Team success will always usurp individual glory for Craig Cumming.
That is why the veteran Otago batsman immediately lists a team achievement, and not a swashbuckling century, as the highlight of his domestic one-day career.
Cumming becomes the second Otago man - Chris Gaffaney was the first - to play 100 one-day games for his province when the Volts host the Auckland Aces at the University Oval tomorrow.
The 36-year-old former Black Cap had no hesitation when asked to list the highlight of his first 99 games in blue and gold.
"You can't go past the win in the final in Auckland, when Brendon McCullum scored his 170," Cumming said.
"From a team perspective, we'd been through a lot. We'd gone through a rebuilding phase and had lost the final the year before.
"It was a realisation of a lot of dreams, and we put to bed 20 years with no titles. That sticks out above anything I've done personally."
Nevertheless, Cumming's one-day career features enough high points to match his success in four-day cricket, in which he has scored more runs and more centuries for Otago than anyone else.
He is also Otago's leading one-day scorer, with 2947 runs at 34.20, and is fresh off a match-winning 123 against Northern Districts.
"I wouldn't say it was my best innings but it was in a game we won. That's what it's all about.
"The first 50 came about from hard work. The next 70 was a little bit of luck and some confidence."
Otago leads the Ford Trophy - tied on 11 points with its opposing team, Auckland - and has legitimate aims of winning the competition.
It wasn't always like that. The Volts struggled in short-form cricket in the late 1990s, and had to work hard under coaches Glenn Turner and Mike Hesson to achieve success in the format.
"We always seemed to start well then tail off. My first year, I think we won our first three games, then lost the next seven.
"I don't think we knew how to play one-day cricket. We didn't know what our style was.
"Glenn came in and changed our philosophies on the game. We were an ordinary side with average skill levels. He came up with a formula to make us competitive.
"Some good recruiting, strong coaching and things started to change. We had a strong period at the end of Glenn's era and the start of Mike's, and we became the best coloured-clothing side in the country for a couple of years."
Cumming said Auckland had now earned that status, and tomorrow's game was a "huge" clash.
The Aces had a big win over the Knights on Wednesday, chasing down 241 with six wickets and 12 balls to spare, with young opener Brad Cachopa scoring 91.
Former Otago keeper Gareth Hopkins leads a side that includes big hitters such as Colin de Grandhomme, Anaru Kitchen and Colin Munro, the all-round talents of Andre Adams, and a nagging bowling attack led by Kyle Mills.
Otago v Auckland
- University Oval, tomorrow
• Otago: Nick Beard, Derek de Boorder, Michael Bracewell, Neil Broom, Ian Butler, Craig Cumming, Nathan McCullum, James McMillan, James Neesham, Aaron Redmond, Neil Wagner, Sam Wells.
• Auckland: Tim McIntosh, Jeet Raval, Colin de Grandhomme, Gareth Hopkins, Kyle Mills, Andre Adams, Michael Bates, Bhupinder Singh, Brad Cachopa, Anaru Kitchen, Colin Munro, Roneel Hira.
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