It's not all about crash-bang-wallop Ian Ward Surrey lift Twenty20 Cup

Ward won the inaugural competition with Surrey last year before moving south.

This year's cricket extravaganza gets under way on Friday with nine matches scheduled to take place from Hove to Manchester and Birmingham to Maidstone.

Ward said: "It's so condensed that if somebody grabs the game by the scruff of the neck, a batsman or a bowler, it can change things very quickly."

Ward was a star performer throughout the Lions' 2003 campaign, and the opener hit a half-century in the final against Warwickshire at Trent Bridge.

"It is a difficult competition to win because it can be decided on a flip of a coin or in a period of 10 overs," he added.

"It was a great competition last year as the tactics were a complete unknown.

Feature: Twenty20 proves sheer purrfection

"Adam Hollioake [then Surrey captain] was spot-on for somebody who had never played that form of the game before."

Ward predicted a shift in tactics this year from the at-all-costs hard-hitting of 2003.

"The biggest thing for me was the realisation that there was time to breathe, that you can play your normal shots and there is a period of consolidation," he added.

"It's not all about crash-bang-wallop. I think a score of about 150 would be competitive.

"You obviously aim higher but sometimes you can get too far ahead of yourselves, and if you do there is a period when you can knock it around a bit."

Ward is confident all players are looking forward to the Twenty20 Cup.

"The players responded well last year and loved it because there were people watching.

"Surrey had about 12,000 to their first game last year. Unless you play international cricket or a Lord's final, you don't play in front of numbers like that."