Kieswetter 'excited' by future

Craig Kieswetter put his name in the frame for an opening spot in England's Twenty20 team and admitted he was already trying to think like an international player.

The South Africa-born wicketkeeper-batsman has long been viewed as a star in the making, and the hype around him is unlikely to abate after he cracked an assured 81 in the Lions' five-wicket win over their senior colleagues in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.

"I'm very excited about finally being (England) qualified and being able to look forward to this part of my career," he said. "As Lions we set standards and we want to be able to play the aggressive brand of cricket England as a whole are trying to play. Throughout our series we've been trying to play this kind of brave cricket that England as a unit are looking to play."

Kieswetter, who has now collected scores of 31, 40no, 77no, 50 and 81 on the UAE trip, and fellow Lions opener Michael Lumb (58no) both succeeded where England's top order failed by clearing the ropes early on.

It is an area that has regularly caused problems in England's limited-overs game and Kieswetter attributed his own muscular hitting to an unusual source.

"I played field hockey when I was younger and that probably comes into the technique a bit," he added.

"Usually I just swing from the hip as hard as I can. I like to think I can hit the ball hard but I don't like to see myself as a slogger.

"In other forms of the game, I'd like to think I can bat through and help win games."