Until this month, Scotland had not played a match since their dreams of reaching the 50-over World Cup were dashed by Ireland in Lahore in April.
They have beaten Papua New Guinea, Thailand and Namibia in three warm-up matches before the Emerging Nations Trophy, with Slater player of the match in the latter two.
“A massive thing with the drop off from the full members to associates with less opportunities is the amount of fixtures we play,” Slater said.
“The other teams are having like a full 12-month calendar of fixtures and training, whereas it’s not the same for associate teams and it is really difficult.”
Slater is a full-time professional with Yorkshire and the majority of Scotland’s squad have deals with county sides in England but do not get the chance to play together often.
When they do, the Scots have performed to a high standard in recent years, reaching the last T20 World Cup in the Middle East and beating West Indies at the 50-over qualifier earlier this year.
“So I think [the Emerging Nations Trophy] being brought in is massive,” she said. “Knowing that you’ve consistently got cricket to look forward to is massive and adds a bit more purpose to training.
“So I think it’s going to be really beneficial going forward and something we’re really excited about.”
Fantasy football keeps the competitive edge among the Scotland squad going during the long gaps between fixtures, as players fight to top their private league.
There was also a cold-weather training camp in Edinburgh earlier this month as players donned hoodies and bobble hats at Goldenacre in Edinburgh, getting some time together as a group before flying to South-East Asia.
“You definitely feel kind of a little bit disconnected from [international cricket] at times, but as a playing group and coaching group, we are pretty big on trying to stay connected,” Slater said.
“We’re used to it, but we know we’re playing really good cricket and competing with full member nations, teams who have a full calendar.
“The fact we’re able to do that with limited opportunities and resources says a lot about the group we’ve got.”
