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Ben Gollings is one of the greatest sevens players to have played the game. He is the all-time record points-scorer with 2,374 in 62 tournaments and is preparing for his third Commonwealth Games. Follow’s Ben RFU Diary as the countdown continues to tomorrow's action..

October 8 (Friday)

A day off for the England players with some of the guys heading out to watch hockey and athletics.
I’ve been relaxing in the Village for most of the day. Not sleeping, just chilling out. I didn’t want to sit on a bus, just wanted to get some things done – send postcards, get a haircut (nice little head massage) and just enjoy not having to think much about rugby.

I’ve kept an eye on other sports while we’ve been here, though. I’ve always been into watching sports people and it’s amazing to see what they do at close quarters. In a place like this you can see how other people live and breathe it before and after competition. It’s very different from the world of rugby.

My favourites to follow growing up were Liverpool - pretty dominant in their day, sensational to watch - and some of the athletes, the Linford Christies, Colin Jacksons. In the tennis world I still think Roger Federer’s one of the most exceptional sportsmen around and he’s been in a class of his own for years. He’s so relaxed about it. I’d love to meet him, have a chat and see how he operates.

That brings me on to taking part in other sports. You can’t do enough cross-training and taking part in other things as far as I’m concerned. You learn so much and take away so many other skills – plus you get to let your hair down and play something without the stresses of having to win. I’d do it every day if I could and I was lucky that I grew up as part of a big family. With five brothers, I was able to do that.

October 9: (Saturday)

Another good day in the England Sevens camp as the clock ticks down to the start of the tournament on Monday. We started with swimming at 7.30am as usual and then had our first trip down to the venue, the Delhi University Stadium, which is looking really good. They should get a good crowd in on Monday. I think tickets will sell well because Sevens is an interesting and different event here. Also when you talk to other athletes about it they're keen to come down as well.

So we had a good little session, going over what we've been doing, focusing in on what we want to do and putting the finishing touches to everything. It was very hot and it'll be hot come Monday. We had a bit of a relax over lunchtime - I caught a snooze for an hour - and then a power and weights session in the afternoon which was a very short, low-key one.

There's no point killing yourselves now, it's just good to keep the body moving, and some of us went out on the main training track at the Athletes Village to have a little run as well. Being on a track like that gives you a real feelgood factor when you're doing your speedwork. Then a little hydrotherapy session in the hydro pools there, which is just to aid recovery and relax the muscles and make you feel as fresh as possible.

Now it's just a matter of relaxing. Tomorrow we've got just one final run to keep the body moving in the heat and ready for the action on Monday.

In the countdown to a big tournament you need to take your rest when you can and get quality sleep because it's simply the best form of recovery. The boys will be getting their heads down early tonight.

As far as food goes, I just try to stick to as normal a diet as I can, like I'd eat at home. You want to fuel the body but you can over-fuel it and then you feel heavy and sluggish. You need a happy medium.

You can only store so much energy and key moments come on game day. We play three games on Day One - Sri Lanka, Uganda and Australia - with a big break between each match. You get ready for the first game and the key then is how you recover from that.

October 10 (Sunday)

The waiting is nearly over after our final session on the last day before the Commonwealth Games Sevens gets under way.

We were up early - like we will be tomorrow - for a 9am session at the St Stephen's College training ground near the stadium we'll be playing at.

Another short training session, really short and sharp, and the boys were in great shape. We said goodbye to the venue staff - exchanging gifts and taking photos - and they've been great. The whole set-up, training grounds, stadium, has been sensational in terms of its quality. India could easily host a leg of the World Sevens Series each year.

We got back at 11am with a quiet day ahead - sleep, relaxing, some guys got some hydrotherapy, eating well and then a decent night's sleep.

Even if you've played in lots of tournaments, you still get the same feeling. You get to this point and then you just want to get it on. We can't wait now.

Ben Gollings was talking to RFU.com