WA batsman Cameron Bancroft addresses leg-side difficulties in bid to return to form this season

The leg-side trap became the stuff of nightmares for Cameron Bancroft last summer, but the opener hopes it could lead to a world of opportunity during the upcoming Sheffield Shield season.

Bancroft endured a Shield campaign to forget last time out, scoring just 158 runs for Western Australia at an average of 13.16 before being dropped.

His knack for getting out at leg slip or leg gully became a big talking point, with Bancroft dismissed by the leg-side trap a whopping six times from seven innings during one disastrous stretch.

But the 27-year-old is a renowned workhorse, and he has been striving hard during the off-season to correct the deficiency.

And instead of viewing the leg-side trap as something to fear in the coming campaign, Bancroft sees the potential of runs that could open up for him.

“At the end of the day, if you put a man there on the field it means there’s another gap somewhere else where I can score,” Bancroft told AAP.

“One door is a bit iffy there, but another door opens somewhere else. And that’s how I’ll be looking to keep my focus on ’where can I score runs? Where can I put pressure on bowlers?’.

“It was really unusual (to be dismissed there so often). A pretty strange position. There’s probably a lot of luck involved as well.

“I’ve been able to practise and work on that area of my game, and hopefully it can reward me with some runs rather than getting out this year.”

WA coach Adam Voges is confident Bancroft can beat the leg-side trap, starting with his team’s season-opener against South Australia in Adelaide this week.

“I’ve got absolutely no doubt that come the first ball on Saturday morning - if we’re batting first - there’ll be a man positioned there,” Voges said.

“Technically, I think Cameron’s done some good work in this space. Mentally he’s a lot better, a lot fresher than where he was at the back end of last season.”