By Ben Smith Worcestershire batsman

Smith is averaging almost 35 in the County Championship

It has been tough, hard cricket in the last couple of weeks and I think we are beginning to realise that is what it is going to be like in the top flight.

Against some of the teams we have played already, we realise how the game has been played in Division One.

Some of them, like Sussex, have been a lot more successful than us in the last few years.

We did not bat well enough in the second innings against Sussex and you can lose momentum within an hour.

We saw it in the first innings against Yorkshire at New Road as well.

We had them at 328-8 but they then went past 400-8, and with them scoring as quickly as they did, we lost momentum and it swung back their way.

That meant they could go out on the last morning, have a swing, clear the ropes and then have their tales up running in to bowl, which they did.

There was no foot off the gas from then until probably the last half hour of the game.

When we have a bad session we have a bad one, you cannot afford to lose more than three wickets in a session, but you make sure the run-rate is going well.

We are not working as a unit at the moment, we have had some good innings from individuals but we do not get two or three getting real scores Worcestershire batsman Ben Smith

You need to bat for a day and get 380-400 and get the full batting points, then at least you get somewhere near a decent position.

New Road is renowned for being a result pitch, but we lost two-thirds of one day in the Yorkshire game due to rain, and it was a good pitch.

But a bit more wear and the sun on it, I think we maybe would have been able to build up a lead and bowl them out.

We are not working as a unit at the moment, we have had some good innings from individuals but we do not get two or three getting real scores.

I think when two or three start firing in the same innings that will give us a head start but you need to score 500 every now and then and 400 most games. If we get 350 every time we bat we will not have the weight of runs.

We are now back to Twenty20 with four games, and if we win three from those four we should be in a good position, in what is a very strong group.

We have two home and two away, and there might be a lot riding on the last game at Northampton, but the good thing is we have played some good four-day cricket in between the last Twenty20 and the next block of games.

We get Saturday off and then back in on Sunday and training for two days before we go to Taunton, and the beauty of Twenty20 is that we can go on the day of the game.

We will keep doing our work and make sure we are fit and fast enough, as four-day cricket is a bit different as more of a fatigue factor can set in.

Twenty20 is a lot more power, a lot more strength, as you have to hit the ball further, bowl faster and throw in a lot harder.

We have had a big week with eight days out of nine playing cricket and three big events in my benefit year.

We had a comedy night at New Road and we had two brilliant comedians, those that came had a great night.

We had a golf day at Upper Sapey, which as ever was superb, and thanks to everyone who helped there and Jim Preece for letting us use the course.

We had a very good asparagus supper at the Berkeley Arms and a big thank you to Bill Oliver for putting that event together.

It is getting busy now with some benefit cricket matches, with ones at Weybridge and Elmley Castle coming up and we have a quiz night at the ground and one of our main events of the year, the summer ball.

Ben Smith was talking to BBC Hereford and Worcester's Dave Bradley.

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