This week I want to talk about mental dominance in local cricket and what teams and individuals have to do to overcome the odds.

There are often teams that another side just can’t beat or a bowler that always gets you out, or a batsman that just dominates you in local cricket and international cricket.

How does one overcome this mental dominance so that they can flip the script and defy the odds? Self-belief!

As former Bermuda coach Gus Logie always preached to us, “back yourself”, which means, believe in yourself and your ability.

If you back yourself, you give yourself confidence to achieve what seems impossible.

Last weekend I happened to catch the tailend of Bailey’s Bay’s game against Southampton Rangers. Even though the game was at Sea Breeze Oval, Rangers still found a way to defeat them for the third time this season.

Rangers definitely have a mental edge over Bay and no matter what Bay try they continue to fall short.

Listening to Janeiro Tucker and Dion Stovell talk while on tour about how they refuse to lose to Bay and it’s this mentality that gives them an edge over their counterparts.

Last weekend the pair put on a hundred-run partnership to deflate Bay to continue their dominance over them. Will Bay find the answer? They must believe!

At the international level, the United States are starting to have that same dominance over Bermuda.

During the ICC Americas Division One Twenty20 tournament in Indianapolis, Bermuda came agonisingly close before losing. However, when playing a team sport you have to have all of the players believing that you can accomplish a goal if you are to achieve success. Any shortcoming at that level and you and your team will be found out quickly.

Self-belief in team sports is important because it motivates you, it drives you, especially during training and games, as you find yourself working that much harder for one another.

When you train together with intensity and belief you make yourself that much harder to beat and you don’t take losing lightly.

For years in Eastern County, Bailey’s Bay and St David’s dominated, but this past year saw Cleveland County do what many deemed as unthinkable.

The team had to come up with an effective game plan, train harder than ever before and be mentally strong by believing that they can do it. The more the team believed, the more determined and focused they became. Cleveland players knew they had prepared themselves and were ready for whatever St David’s threw at them. Hence the final result was victory for Cleveland after some 33 years.

When I was 16 there was one bowler who got me out every time I played against him for at least three years in a row. Terry Burgess, he was one of the most lethal bowlers in his era.

He ran in with a purpose and bowled with such precision. He would snick me off to the wicketkeeper or slips and chuckle and say, “next time young Smith”. I loved his attitude. I loved everything about him as a bowler and I knew I had to be at my very best if I was to win this mental battle.

Then the day came when I refused to lose the battle. St George’s played Hamilton Parish at Wellington Oval. I sat in the morning looking into the mirror and told myself, today I will put an end to this and Terry will no longer have this mental edge over me.

I asked my brother to throw some tennis balls to me in the gym and we worked on one specific element of the game, not playing outside off stump. We worked for over an hour so I knew I was ready. That day Terry worked me over, but I finally won the battle and scored a century.

Battles on the field are good and they test your mental toughness. Some players love the battle, while others are afraid of the challenge and throw in the towel easily.

To be victorious and overcome mind games you have to believe in yourself and your ability, but if you do not put in the training and the extras necessary you will continue to doubt yourself and that team or individual will continue to dominate you.

Quote of the week: One important key to success is self-confidence. An important key to self-confidence is preparation — Arthur Ashe