Ben Cutting back the layers to help bring back the Sydney Thunder

The Sydney Thunder allrounder turned to the sports psychologist who helped Ash Barty and Pete Sampras during their storied careers.

Noel Blundell worked with not only those two tennis greats, but also Australian motorsport legend Mark Skaife.

Cutting not only worked with him during the off-season, but also with bowling coach and former Queensland teammate Joe Dawes.

The Thunder will announce re-signing Cutting for the upcoming Big Bash League season.

Cutting hoped his time with Blundell would take him back to the way he played as a kid.

"One of the big things I've gained from working with Noel was the desire to get back to playing my natural game," he said.

"That means playing without the handbrake on, playing without the worry about results or the decisions that are made on the field.

"I believe it is a matter of going out and playing with the same freedom I did as a kid 20-odd years ago.

"What I've realised is my role has fluctuated over the last 15 or so years from being a guy who just bowled fast and wanted to take wickets to becoming more of a batter in T20.

"I'm aiming this summer to fuse together my batting and bowling games for Thunder. I want to get them firing."

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That's why the 35-year-old, who played four one-day internationals and seven Twenty20 internationals for Australia, also worked with Dawes over the winter.

Dawes played 76 Sheffield Shield games for Queensland before embarking on a coaching career, which has included a stint with the Indian national team.

"When I first started with Queensland, Joe was one of the players who took me under his wing," Cutting said.

"It said a lot about his character because he was in the final year of his contract with Queensland, and he was injured.

"Yet, while he was on the way out, he always found time to help me.

"I've worked on my bowling with Joe over the winter and it has been great. As a result of the sessions, I've made some adjustments under his guidance."

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