headed out to the field with three layers on top as opposed to just the playing shirt as it has been in the previous three games, it was going to be hard to keep the hands warm and get the body back ready to bowl again in the later spells.

I bowled pretty well on Tuesday; my areas were more consistent than in the three previous games. I wasn't running in quite as quick and it felt pretty smooth through my action. I still have some consistency things to work on, but on the whole I was pretty happy with my bowling. My first ball I bowled Clarke hit me over the top of TS at mid on who got a couple of fingertips to it, a chance first ball, it just could be my day, and three balls later and I've got Clarke to hit one to Fults at short cover, happy days! As good a start as I could have asked for.

I came back on towards the end of the innings, we needed a wicket, and I couldn't deliver two overs for seven with two overs left in my ten.

We really needed to break the partnership, mid-on and mid-off up, a slip in and playing with the dice. My ninth over went for too many as Hussey took the bait to hit over the up field. He did it well and I didn't quite get my lengths right, next over was back to the simple death plan, and it paid off; David Hussey out second ball. This was the gamble we took at Sydney too, try to get wickets or restrict runs, in this instance trying to restrict runs by going death maybe was the better option, for me anyway.

We hadn't scored enough runs, but we still didn't really give ourselves a chance with the ball. Millsy, again, was brilliant and since this spell of bowling I had some good chats with him on how he constructs his overs and his spells; personally it's good to be doing pretty well and learning at the same time.

I've been picked in the T20 team that will be staying on for the one T20 in Sydney on the 15th. Really looking forward to making my T20 debut, should be a whole pile of nervous fun! But first, Friday, a hugely important and special match. We have the chance to do something not ever been done before, win an ODI series in Australia. A real good feel around the team for this one and we can't wait to play the 5th match of the series in front of a big, and friendly, crowd at the Gabba.

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No big party last night, alas.

Although we did take it closer than some thought and hushed the crowd towards the end of the match. Bowling first, again, after Dan won the toss on a track that looked pretty good for a one-dayer; and it was. There was a change at the top of the Australian order with Warner missing out and Haddin opening; what a week for him.

Haddin and Clarke played with more positivity than we'd seen so far in the series at the top. They played well, hit the bad balls, and turned good balls into boundary options by moving around the crease. I think they trusted this pitch a little more too, or gambled harder, hitting some good balls, through the line and over the top.

My first spell wasn't too bad. We had planned on being quite aggressive with our lines and lengths and to take wickets as early as possible. I ran in hard and bowled as fast as I have done, things felt good, I even had to take my run up maker back a foot so that I didn't end up 'no balling'. I let go of a yorker that slid under Haddins's bat and fizzed past his off stump early in his innings, an inch or so straighter and it could have been a different day.

It wasn't until my second spell that I took my first wicket; this was my first over in the 'batters' Powerplay and the third of my spell. The ball change had just happened and it was a really hard and newish looking ball. It was certainly an opportunity for the batters to score quickly with the harder ball, but also for the bowler to hit the deck hard and see if it does anything off the harder seam.

And it did with my first ball, one just jumped a little off the deck and Baz [Brendon McCullum] took catch of David Hussey's edge; the perfect start to the Powerplay. I managed to get through a wicket maiden here with White facing out the last five balls, all dots. That's as good a result as I could imagine at this stage of the match.

Earlier in the innings Baz had been keeping up to Millsy and had worn one, which bounced a little more, on the point of his right shoulder, it flew away as if it had taken the shoulder of the bat. It had been giving Baz a lot of trouble through the innings and at drinks he shot off for a pain killing injection. Soon after he came back on he ran Haddin out with his left hand, his right arm, at the time, wasn't too much use.

I came back at the 'death' and I was tossing up in my head whether to gamble to take wickets or just try to bowl dots. I guess I should have just bowled dots. I got a couple of balls in the wrong place and they ended up at the fence and when I went back to my other dot or one run ball options I was a lot better and picked up a wicket with a yorker, the last ball of my 10 overs.

This really annoyed me, why was I gambling, why wasn't I just trying to limit their scoring options and possibly picking up wickets when they made the mistake. It's a fine line between being reckless and economical. It was one of those days that could have been better; a couple of inside edges past the stumps for boundaries, some good balls going for four, that's one-day cricket; ride the luck your making or get hurt trying to make it.

Our run chase didn't start to well, Baz wasn't able to open. In fact, he wasn't going to bat at all had we either got their comfortably or not close at all. Fults stepped up to the opening spot from No. 3 and everyone else came up one. Not a perfect scenario but one of those that you just have to get on with.

Fults played well for his 40 and that steady ship gave us a chance in the chase after losing Gups and Rossco early.

We lost three wickets pretty quickly in the middle, Broom, Millsy and Dan fell in a space of about four overs; this really stalled our chase. Timmy came in and hit a couple out of the middle and all of a sudden Baz has his pads on sitting behind Jeets and I. We still needed a hundred odd, but anything can happen with one guy in (Elliott) and Baz at the crease, and it almost did. The crowd was noisy and expectant for an Australian win, they eventually got it, but not without some nervous moments.

It wasn't to be though. Once Elliott's innings came to an end and Baz departing soon after that left Jeets and I to get 30 odd of three overs; a bit of a big ask, but we'd give it a go. I got three bouncers in a row from Hilfenhaus, not surprisingly. I got under them like a top order player, except that in this form of the game and in this situation we needed runs, not me to not get out. I've worked so hard to get rid of the pull/hook shot from my game that I now have to re learn it to certain situations.

As I mentioned in my last blog Grant Elliott has started up his own bat company with a couple of lads in our Wellington Firebird's team. It's taken a while to get off the ground with getting ICC approval being the hardest task. Finally, "buzzbats.co.nz" is up and away. And there is no better way for TS (Elliott) to be getting his product out there than by scoring 61* in our win that the MCG and then yesterday's amazing 115 at the SCG. His knock yesterday was as good a one-day hundred as you're going to see especially in the circumstances. He was bumped up the order after Baz wasn't able to open to four from five and looked comfortable from ball one.

And now in his 14th one-dayer, with an average of around 85.00, he looks like the international cricketer he has had the potential to be. I'm sure that now he's promoting his own product when he's batting there's an even higher motivation to hang about and raise his Buzz bat.

So here we are in Adelaide, we're 2-1 up with two games to go. This series is important to us and last night's loss was a bummer, losing hurts, no matter what. In saying that we lost a game of cricket, and when you think about perspective it's not that bad at all. Families in Victoria and NSW are losing not only their homes, but their families. These bush fires are horrific. I know one of the Victoria Police that is out there doing their bit to help out, pulling double shifts and giving up days off to work; these fires affect so many people. I just hope as this series goes on we can do something to help the families, the fire-fighters and police and anyone involved with this disaster.

I've just come from our captain's meeting and I can reveal that as a team we are donating a considerable part of our match fee towards this disaster. It's a great thing that we can help out. We are also giving up a signed playing shirt to be auctioned off at the end of the series. Here's hoping that auction makes a small fortune, cause they need it!

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Welcome to the 'G'. What an amazing place to visit, to watch sport, let alone have the honour to play in front of sports-loving Melbourne crowd.

I had never been here before, been to Melbourne a couple of times in the past but I had never even visited [the MCG]. Training this week was hard; we came from a great last-ball win in Perth and had to work hard on staying honest with our training as the heat and tiredness from the last game had taken its toll, on me at least. Heading out to fielding training in the middle was pretty special. The Great Southern Stand, not looking so 'Great' anymore as the new stand is a whole lot bigger, it is still so impressive; we could do with something like this in NZ, obviously not as big, but certainly as intimidating. The near vertical seating looms so high above you and you know they have a great view no matter how high they are up.

We won the toss and bowled again. We're playing on a used wicket, as we did in Perth; this suits us as we don't bowl as quick as the Australians and we have two of the best spinners in one-day cricket world; we're playing on decks perfectly suited to our current style.

Millsy [Kyle Mills] was amazing, his first six overs went for 12 runs and picked up the heavy-hitting Warner in that spell for just two runs off 11 balls. He is bowling really well at the moment and is leading the attack with the experience he has, questioning our plans and deliveries regularly, making me a better player. This was the start we needed, it kept them in check and it showed us the lengths and variations we needed to bowl to be successful. Timmy [Tim Southee] picked up Haddin [Brad Haddin] and we were right on top. Haddin's welcome to the G was one I won't forget. He’s had a tough week after the [Neil] Broom dismissal in Perth, and let’s clear one thing up right here, Dan [Daniel Vettori] never called him a 'cheat.' Okay! Haddin, an Australian was 'booed' onto the ground. I never ever thought I'd have ever heard that; sure there might have been a few Kiwis in the crowd, but not all of 'Bay 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15' could be Kiwis! Interesting to see how the Aussie public viewed the whole drama.

I came on to bowl in the 12th over, still with the field up and started pretty well. I had been bowling well in the nets, hitting areas I had been asking of myself and had taken a lot of confidence into this match. I was bowling to my fields and then had a bit of a meltdown, it didn't cost me much, but it could have. We have plans to certain batsmen and I know these pretty well and have studied them and revised them plenty going into this series. All of a sudden I started bowling to [Michael] Clarke not to plan. This meant the field was wrong for my areas and I leaked a three and a four in an area that wasn't patrolled as strongly as where I he should have been hitting. Don't ask me why, I can't tell you, but I owned up to it this morning in the review, and quite rightly, got a good stern telling off from Millsy. I'm learning, and fast!

I came back for the batting Powerplay for the two overs from one end and was really happy with how I bowled in this 'scary' time. No wickets for me this time, but no boundaries either and we we're getting the feeling that we were well in front of this one.

Dan, again, was inexpensive and together with Jeets [Jeetan Patel] we stayed on top of them by bowling good areas and fielding well.

I was back for the 'death', three overs into the light wind that was cooling things down out there for us. Hussey [Michael Hyssey] and Clarke still out there and we needed a couple of wickets so we could, hopefully, drag back the score that was attainable by them. Guppy [Martin Guptill], out in the deep, pulled off a great piece of fielding from a Hussey hit off me. A slower ball which was hit high to Guppy at long-on, it was touch and go as to it making the boundary and him catching it, in the end, both happened. Gups caught it and with the momentum he had ended up over the rope, but flicked the ball back in before he touched the ground, turning a six into just a two. Genius! Next ball, I had Hussey, another slower ball, a real gamble, and Dan took a good catch at midwicket.

Next over I picked up Clarke on 98, bowled him off his pads. I had hit him square on the toe the previous ball, and he had some time to recover from that; they hurt, a lot. Next ball he charged me to the leg side a little and I just bowled it as fast as I could into him, took his pad and into the top of middle. I was pretty happy with this one especially as it's never nice having hundreds scored against you. In my ten overs I only went to the boundary once; pretty happy about that too.

We then went out and put together a really strong and disciplined chase. Baz [Brendon McCullum], at the top, was 'bloody minded' and stayed out there and gave us a great base to work from. Rossco [Ross Taylor], again, was brilliant, his runs were match-winning. [Grant] Elliott was amazing; his new ODI high score in a great chase at the MCG. The pace of his innings and the control he showed was what has been brewing in him for a while. And happy for him too as he has just started up a 'bat' company and this was the first time he got to use it, all stickered up out there in a one-dayer.

Another great feel when the winning runs were hit over the boundary. Elliott and Broom out there hugged and celebrated and we on the sideline hugged and celebrated. We're two-nil up in a five-match series. Who'd a thought! What a great feeling. A couple of quiets in the changing room, but not too many as we have to travel the next day and play in Sydney the day after that. A quick turnaround is required and we can't afford to take the foot off the gas. We'd love to win the series here in Sydney and celebrate it in style!

And to my club mates at home, nice job this weekend Petone Riverside, great win boys!

Well, well, well... This will probably be the toughest blog I've had to write. Don't want to get carried away, but .... wow, that's a great feeling; beating the Australians in their own back yard. We arrived here to a newspaper headline, "Even This Useless Mob Think They Can Beat Us." Well, actually, yes we did think we could win, and mate, we did.

That is as good a feeling I have ever experienced in cricket. The elation in the changing room after Dan hit the last ball of the match through the field for the winning run was pure, an amazing feeling. That's the most 'man love' I have ever seen in a changing room. It was just one match in a series of five, but after a game that roller-coasted until the last ball, our loss to the PM's XI and in the heat and conditions that we played in, we were one very happy bunch of boys!

I was nervous, and excited, heading into this match. My last ODI, my first one, didn't go so good; six overs, 1 for 59 in two three-over spells. Not good enough, hence it was my one and only match before yesterday. We lost the toss and bowled first, we probably would have batter first too had Dan [Vettori] kept up his run with the tosses. It was hot, and humid. This was going to be hard work which was part of the reason we were keen to bat first so that we could bowl in the cooler conditions. I passed Shaun Tait as we were walking heading off from warm-ups, just after the toss, he was pretty pleased he didn't have to bowl first up in the heat, and I couldn't blame him. Our 'Dirtys' and management crew did a great job around the boundaries and onto the field with the drinks. The boundary riders got drinks handed to them from the other side of the rope and the inner-circle fielders got drinks run out to them at great pace so to not slow down the play by the 'Dirtys'. These small efforts often go unnoticed but can add so much to the team's performance.

[Kyle] Millsy and Timmy [Southee] started the innings off well with the ball; both had it swinging and gave the openers very little to hit. Warner had looked dangerous since his debut in the Twenty20 v the South Africa; we were certainly weary of his abilities and Shaun Marsh had looked pretty solid. To have them both out within the first nine overs was the best start we could have asked for. Then a piece of brilliance from Neil Broom in the outfield, an amazing throw to run Ponting out was all we could have asked for. And as if lightning doesn't strike twice, Guptill, with an equally great throw, ran Michael Clarke out as he too came back for the second. That's four down, the top four, and we couldn't be happier.

I had started my overs by now and had started pretty well. Two balls stood out in my first spell though, one that went screaming through the covers to the fence and then another that met the fence quickly at midwicket as I dropped too short, with not enough on it, to Clarke after bowling him a good bouncer. A couple of poor follow-up balls, which let the pressure off, frustrated me.
Four-over spell to start with. Then I came back for a two-over blast and then finished up with four overs in a row at the end of the innings.

I have been bowling for Wellington in the batting Powerplay and have felt like I've done pretty well, I wanted to bowl in it for NZ too and I got my chance. My three last overs were in the Powerplay. Hussey and Hopes were in and it was time for them to take the attack to us. We had done quite a bit of scouting on both of these guys for this time of the innings so we had our plans pretty well-set. And it worked. I picked them both up in the first Powerplay over much to my, and our, relief. Both these boys are dangerous and by dismissing them pulled back the total that we would be chasing. Huss and Hopes were caught inside the ring, both mid-on and mid-off were up and that was the gamble, it worked. This Powerplay can work both ways, it's, obviously, a chance to score big runs, but for the fielding team it is a genuine opportunity to take wickets with the batsmen getting a touch more expansive.

We bowled pretty well at the death and Millsy picked up his fourth wicket of the innings, another fantastic performance from one of the world's best.

With 182 to win, it was the worst possible start we could have asked for. Baz [McCullum] was unlucky in the second ball of the innings after getting an inside edge into his pad to be given out lbw. Not much you can do about it. Then we lost Fults and Gup with the score on 25. Three for 25 and Australia have got the start they would need to halt us in our chase. It's not too often you see three slips in a one-day match but with Tait bowling fast and with a little bit of shape Australia had the lot in; attack and leave no questions unanswered.

We were a little nervous up in the shed; we knew it wasn't going to be the easiest chase on that deck. A 39-run partnership restored a little bit of composure to the scoreboard. Broomy and Rossco [Taylor] then put on 42 for the next wicket and we're looking good again, then Rossco and Millsy put on the best 62-run partnership I think I've ever seen and got us within 14 of the 182 we needed. It was here that things started to get a bit twitchy in the changing room. Rossco was dismissed with 12 runs left and 15 balls remaining; now it was going to be tight. I headed out the back of the viewing room to get padded up and ready for whatever scenario was going to be set for me.

Eight down, four runs needed, every chance that I was going to have to bat or at least get out there for a ball or two. I was really quite excited about it, actually looking forward to being out there when the winning runs were going to be scored, possibly having the chance to get them. It's a whole world away but I've had the chance for Wellington in similar situations to get out there and finish a game off with success so I was backing myself to be able to do whatever was asked, bat on ball and run as fast as I can!

I wasn't needed, Jeets, coolly scored two of the two balls he faced and Dan hit the last ball through the field for the remaining run to win. Hugs, cheers, high fives, you name it, we were enjoying it. What a feeling!

We stayed in the changing room till rather late on Sunday night, much to the displeasure of the security that had to stay at the ground till we left. Sorry guys, but we were having fun! We had a travel day yesterday, in Melbourne now preparing for the next match on Friday at the 'G'. I can't wait! Got a few friends to catch up with here, should be a good stay, I'm just hoping the temps stay down a bit!

I'm currently in one of the lounges at Sydney Airport waiting to board our fight to Perth. Yesterday we played a match against the Prime Ministers XI and, well, to put it mildly, we didn't do too well.

But before I cover that match off I'll take you back to the last round of the domestic one-day competition, we were in Invercargill, the bottom (pretty much as far south as you can go) of the South Island. We were certainly made to feel welcome, that was until we stepped out onto the pitch, that is. It was a typical home crowd that you come to expect in the South Island; they love their own players and love to hate the others, and it was going to be a fun afternoon.

We bowled first and during the middle stages we were looking down the barrel of a chasing a score of around 280, that was going to be a lot, even with it being a small ground and a good deck. A couple of very good innings from three of Otago's more experienced boys certainly set them up for an onslaught towards the end of the innings. We picked up a couple of crucial wickets at game changing times and managed to peg them back to 244.

I didn't feel like I started this game too well with the ball. It wasn't quite the start I had been having in the previous couple of matches. The thing that was very pleasing was the way I came back at the end of the innings and bowled during the batting power play and death, my areas and variations, alongside the field I had set worked really and contributed to the pegging back process.

This match finished in great style. Last ball of the innings, scores tied, Franklin, who had been in since the 16th over and was on 86 off 97 in a perfectly paced innings, cleanly hits one through the leg side field to the boundary. We win, and I'm out there with him, because we're nine down. I came in with four balls left in the innings, five runs needed, Franklin on strike.

Franky and I had a quick chat, I wanted to know what he thought the plan should be, were we going to take the single if it was there or was Franky going to take the strike and look for twos and boundaries? Franky backed me to get him back on strike so we decided that we'll take every run we could get. A single off the third ball of the over - that brought me on strike. Three balls left, four were needed and I needed to get off strike, thus somehow getting a single. I know you really shouldn't premeditate, but in this situation I thought it was maybe best. It was either going to be a yorker or a bouncer.

A yorker it was, fast and into my pads. I wasn't quite quick enough to catch up with it and maybe hit the winning runs fine of fine leg, but I did get enough pad on it to squirt it out to square leg for a single; that was once I picked myself up off the ground when the ball hit it knocked me off my feet and I didn't have a clue as to where it had gone. Franky, charging down towards me shouting yes, said it had gone somewhere safe for a single.

Two balls, 3 runs needed and Franky nudges two to get himself back on strike and tie the scores. He walks down to me at this stage and we agree that we're just running, no matter what. Winning run off the last ball and that finishes the innings and our campaign with a not-so-good four wins from 10 matches.

It was a quiet night in Invercargill, early flight out in the morning and back to Wellington for the day. I had a couple of things planed to do in the afternoon; catch up with a mate and get along to a clothing shop were sponsoring me some T-shirts. Quite a while ago, before I started playing cricket for Wellington, I worked in a photocopy shop. I started out as a production worker, then moved out to reception and worked in customer services. During this time I met some pretty talented people that needed photocopying done. Students for their assignments, architects with their building plans, writers producing books and artists getting originals copied so they could sell the prints or send them off for possible job offers. There was one guy who was amazing, Marty F Emond. His stuff was cool, as he was, and I spent quite a bit of time doing his copying. Since I knew him back then he and a mate started up a clothing company using his works as designs. I loved his work then and have a couple of signed bits stored away to get framed at some stage soon. Marty has since passed on but his work lives on through the "Illicit" clothing line. I wanted some of Marty's t-shirts. So I got in touch with Illict.co.nz, pleaded my case, and happy days. Thanks Steve.

We're now 10,000 meters above the nothingness that spans the central inland part of Australia; it's a vast sea of scrub and desert with small towns dotted along some of the rivers. And that brings me to the last couple of days based Canberra, the capital, our first destination in this 22 day Chappell-Hadlee tour. We arrived to Sydney and bussed straight to Canberra, but half way there we had a food stop and I slipped up. I had a bag of chippies/crisps. The thing is, we're on a 'eat better' programme at the moment and I didn't really think about it. I was hungry and felt like some chips. I could have done better for myself, and should have, and now will do.

Everything we eat now we have to think about; I normally eat pretty well so it shouldn't be much of a problem, but for some others there is a fair amount of good natured peer pressure on them to do better for themselves and the rest of the team.

Trained on Wednesday at the Manuka Oval, a hot day and it was forecast for match day to be even hotter. In the evening we had a reception at the Parliament Buildings with the Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd. Both teams were there and were introduced to the PM by their respective captains. A photo, a couple of speeches, a mingle and we're back to the hotel where I ordered a salad for tea.

Yesterday's game started off how you'd like most ODIs to start off; a good score on the board and the batsmen have some really good time in the middle. None better than Baz's ton. It was pretty warm out there and, 37 was forecast, and you could see it was going to take its toll on us in the field. Being fully hydrated was as much as we could do before heading out to defend the total. And to cut a long story short, we didn't bowl as well as we should have and were the first NZ team to have ever lost to the PM XI; not a first I've ever wanted to be a part of.

I felt like I bowled okay in the majority but let myself down with some bad balls and decisions when to bowl my variations. I'll now head to training tomorrow with a couple of chats to Dan and Millsy under my belt and a greater knowledge of one-day cricket.

It's Friday night, I'm sitting on my bed in my new place, that I only moved into last Thursday, watching South Africa bowl to the Aussies on the telly, and I couldn't be happier.

My place is hardly huge; it's one room and an en-suite. Kitchen, lounge and bedroom all in one; it'll do for now as I don't need too much space for myself and my couple of bags that I've been living out of for the last five months, although the bar next door could do with being a little less noisy. In saying that, as soon as I make this place home I have to leave, and, again, I couldn't be happier.

I head off to Australia for the Chappell-Hadlee Series on Tuesday and in doing that I will check out of my accommodation and then move back in when I return, into a bigger apartment though that time!

I got a very good phone call on Wednesday afternoon; it was the one that told me I was in the squad of 14 for the one-day series. I knew that the phone call was going to be that afternoon so the phone wasn't too far from me and it didn't have to ring to many times before I picked it up. It was either going to be good news or 'keep trying, you're real close.' It was the 'good news' call. Happy days!

It was quite a weird feeling being told that you are in the Black Caps, again. I've been a part of the Test team for the last 15 months and have only missed one of the Test matches played in that time, but to get called into a 'new' group was like getting the very first phone call again; that wonderful feeling of hard work coming good and the excitement of the next few weeks ahead. I put some Bon Jovi on, loud, opened a beer, stood on my balcony and enjoyed the world around me; little precious moments where you can feel completely happy for the work you've done.

But it's not all done yet. It's only just started. I'm watching this game, on the telly, with a little more interest than I did the last couple. I picked up on a couple of things, sent some texts to a couple of guys asking opinions on a couple of the batters in terms of plans to bowl to them. I'm making my notes, being a bit of a geek, really!

This week has been a pretty tough one training wise, three hard fitness sessions and then weights today, alongside work in the nets. It'll be a lazy night tonight with training at 8am tomorrow before heading down to Invercargill to play Otago in our last State Shield match.
Yesterday, Thursday, we sat down in the changing room, all of the playing guys in the Wellington team, and had a very open and honest chat about our form, what we can do about it and how we can turn it around for the Twenty20 series coming up.

A couple of guys walked out with their heads down after getting some honest feedback in regards to their role and how they've performed it. Honest feedback is often the hardest to take, but it's the best to get; you know exactly where you need to make adjustments in your game and you know the people that have passed on the feedback are going to be watching, and helping you get there.

Today was a good fun day, apart from the weights session. I hate doing weights. On the courier I received some new gloves, some never been seen before gloves from my gear sponsor AERO. I used them this afternoon and they're a little different, as are my pads, but will certainly keep my hands safe! Adidas sent me a couple of pairs of boots today too, again wore them this afternoon in the nets, felt great. And to add to that, I had bought some golf clubs as a Christmas pressie for ME and they arrived today after taking a couple of weeks to get here. It really was like Christmas! Great day, huh!?

I'm going to try to keep getting these blogs in while in Oz, it may get a little tough with the gaps and travel between matches, but I'll be doing my best to keep what's going on out there and in my head updated as much as I can.