The Queensland Bulls are without a win this season, and as they head to Tony Ireland Stadium in Townsville for their Ryobi One-Day Cup clash with South Australia there will be a touch of desperation in the air as both sides look to kick-start their seasons.
The Bulls have not had a shred of luck so far in 2010/11 and after losing by five runs to Tasmania and then having Victoria chase down their total with five balls to spare, they'll feel they're due for something to go their way.
Throw in a rained out Sheffield Shield match and a thumping at the hands of the touring Sri Lankans on Friday, and you can see why stand-in skipper Chris Simpson says the stakes will be high this Sunday, even at such an early stage in the season.
"At the beginning of the season we saw that there was quite a lot of cricket prior to Christmas, and pin-pointed that it was vital to get off to a good start and keep that roll on."
"It hasn't worked that way to date, but obviously the South Australian game is a critical one for us," he said.
Thankfully for Queensland, South Australia's batting line-up doesn't feature an individual with the world-class calibre of Brad Hodge or Kumar Sangakkara, who each buried the Bulls almost single-handedly with fast-paced centuries.
The South Australians have had a mixed start to their Ryobi Cup campaign, knocking off New South Wales in their season-opener, before losing to reigning One-Day champs, Tasmania.
Neither side have had a player reach triple figures yet this season, but on a pitch expected to favour the bat, the contest could be decided by one great individual effort.
Craig Philipson was in scintillating touch against the Sri Lankan attack, scoring 69 at better than a run a ball, and will again be looking to lead the way for Queensland.
Michael Klinger and Callum Ferguson are stand-out willow-wielders in the Redbacks' line-up, and both have the potential to play a long innings.
The Bulls' honourable decision to play their home game in Townsville - a gesture of thanks to their fans in country regions - may yet prove their undoing, as they forfeit the home-ground advantage they have on the pace-friendly Gabba track.
Ben Dunk, Queensland's second-choice gloveman and Futures League captain, will make his One-Day debut as a specialist batsman, and the classy left-hander has a genuine opportunity to nail down a middle-order spot with several of his team-mates struggling for runs.
After starring in last year's KFC Twenty20 BigBash, Dunk made his first-class debut in the rained out Shield match against Tasmania earlier this year, and as an Innisfail junior will be happy to complete the trifecta in North Queensland.
Cameron Gannon re-joins the squad after being rested against Sri Lanka, and Scott Walter has been named after proving he has overcome injury with a good hit-out against Tasmania in the Futures League.
Leg-spinner Cameron Boyce and young batsman Jason Floros have been left out.
For the South Australians, lanky quick Peter George returns from national duty and will be looking to lead the attack as he replaces Tim Ludeman, the only amendment to the South Australian squad.
Queensland: Chris Simpson (c), Ryan Broad, Lee Carseldine, Chris Lynn, Nathan Reardon, Ben Dunk, Craig Philipson, Chris Hartley, Nathan Rimmington, Chris Swan, Ben Laughlin, Cameron Gannon, Scott Walter (one to be omitted).
South Australia: Michael Klinger (c), Dan Harris, Aidan Blizzard, Tom Cooper, Cameron Borgas, Daniel Christian, Graham Manou, Aaron O'Brien, Kane Richardson, Peter George, Chris Duval, Gary Putland (one to be omitted).