Custom Bats Cricket Forum
General Cricket => Cricket Training, Fitness and Injuries => Topic started by: uknsaunders on January 26, 2015, 01:08:41 PM
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I have been trying to get out of some bad habits with my batting and read with interest Ed Cowan's article on changing back to his original stance. It did get me thinking about the benefits and drawbacks of different stances. He's a poll to see what people do and discuss why it works!
http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/816003.html (http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/816003.html)
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I have been trying to get out of some bad habits with my batting and read with interest Ed Cowan's article on changing back to his original stance. It did get me thinking about the benefits and drawbacks of different stances. He's a poll to see what people do and discuss why it works!
I read the same article and have decided to revert to bat on the floor behind my feet as I used to bat when younger. Looking back at all my big scores they were all made batting like this. 50 yrs old .. who says you can't teach an old dog some old tricks :)
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two weeks of nets i'm now going back first and across a bit just like I did about 15 years ago and it's working perfectly.
It's amazing how the mind gets confused with technique
it only took 2 week for it to come back naturally. I read the article and that's what prompted winding the clock back. :)
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Being left handed I find its all about my front shoulder. If I close off to much I miss out on balls on leg or something closer to middle. I try to open up and make sure I stay as side on as possible, hitting through mid on and straight.
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one person's comfortably is not the same as another - you may want to have the feet position as shoulder width, together and wider than shoulderwidth apart as your suggestion
personally I have a relaxed stance, feet shoulder width apart with a few taps then bat raised. As natural as possible. I like not to think about it.
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I read the same article and have decided to revert to bat on the floor behind my feet as I used to bat when younger. Looking back at all my big scores they were all made batting like this. 50 yrs old .. who says you can't teach an old dog some old tricks :)
I'm also getting on a bit, and remember what an 'orthodox style' used to mean. Side on, bat down, feet closer together. Think Boycott and Bradman; OK, I'm not that old.
I read the article too, and watched this compilation of Mark Waugh [ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuwKVnLDfPk (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuwKVnLDfPk) ] for inspiration. I thought I'd give it a go, but this is what I discovered. My more open stance allows me to face forwards more comfortably, with less strain on my neck. Also, I now grip low with my bottom hand (ooh matron) so that tapping the ground requires me to bend my knees so much that I feel I'm crouching. I understand how the tapping can aid rhythm and timing (you can see it in the Waugh video) so I'm trying for a mid-air tap; if you see what I mean.
But as Buzz suggests, there is a danger of thinking about it too much.
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I have struggled for the last year or so with this. I got so worked up in 2013 season when I has a lot of LBW I changed everything. Gone back to middle stump guard and wide stance with bat I between and most importantly no trigger movement as this was causing me to lose balance and call over when playing a shot
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I've experimented over the years, but always found having my feet a comfortable gap apart (not too wide) and bat subconsciously tapping on the ground behind my foot, allows me to concentrate on the ball, I naturally raise my bat in expectation of the ball arriving and time the ball much better. For me, consciously raising the bat waiting for the ball or trigger movements mess with my timing.
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I've experimented over the years, but always found having my feet a comfortable gap apart (not too wide) and bat subconsciously tapping on the ground behind my foot, allows me to concentrate on the ball, I naturally raise my bat in expectation of the ball arriving and time the ball much better. For me, consciously raising the bat waiting for the ball or trigger movements mess with my timing.
It's one of the things I am thinking about. I've noticed from my nets videos that my backlift changes significantly. Sometimes I have a double lift, other times it's down and through. At the Vitas Cricket Event I was coming across the line of the ball as a consequence. When my I made an effort to play straighter I felt my backlift lower and I seemed to time the ball better.
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I also found that I was not bending from the hips but crouching with a stooped back so my eyes weren't level. This is what Im going to work on in the nets
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I've done a lot of work over the past season on my stance and body position in particular. I used to have quite an open stance but the end result was that the arc of my bat would be away from the body and the swing path would be out to in. This meant I was coming across the ball or dragging the ball from outside off to the leg side.
My stance now is much more side on, still slightly open but not as much as it used to be. The biggest change is keeping my hands in towards my waist and having my body and hands position much 'tighter' at delivery. I also changed my backlift so that the face of my bat was much more open - pointing more to point which also led to a much straighter bat path
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I also found that I was not bending from the hips but crouching with a stooped back so my eyes weren't level. This is what Im going to work on in the nets
Almost sit in to your stance. Feel balanced on your feet in your stance (not on your heels), then hinge at your hips, eyes level looking over your front shoulder. To get an idea if you are hinging at your hips, stand upright and and chop your hands into your hip flexors (front of hips), your hips will hinge, your backside will go back and your back should arch to some degree (inwards) not bend, head remaining looking ahead. This is what you are looking for, with head looking over your shoulder in your stance, you should feel balanced.
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imagine you are showing your bum hole to the square leg umpire
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imagine you are showing your bum hole to the square leg umpire
just spat out my tea :)
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one person's comfortably is not the same as another - you may want to have the feet position as shoulder width, together and wider than shoulderwidth apart as your suggestion
personally I have a relaxed stance, feet shoulder width apart with a few taps then bat raised. As natural as possible. I like not to think about it.
the problem i face with a bat tap...my head bobs around each time the bat taps the ground and then comes back up. the rhythm is nice, but i struggle to keep my eyes level when tapping the bat. is there a way to eliminate the head moving around, while still reaping the benefits of increased rhythm and timing? standing upright makes it too stiff (haha..very funny..get your mind out of the gutter!)
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Have you tried tapping the top of your foot rather than the ground so you are not bobbing quite so far down in order to touch the bat on the ground?
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my advice is to stay side on and use the peak of your vap/visor to ensure your head is still and eyes level.
here are a few different stance options...
(http://i895.photobucket.com/albums/ac151/buzzrockport/Training/110863.jpg) (http://s895.photobucket.com/user/buzzrockport/media/Training/110863.jpg.html)
(http://i895.photobucket.com/albums/ac151/buzzrockport/Training/Cricket203.jpg) (http://s895.photobucket.com/user/buzzrockport/media/Training/Cricket203.jpg.html)
and this is me a few years ago playing on a very green pitch...
(http://i895.photobucket.com/albums/ac151/buzzrockport/battingposition.jpg) (http://s895.photobucket.com/user/buzzrockport/media/battingposition.jpg.html)
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yes I have tried using the peak of my helmet. i can easily tell when my eyes are not level. its the act of tapping that creates a slight "un-levelness".. as soon as the bat comes back up the eyes are level again, but i don't like the movement. I've been trying to recreate what Warner does - he is phenomenal in terms of keeping his bat on the ground until the perfect moment. so far, not much success - my "compromise" is staying upright for now, but as said earlier, it makes it harder to be in sync with the bowler.
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yes I have tried using the peak of my helmet. i can easily tell when my eyes are not level. its the act of tapping that creates a slight "un-levelness".. as soon as the bat comes back up the eyes are level again, but i don't like the movement. I've been trying to recreate what Warner does - he is phenomenal in terms of keeping his bat on the ground until the perfect moment. so far, not much success - my "compromise" is staying upright for now, but as said earlier, it makes it harder to be in sync with the bowler.
going to upload a video of me doing the bat tap in another thread.. feedback welcome!
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Your stance should be the result of trail-and-error. Every batsman should take his sweet time in front of a bowling machine and work out their individual stance and technique based on their style of play. In another era, Steve Smith of Australia would've never been given a chance to play for Australia but this guy is the epitome of a modern batsman - constant adjustments to technique and hell-with-tradition-and-dogma attitude. I just love watching him bat!
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Amla and Devilliers (also S. Smith) are not side on in the final step of their preparation; infact, they stand more square or front/chest-on. This is the new style of batting which is catching on. I think their stance evolved after facing lots of quicks on quick pitches during their junior years.
my advice is to stay side on and use the peak of your vap/visor to ensure your head is still and eyes level.
here are a few different stance options...
([url]http://i895.photobucket.com/albums/ac151/buzzrockport/Training/110863.jpg[/url]) ([url]http://s895.photobucket.com/user/buzzrockport/media/Training/110863.jpg.html[/url])
([url]http://i895.photobucket.com/albums/ac151/buzzrockport/Training/Cricket203.jpg[/url]) ([url]http://s895.photobucket.com/user/buzzrockport/media/Training/Cricket203.jpg.html[/url])
and this is me a few years ago playing on a very green pitch...
([url]http://i895.photobucket.com/albums/ac151/buzzrockport/battingposition.jpg[/url]) ([url]http://s895.photobucket.com/user/buzzrockport/media/battingposition.jpg.html[/url])
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My coach worked very hard with me to get my stance more side on rather than open and it is now allowing me to face pace and spin much much better.
I was always scared of being side on thinking I will get hit.
I am still quite rigid in my stance and not as relaxed as I would like to be but hopefully if I persist long enough, muscle memory will kick in at some stage.