Jason Sangha describes himself as more confident and content ahead of the 2022-23 season, keen to "pick up where I left off" in pursuit of all three domestic titles.
The Newcastle cricketer, named vice-captain of NSW for Friday's One-Day Cup opener, says last summer was a "nice stepping stone" having scored close to 1000 runs across the Sheffield Shield and Big Bash League competitions.
"I guess for me, obviously a lot more content and probably confident going into this year than I have been in previous years," Sangha told the Newcastle Herald.
"Previous years I was probably trying to find myself and establish myself in the team, sort of crying for a decent season.
"I think last year was a nice stepping stone and it would be nice to build from that this year."
Sangha, a former Wallsend and Southern Lakes player who turned 23 earlier this month, burst back onto the national scene throughout the 2021-22 campaign by making 445 Big Bash League runs for Sydney Thunder and 504 Sheffield Shield runs for the Blues.
Sangha, after two full BBL seasons on the sidelines, made the most of his Thunder recall in December and eventually averaged close to 50 from 12 digs. He ranked fifth overall on the run scorers list.
He continued that form in the latter stages of Sheffield Shield, producing 365 runs from his last four innings. This featured 204 in the same game, 142 and 62 while captaining NSW.
Although simply wanting to replicate the efforts of his prior campaign, Sangha identifies a "fine line" in striking the right balance for what lies ahead.
"It was a nice reminder that I've obviously worked pretty hard and the results from last year took care of themselves," he said.
"Bit of balance between making sure I don't overeat the pudding for this year, but also not getting too caught up in what happened last year because that was a long time ago.
"Just trying to find that fine line, the balance of understanding where my game's at and trying to pick up where I left off."
NSW have featured in the last two One-Day Cup finals, winning in 2020-21 and losing in 2021-22. The Blues went down in Sheffield Shield deciders either side of a COVID-affected victory in 2019-20. The Thunder qualified for the most recent three BBL play-offs, claiming their sole title in 2015-16.
"When I was younger I liked individual goals, but these days I've shifted a little bit for a more holistic approach. I just want to keep contributing to team success, however that looks. So to win the Sheffield Shield is definitely number one, to win the one-day comp again is another one and winning BBL would be fantastic as well," Sangha said.
Sangha said it was "nice to be formally recognised as part of the leadership team" with the Blues in 2022-23, having deputised on several occasions last season. Kurtis Patterson is captain for round one.
NSW visit Victoria in St Kilda on Friday (10:05am) before travelling to Perth to meet Western Australia at the WACA on October 1. The Blues resume their One-Day Cup commitments against South Australia at North Sydney Oval on November 5.
Sheffield Shield gets underway next month with NSW away to WA from October 3 before back-to-back home games against Queensland at Drummoyne (October 18) and SA at Wollongong (October 31).
The BBL is scheduled to start on December 13 with the Thunder hosting the Melbourne Stars in Canberra. The final is slated for February 4.
