Kyle Mills: Sledging? It's worse in club games than the big ones

Australia's David Warner left, and wicketkeeper Brad Haddin. Photo / AP

Opinion

A lot of the talk in the leadup to today's match has centred on sledging, but I get sledged more often in club cricket than I do in international games.

It's rife in the club game, but is nowhere near as common as is believed at the top level.

There might be the occasional comment, but it's rarely something personal or likely to offend anyone. There's not even that much chatter because games like today's are played in such a loud environment that it's hard to hear what others are saying.

There have been reports we have been "banned" from entering in verbal confrontations with Australia but that's rubbish.

We haven't even talked about it as a team because we don't expect it to be an issue.

I was involved in an unsavoury incident at the last World Cup in India in 2011 and it's something I deeply regret. I wasn't even playing in the quarter-final against South Africa but I got involved in an altercation with Faf du Plessis after running on to the field with drinks.

Words were exchanged, Faf ended up shoving me out of the way and I was heavily fined by the ICC for bringing the game into disrepute.

I wasn't in a great mental space, as I was injured again at a World Cup and was returning home the next day, but I acted like a spoiled child and felt I had let down my teammates, country and family.

It was embarrassing, but I learned a great deal from it. I'm not thatsort of guy, and I decided it was something I wouldn't get involved in again.

Things happen in the heat of the moment - it's sport. In rugby or league a punch might be thrown, but it's the individual or team who remains calm who invariably comes out on top.

Just look at the world's best players. They are usually the ones who can control their emotions and remain focused.

It's what Brendon McCullum and Mike Hesson have tried to instil in this team. Brendon is very calm and management is more approachable than ever before so you know where you stand.

Australia are different but Australians, in general, are more brash. It's in their nature.

We're more reserved and you can see that in the way we play the game. We don't go over the top when we take a wicket, but equally, we don't get too deflated if we get hit around.

We play cricket so often these days that you can't really afford to get too high on the highs and too low on the lows. After all, you're probably playing again in three days.

We like to enjoy a win and recognise individual performances but we don't overdo it.

I think that approach has really helped us over the past two years and you can see the success of it now.

It hasn't always been like that in New Zealand teams I have played in and we often had naughty-boy net sessions after a poor performance.

It's just a different way of doing things, but I felt some players became fearful because they didn't know where they stood and it affected their performances.

In today's team, we're allowed to play our natural game.

People have billed today's game as the biggest one in New Zealand since the 1992 World Cup and, while it's great everyone is talking about it and the fact it's against the arch-enemy, we're not looking at it like that.

It's a pool game and we're just trying to live in the moment. There's no denying we want to win and it would be a good confidence-booster for the rest of the tournament but the World Cup won't be won and lost today.