Custom Bats Cricket Forum
General Cricket => Cricket Training, Fitness and Injuries => Topic started by: mohawks94 on April 27, 2020, 02:31:28 PM
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I took a couple of videos before lockdown of myself netting vs bowling machine. One filmed from round the wicket angle, one from over and a couple of weeks apart.
I am just clipping the over the wicket bits together, but any ideas on the below are appreciated! Speed is between 55-63mph as I was running in the bat.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31EajOUn8TE (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31EajOUn8TE)
Our coach has a random taste in music, so the videos are unavailable in some countries due to copyright claims.
Main thing I am working on is getting my front foot further across as I have always had a habit of staying slightly leg side and defending to point, but this is easier to see in the clips I am sorting at the moment.
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And here is the over the wicket angle:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mTZHpsHp5k&feature=youtu.be (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mTZHpsHp5k&feature=youtu.be)
Not getting my front foot across over fully is more obvious here. I think a lot of it is just confidence at the crease - in matches I take longer to get going than in nets, for my feet to get moving etc.
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FWIW, I know I will never be a top order bat at the level I play, but I want to be someone who can come out and play with freedom or grind us to a total from 7-9.
I certainly do walk around quite a lot at the crease, its the way I have found I get across more and transition my weight better.
Hands I hadn't noticed though, so I will defo work on that as I always try to keep them close but obviously they have subconsciously moved apart.
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Stand still man! I think Dan's about right, your trigger is putting you in a poor position and all the moving about will make it significantly harder to judge the ball.
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What was he actually doing to coach you? Watched the 1st video
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I like the contact points (late) and soft hands. You let the ball come hit the bat which is great.
Have you tried batting on off stump (and then not having a huge trigger)? It seems like in the current setup / trigger, your weight will all go towards the off side , leaving you vulnerable to inswing / straighter lines. Plus, if you’re batting lower down, I assume they’ll try and bowl full and straight - which might be harder to play if you’re moving this much.
But ultimately, as long as you have a gameplan to get in (which shots will you play while you’re getting in, and which shots will you leave), you should stick with what is most comfortable to you.
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Wasn't the coach feeding the bowling machine, was a team mate hence the celebration/friendly rivalry. That said, Zippy does celebrate when he gets you out with the machine/sidearm.
When coaching we have been discussing dragging the front foot further over - have worked on back and across to get into a stronger position to get forward and working on the sidearm. In lock down I have been getting my mother on the throwdowns to work on it. Generally the longer I bat the further I get my foot across, so its partly a confidence thing, partly being 'in'.
I have tried batting with no trigger, but it just doesn't work for me. For a while I walked into the ball, but settled on back and across from a middle and leg guard as how I felt most comfortable. Potentially widening my stance so my feet aren't so close together could stop them trapping?
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I like the contact points (late) and soft hands. You let the ball come hit the bat which is great.
Have you tried batting on off stump (and then not having a huge trigger)? It seems like in the current setup / trigger, your weight will all go towards the off side , leaving you vulnerable to inswing / straighter lines. Plus, if you’re batting lower down, I assume they’ll try and bowl full and straight - which might be harder to play if you’re moving this much.
But ultimately, as long as you have a gameplan to get in (which shots will you play while you’re getting in, and which shots will you leave), you should stick with what is most comfortable to you.
When facing left arm seam over the wicket, I open up slightly more and bat on middle and off to allow me to hit straight.
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And if your issue is that your front foot stays leg side of the ball, this is actually GREAT (less chance of closing yourself off)... just bat on off stump and ignore your front foot, instead of trying to rewire everything. Your head will be on off, you will have less ground to cover in accessing the ball, and your natural technique will prevent you from getting lbw.
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I'll certainly give an off stump guard a go against everything once we are back in the nets.
My general role doesn't tend to give me time to get in, as it is going in late on to try to smack it out the park. The one time I had an opportunity to build an innings last year I got a ton (in a friendly though).
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@mohawks94 , How do you get out most of the time in actual matches? Are you scoring runs? In my case, there are 2-3 recurring themes and that's how I know what I am doing wrong. :D Also, those are the things I work on first in my nets.
Your stance and head position (video 2) look very good. You hands seem too busy (active). You are also (video 2) not completing your shots - ball makes contact and you just let the bat hang there. What's the bowling machine speed in the first video? Its not clear what your coach is trying to achieve there. All net/practice sessions should have a clearly defined objective. Have you watched Gary Palmer's "Alignment. Balance. Completion" (ABC) videos? You will get a lot of power in your shots if you follow his coaching. Videos are free on Youtube.
You seem tall in height, so reach shouldn't be an issue. Your feet are active and you move well. So, you have good ingredients to work with. Set some goals - such as working on your ABC and un-weighting your bat and solid contact - and work on them in nets.
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My general role doesn't tend to give me time to get in, as it is going in late on to try to smack it out the park.
If that's your role, why so timid in training?
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Interestingly last season, in 1s cricket I was lbw playing back to a spinner once, chopped on a quick the other time I was out. In 2s cricket I was either stumped or bowled charging in each of my 3 innings. I've hardly batted in league cricket the last two seasons.
First clip is mid 50s to mid 60s as I was running in the bat.
I've been working on not going so hard at the ball, which is why a lot of the time I'm not completing shots.
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If that's your role, why so timid in training?
Working on batting time, going up a division means I will be needed to bat more than five times in 12 1s games.
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I've been working on not going so hard at the ball, which is why a lot of the time I'm not completing shots.
You don't have to go hard at all, make clean contact and complete the shot. Gary Palmer has tons of videos on this. Here is a start: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4jSxExtPkM (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4jSxExtPkM) .
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On the second video it looks like your trigger is putting your feet on top of each other and not giving you any kind of base to work from but it is hard to say without a side view. Your back foot seem to be the one more often than not trying to make the angle you want for a shot because it is the one that can move most easily as the front foot is cramped. It is probably easier to play back foot shots from that starting position where you can spring back from you front foot when on your toes but I've always felt it locks and cramps your front foot from going anywhere forwards. So you might be trying to do good stuff with your head but your feet and base are working against you IMO.
Others may well have a different opinion but basically I think your trigger is trapping and cramping your front foot meaning your hands and back leg are trying to make room and manufacture a shot. I wouldn't worry about "getting your feet moving", I'd worry about a balanced base and then head/ front shoulder in to the ball. Buzz'll love that but I'm sure other disagree :D
I wouldn't be over the moon about a coach cheering when they get you out either!
I agree that your issue seems to be your trigger movement. Hard to tell from video 2 as can't see exact time ball is released but it looks like your trigger is not completed so on the move as ball is bowled. If you are a late order bat facing older ball I would consider batting middle/middle off and trying opening up your stance and standing still. Then just whack it!
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If you ask me, the following are your issues.
1) you are never stable - Gio Collusi, who I regard as one of the best coaches around and many pros do too, says to time the ball is about moving from stable to stable, you must be stable at release, and stable at contact, you appear to be neither, there is no weight on your front foot at release, and therefore you're not stable - this comes down to your trigger. The whole purpose of a trigger movement is to get you ready into a stable position to move again, if it's not doing this then it is a bit pointless. You also jump into position at times and again, this means you are unstable at release, your head is moved 100times more than it needs to, the more moving parts to a technique the harder it is to make it work for you. Your trigger is also never consistent, it isn't the same 2 balls in a row from what I can see, one ball your straight back, next back and across, next jumping, next back and across and taking all weight off the front foot etc etc.
2) your hands start 'up' , and there is no formal backlift, which is meaning you are having to just stop the ball rather than accelerate your hands through it.
Because you are not stable, your front foot is landing early, and because you don't pick your hands up from a neutral position there is no delay in your swing.
My reccomend fix?
1) ditch the trigger, and get set and stable,
2) keep your hands in a relaxed position, then as you sight the ball after release, your wrists cock, and your hands go back creating separation between hand and hips, you unweight the bat, then naturally as your heel lands, your bat will flow through, and your downswing will start.
My biggest recommendation however, is to filter out the plethora of bad advice you will inevitably get, everyone has an opinion, some better than others, you don't want to get bogged down with too much technique, and that's why the fixes I've reccomended are pretty simple and basic. If you over analyse you will never settle on a technique and you'll never score runs.
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I would also record playing normal bowling. Many times, we bat one way vs the machine and another vs real bowlers. You’ll always be slightly out of sync when facing machine.
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If you ask me, the following are your issues.
1) you are never stable - Gio Collusi, who I regard as one of the best coaches around and many pros do too, says to time the ball is about moving from stable to stable, you must be stable at release, and stable at contact, you appear to be neither, there is no weight on your front foot at release, and therefore you're not stable - this comes down to your trigger. The whole purpose of a trigger movement is to get you ready into a stable position to move again, if it's not doing this then it is a bit pointless. You also jump into position at times and again, this means you are unstable at release, your head is moved 100times more than it needs to, the more moving parts to a technique the harder it is to make it work for you. Your trigger is also never consistent, it isn't the same 2 balls in a row from what I can see, one ball your straight back, next back and across, next jumping, next back and across and taking all weight off the front foot etc etc.
2) your hands start 'up' , and there is no formal backlift, which is meaning you are having to just stop the ball rather than accelerate your hands through it.
Because you are not stable, your front foot is landing early, and because you don't pick your hands up from a neutral position there is no delay in your swing.
My reccomend fix?
1) ditch the trigger, and get set and stable,
2) keep your hands in a relaxed position, then as you sight the ball after release, your wrists cock, and your hands go back creating separation between hand and hips, you unweight the bat, then naturally as your heel lands, your bat will flow through, and your downswing will start.
My biggest recommendation however, is to filter out the plethora of bad advice you will inevitably get, everyone has an opinion, some better than others, you don't want to get bogged down with too much technique, and that's why the fixes I've reccomended are pretty simple and basic. If you over analyse you will never settle on a technique and you'll never score runs.
Great post and advice
Funny you mentioned trigger movements, just reading April's The Cricketer, goes through each counties prospects for the season and for Yorkshire they mention Harry Brook. How last season he struggled, and they simply put this down to a lack of trigger movement. I think that theory is a load of (No Swearing Please), how can such a drop in form be blamed on a lack of trigger movement. Laughable if you ask me