If we are to move from our 'A' status to Black Caps as the result of this tour, runs and plenty of them are required by the batsmen, and bowling results from the bowlers.

So far we have managed to make the semi-finals, after a close first-up game with Mumbai.

The pressure is on us now for what has been an interesting tournament.

Taking off from New Zealand we took a step down from the usual business class and it was economy class for the guys as we headed for our mid-evening arrival in Chennai from Singapore.

Most of us managed a decent amount of sleep with the aid of some videos and sleeping pills. It always amazes me how much your feet swell when flying. My shoes feel two sizes too small when I go to put them back on again!

The next day was a rest day as we waited for the other members to join us from England. They arrived at midday and we ended up having a light workout at the gym and a swim in the pool.

We couldn't practice this day as there was a bit of political turmoil resulting in a riot and a few deaths. But it was safe in the hotel which is absolutely magnificent. It is set out away from the centre of the city, which is fine by us, as we don't plan on venturing out much as we have plenty of cricket ahead of us.

The next three days were spent training and acclimatising. The days are very hot and humid, and the practices went well as the team slowly got used to the conditions. We trained on the first day at 10am and then earlier to become accustomed with actual playing hours which begin at 9:30am, meaning departure from the hotel was around 7:30am.

Our first game was against Mumbai, who had a young team, with a few experienced players such as current Indian seamer Ajit Agarkar.

Fortunately, I won the toss and we batted. Although we had a bad start as Richie (Mark Richardson) was run out in the first over. However, Matt Horne and myself rectified the situation with a healthy second wicket partnership, which saw Matt score 111 and myself 47. We ended up with 329 and I was a little nervous before we finally bowled Mumbai out for 319. A close call first up and we were glad to get through to the quarter-finals.

We had a quiz night in between games for which the team has been divided into four groups of four. It is important to have regular social outings to keep everyone active on tour and take our minds away from cricket.

After winning the toss for the second game we again batted first. It is so critical to bat first as you get to dictate the pace of the game, and have the opportunity to bat the opposition out of the game. We play well this game and score 474/8 declared. Hamish Marshall and myself score fine hundreds to set up the win.

For me batting almost a full day in the heat and facing a fair amount of spin bowling and shining through with a hundred was very rewarding.

As a team we decided that if you are a batsman and score in between 0-20, then that's just bad luck, and you never got started.

But, if you score between 21-99 then you are part of the problem as you have made a start and should go on to make a significant contribution to the team, which is 100-plus.

As this is a NZ 'A' team, we are all trying to force our way into the Black Caps, and we know the only way to do this is by scoring heavily and making big hundreds. Nothing less will do.

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