A scorcher is in store as The Blaze get their Vitality Blast campaign underway at Trent Bridge, and Head Coach Craig Cumming is eager to get going.

“It’s always exciting when you get to this format of the game, and it has come around quickly!” said the New Zealander.

“It’s a great feeling. We’re at Trent Bridge, where we’re training alongside the men, and it’s a really good time because we feel really connected to the whole club.

“There’s going to be good crowds coming in, and it’s a great profile for the game, so we’re really excited about getting in and playing in it.”

Cumming has named a 13-strong squad for Blast Off against Yorkshire, with the side’s new overseas signing, Australian all-rounder Charli Knott, in line for her debut.

“Charli brings a wealth of experience, and she knows the game well and is really highly skilled,” said the Head Coach.

“We can’t wait for her to have an impact with the ball, she’s also a very good fielder, and there’s also the leadership side of it too.”

For the first time, every one of The Blaze’s six home fixtures will be played at Trent Bridge in 2026 as a double-header with a Notts Outlaws match.

For Cumming, that is an enormous bonus and one he believes will only serve to further promote the women’s game.

“It creates a connection,” he explained. “Cricket’s cricket, and being able to have a whole day, where you can create an entertainment package, is great.

“They’re very different games, we know that, but being here at Trent Bridge, training alongside the guys, it makes you feel like you’re together.

“The most important thing in the game of cricket is getting a profile, and that’s what we want.”

Cumming’s charges have enjoyed a fine start to 2026 in the 50-over format, and currently sit atop the Metro Bank One Day Cup table with a comfortable cushion over second-placed Surrey.

The side’s form so far this summer is, he naturally believes, a source of great confidence, and he is eager to see that purple patch carry forward into the shorter format.

“It’s funny, we’ve worked really hard for eight games and now we’re starting again on zero!” he laughed. “We’ve got to re-centre ourselves and re-focus.

“But it’s important, and it’s been good, to gain confidence,” he continued. “It’s a very different format, and one player can make a difference.”

Cumming also acknowledges the challenge his side will face against the only opposition to defeat them so far this summer.

“They were the ones that gave us the hardest lesson in the 50-over competition, but it was a great lesson, and it gave us a really good wake-up call,” he said.

“I think that helped us for the rest of the one-day campaign, and it taught us that if you turn up and you’re off, you’re going to have a tough day.

“But, like I said, in this format, one player can make a difference, and this is the format that players want to shine in!"