When Natthakan Chantham returns to Thailand from a cricket tour, people think she's playing the sport of "chicken".
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The people in her home country have no idea Thailand is about to make their Twenty20 World Cup debut in Canberra next year. Or that the Thai national team set a record by winning 17 consecutive games this year.
So even though Thai people think Chantham is spending her time with birds, she can see the funny side after having warm up games at Manuka Oval.
"Not many people know about cricket in Thailand. We can count it, seriously," Chantham laughed.
"They still can't pronounce cricket, it sounds like 'chicken'."
Qualifying for the World Cup is a dream come true for Chantham, Sornnarin Tippoch, and Nattaya Boochatham, who were part of Thailand's first cricket team 12 years ago.
The trio have gone from playing their first tournament on a dodgy pitch in Malaysia to competing with and against the world's best female cricketers.
Thailand has risen to No.11 on the International Cricket Council's rankings and sit four rating points behind Ireland, who did not qualify for the World Cup.
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Tippoch, a former softball player, has captained the side for more than a decade and led the Thai outfit to the final at the World Cup qualifiers in Scotland earlier this year.
The 33-year-old all-rounder has had training stints with the Sydney Thunder and Adelaide Strikers but considered the World Cup to be well above her reach.
"I have just dreamed about playing in the top-level but I never thought I'd play in the World Cup," Tippoch said.
"For me, it's been about just playing cricket. I want to learn and know more about cricket."
Thailand will play two group stage matches at Manuka Oval during next year's World Cup. They will meet England before the West Indies face Pakistan on February 26.
Then Thailand will be in action again when they meet South Africa on February 28, before England and Pakistan close out Canberra's schedule that night.
Spin-bowler Boochatham says the minnow nation aren't feeling any pressure as they prepare to face their more fancied rivals next year.
"There isn't any pressure, it's just a new challenge," Boochatham said.
"I'm not saying there isn't pressure in that we're not going to work hard or improve because there's always room for improvement.
"That pressure is going to be put into practice, motivation and things we can do to get better and compete like the good squads around the world.
"We are No.11 but we need to move forward. We can improve more."
Thailand will meet the ACT Meteors in their third World Cup warm-up against the Canberrans at Neil Bulger Oval on Monday.
A boundary from the final ball saw the homeside claim an eight wicket victory in game one, but Thailand went on to split the series by six runs in the second match on Thursday.
Toppich says their warm-up matches in Australia is the most important part of their World Cup preparations, with the Thailand side set to continue their tour in Brisbane next week.
"There's a lot of information and content we can take back home so we can build plans to execute at the World Cup," Tippoch said.
"The weather and pitch conditions, fast outfields are all things to take into consideration, but also the physical nature of countries like Australia and England.
"They're more aggressive and stronger in the brand of cricket they play so we need to have plans against them."
Thailand have plans to face India A in a five-match series next month, before returning to Australia to kickoff their World Cup campaign against the West Indies in Perth in February.