Chilled-out Harris finds her groove

Grace Harris is taking a more chilled-out approach to cricket and good luck stopping her.

The Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars allrounder showed what she was capable of with an entertaining knock of 50 from 56 balls in yesterday’s intra-squad practice match at R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.

It’s an encouraging sign for Harris – and Australia – following a challenging season last home summer.

Representing Brisbane Heat in the Rebel Women's Big Bash League, the 22-year-old blasted the first-ever century in the fledgling competition’s history in what seemed to be a sign of big things to come. 

But Harris struggled to make her mark at the international level post-WBBL, with an average of 2.86 – including five ducks - from her eight innings against India at home and New Zealand away across both limited-overs formats.

Then came the shock of a World T20 campaign being cut short before it even began due to the discovery of a 13cm blood clot in her leg, leading to the diagnosis of Deep Vein Thrombosis.

Quick Single: Harris looks ahead after WT20 dismay 

Those experiences combined, along with an already laid-back attitude, have resulted in a greater emphasis on simply enjoying playing the game she loves.

"I’ve taken just a bit of a step back, really," Harris told cricket.com.au after play last night.

"I was taking cricket very, very seriously and intense.

"I was hanging off every run I was getting when I played for Australia.

"I play best when I’m just chilled and going with the flow, so I’ve tried to do that more." 

Image Id: 168DED658F2A482988EE41C42E4C7BA4 Image Caption: Harris launches one down the ground // cricket.com.au

Opening up the innings, Harris quickly set the tone with an emphatic straight drive down the ground off Rene Farrell’s bowling to collect the first boundary of the day.

A piercing cut shot through point was one of the highlights of a fascinating duel with leg-spinner Kristen Beams, while a series of lusty blows down the ground were a reminder of what a formidable force Harris can be on her day.

The Queenslander played with freedom at the top of the order where she has often batted at a domestic level, but her three 50-over appearances with the bat for Australia have come down at No.5 and No.7 in the order.

"We’ll see how I go at that," Harris said with a laugh in regards to her opening prospects.

"To be honest, I was very much looking forward to opening today. I just had a ball out there.

"I obviously didn’t rotate the strike very well, but scoring runs in boundaries is kind of my style so I’ll take it."

Image Id: 9D6C12C8DA244AD299A908A16D747EA9 Image Caption: That's out! // cricket.com.au

Not only did Harris shine with the bat during the squad’s sole warm-up match before their maiden bilateral series against Sri Lanka, but she also showed enough to suggest her off-spin will be a handful on the slow, turning pitches expected in Dambulla and back in Colombo over the next two weeks.

The right-armer claimed 2-27 from her eight overs and picked up the key wickets of Nicole Bolton and Alyssa Healy, much to her enjoyment.

"It’s easy to get the bowlers out," she said.

"If I get a bowler out, I’m like ‘Nah it’s not really a wicket.’ But if I get a batter out, I’m like ‘YES! I’ve got this.’

"It was good to get a few quality batsmen out in these conditions quite early.

"I felt like it was more of a batter’s deck, but towards the end of the match I got a couple to turn so I’m happy."

And the happier Harris feels, the more worried international bowlers should be. Perhaps the batters as well.

Fixtures

First ODI: Rangiri Dambulla Stadium, 18 September at 2:20pm AEST

Second ODI*: Rangiri Dambulla Stadium, 20 September at 2:20pm AEST

Third ODI*: R. Premadasa Stadium, 23 September at 2:20pm AEST

Fourth ODI*: R. Premadasa Stadium, 25 September at 2:20pm AEST

T20: SSC Ground, 27 September at 6:30pm AEST

*ICC Championship matches

You can follow regular updates from Australia’s tour match, four ODIs and T20 in Sri Lanka at @SouthernStars on Twitter.