Star Adelaide Strikers spinner Amanda-Jade Wellington says a stint away from cricket and a new carefree mindset have played vital roles in her hot form this WBBL season.
Wellington's star performances with the ball won her a spot in the WBBL team of the season and also helped propel the Strikers into the finals.
Fourth-placed Adelaide will take on the Brisbane Heat in 'The Eliminator' in Adelaide on Wednesday.
If they win, the Strikers will progress to 'The Challenger' on Thursday against the second-placed Melbourne Renegades, with the victor to take on the Perth Scorchers in Saturday's final at Optus Stadium.
Wellington took a break from cricket last year after feeling the pressures of the game were weighing her down.
It was during that break where Wellington rediscovered her love of the game and the mindset she needed to adopt.
"I took a few months off, I stood away from the game and I focused on myself," Wellington told AAP.
"I was at a stage where I wasn't performing and I wasn't enjoying cricket anymore.
"I was coming to training to tick a box, coming to games to tick a box, and I would come home and cry.
"I wouldn't enjoy it any more. I felt like my growth ... was at a stop. I felt like I couldn't evolve any more, whereas now I feel like I'm learning new things every game.
"I'm not worrying about it too much, I'm letting things happen rather than forcing things to happen."
One of the key aspects Wellington has adopted is not worrying so much about her personal performances.
"I was speaking to our psych just before saying I used to get so frustrated and so into my bowling stats, and this year I've hardly ever looked at them," Wellington said.
"I've just focused on performing for the team itself and not really focusing on my performance.
"Getting picked for the WBBL team of the tournament ... reminds me that I'm doing the right things and I'm heading in the right direction."
With star legspinner Georgia Wareham (ACL) ruled out of the Ashes, World Cup and Commonwealth Games, the door is open for Wellington to return to the national side.
Wellington hasn't played for Australia since 2018, but the 24-year-old's new care-free approach could be the exact recipe she needs to thrive on the international stage.
She credits her partner Tayler McKechnie for helping her recognise the need to take a break from cricket last year.
"It was about a year or so (where I had been feeling that way)," Wellington said.
"I was pushing through the pain and my partner said to me, 'you need to do something about this'. He was probably the turning point for me."
