Abbott overcomes angry habits

Promising allrounder Sean Abbott has revealed he has removed some unpleasant “bad habits” he had got into on the cricket field.

Abbott, who debuted last week for Australia in both Twenty20 and One-Day International cricket, said it was a conversation with former Test captain Brian Booth that forced him to reassess what had become an occasionally volatile on-field demeanour.

On an evening that proved to be a turning point in more ways than one, the 22-year-old spoke with Booth at the Cricket NSW awards ceremony – the same night he won the 2014 Steve Waugh medal as NSW's best player.

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"I was just a bit loud on the field, getting a bit angry," said Abbott.

"I'd bowl a half-volley at the end of my over and I'd be yelling at myself and it's not really a good look. There's no need for it really.

"I spoke to Brian Booth about how he went about the game and him being such a gentleman of the game.

"If he got a bad decision on the field and someone asked him if he was out, he'd say, 'Well the umpire gave it out' and he moved on.

"I got into a few bad habits when I first started and quickly had to get rid of those.

"To talk to someone like that who was so humble on the field was really good for me being such a young guy.

"So I quickly got rid of that and I'm pretty happy with where my game is moving at the minute.”

"Hopefully I'll continue to take what Brian said to me that night into my career going forward."

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Abbott bowled tidily in his solitary T20I and ODI appearances in the UAE, and is optimistic about his World Cup hopes, despite his batting numbers needing some work.

He's going up against a competitive field for selection including Shane Watson, Mitch Marsh, Moises Henriques and James Faulkner, but Abbott is confident there's room for multiple allrounders in the Australia squad.

"I think a lot of us are very different cricketers at the same time," said Abbott, who returns to the NSW squad for Friday's Matador One-Day Cup clash against Victoria.

"Being part of the Australian squad for the last few weeks (the World Cup) has been on my mind a little bit.

"But the best thing I can do at the moment is worry about tomorrow's game for the Blues."