‘If you have a happy changing room, you perform’

Alex Wakely, the Northamptonshire captain, hailed his team’s apparent weaknesses – their small squad and financial worries – as key factors in his side’s success in the NatWest T20 Blast.

Wakely led the side to their second T20 trophy in four years at Edgbaston on Saturday, overcoming a Nottinghamshire side containing nine international players in the semi-final and a Durham side boosted by the return of Ben Stokes and Mark Wood in the final.

But while Northants’ small squad has, at times this season, seen their coach phoning around the counties for loan players ahead of games in order to be able to name a competitive team, it has also helped create a close-knit team spirit and sense of confidence in a dressing room that knows it need not fear for places. Crucially, in a format where role definition is so important, it has also given Northants’ players clarity and confidence in what is exacted of them and what they can expect of their team-mates.

The difference was highlighted in the semi-final. While Nottinghamshire arrived at Edgbaston with a choice of three overseas players (only two could play) and having decided to leave out batsman Greg Smith, a regular in the qualifying games, in place of England opener Alex Hales, Northants had just one overseas player and committed to the team that had helped them reach Finals Day. Hales was subsequently bowled for a duck while Stuart Broad, having his first T20 bowl of the campaign, sent down only two overs.

While it was Northants’ first victory over Nottinghamshire in any format since 2006, Wakely suggested that not facing such selection dilemmas might have been a factor in the result.

“A lot of the reason we’ve been successful over years is that we’ve played pretty much the same …

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