Jonathan Trott credited a more laid-back approach for his return to form after an impressive century against Sussex.
Trott's unbeaten 130 provided the cornerstone for Warwickshire's competitive first innings total, leading the 24-year-old to reflect on the wisdom of a less intense attitude towards his game.
"I've accepted that there is a lot more to life than cricket," he said last night. "Cricket runs my life and I think sometimes I care too much. I'm trying to get around that.
"You have to accept failures in this game. If you don't it will drive you up the wall and I'm trying to learn to roll with the punches. It's easy to say when you're not out 130, but sometimes it's very hard to accept and I've been very down after I've failed. Obviously the more you worry about it the more tense you become.
"There is a fair bit of chance involved in batting. There were a couple of moments in this innings when an inside edge went for four or when a sweep went over the keeper that, another day, could have been out.
"I'm still trying to get my head round this game. It doesn't seem to make much sense that you can play a shot, be beaten by miles and survive but, if you play it a bit better, you can nick it and you're out. If you think about it 24 hours a day - as I have been - you lose all sense. You get these worms in your head and it can drive you mad.
"I feel I'm becoming one of the more senior members of the side now, but I know I've let myself down a couple of times by swearing or whatever when I'm out. I'm really sorry about that, and it shouldn't happen. Perhaps that's why I haven't been capped and I know it's something I have to change if I want to play for England.
"This bad patch has taught me a lot. Nick Knight says it will have helped me in the long term as it's made me accept that things don't always go your way." n A remarkable innings from Navdeep Poonia dominated the third day of Warwickshire's Second XI Championship match against Worcestershire at Ombersley.
Poonia smashed 199 (30 fours and five sixes) from just 142 balls as Warwickshire were bowled out for 414. The opener made a century before lunch and added 213 for the second wicket with Nick James (56).
Off- spinner Shaftab Khalid, with five for 109, was the most successful of the Worcestershire bowlers. With the second day lost to rain, Worcestershire declared on their first day total of 357 for eight. Beginning their second innings with a deficit of 57, Worcestershire reached stumps on 43 for three.
