Topic: Starting as a WK (Read 5492 times)

waikik · « **Reply #15 on:** December 07, 2015, 03:43:33 PM »

jgi751987 wrote-"it's a thankless task with bowlers moaning if you don't take the tough chances!"

Not only thankless but energy zapping in the heat and hard on the body especially diving to stop
those way-wood leg side ones which go against you cause the bowler bowls a crappy ball.
THANKLESS!so bloody true.

dt-second-hand-cricket · « **Reply #16 on:** December 08, 2015, 09:25:50 AM »

defo advise Aero Inners P1s are amazing - having kept for about 10 years i was having to tape my fingers up a lot but now do not have to due to the protection and flexibility of the P1s

gloves wise i would buy a second hand pair - they will be loose and flexible - i find new gloves horrendous (many may disagree here) and the best thing is a flexible pair of gloves that move like your fingers do (independently) this to me massively improves your chances of taking the ball

AlanB · « **Reply #17 on:** December 09, 2015, 09:20:08 PM »

interesting topic. season just gone, have stepped in to fill a wicket keeping void at my club having only done so very sporadically before

and I also used to play in goal in football in my younger days.

there is no doubt some skills transfer, not all do though and the main areas to develop I found were

- use of the feet rather than diving for everything. Diving when not really necessary can persuade the umpire to give a wide, plus it consumes more energy

- maintaining concentration. in a 45 over match, first 5 overs tricky, then I settled in to it. Pre-match warm ups help, so do arrive early and be organised particularly as you will have more kit. At around 30-35 overs, the innings was usually more volatile and I found my concentration was dipping at this critical point. Often made a mistake in the form of a dropped catch around this time. Simply being aware of this pattern, helped counter it. Impossible to concentrate all the time, so switch on when needed and know when it isn't needed.

- good gloves essential. was fortunate to acquire some Ton Gladiator Elite and they are very good indeed, ball tends to stick and they are very flexible. Cheap gloves (say less than �30) can be a disaster, better off buying second hand top of the range. Haven't tried Aero inners , thinking of doing so as began to suffer from sore fingers using conventional chamois inners. I have used Oakley sunglasses for a number of seasons and they unquestionably help.

- navigation around the wicket and inbound throws. Needed to think of the optimum positioning and awareness of the batsmen to a) to avoid a collision b) to run them out . Basically, to manage to not switch off once the ball is off the square and to think like a WK.

The You Tube coaching videos are useful, as is watching the keepers in our higher teams. I am considering some face to face coaching before the next season starts.

Nothing2SeeHere · « **Reply #18 on:** January 11, 2016, 02:39:58 PM »

I started a season ago from nothing. I haven't any goal keeping experience to help either.

I started with the mentality of a ball stopper and worked up from there.

I found 15 minute sessions with a rebound net and no gloves helped a lot. I found tennis balls best as they came out fastest and tended to bounce out of your hand if you aren't concentrating. Work on trying to get 2 hands to each catch. You can work on footwork with a rebound net as well.

Concentration as mentioned before was difficult to build (for me). Particularly after a perceived mistake. Remember that even the pros make the occasional mistake and try to get back into the right concentration level. I found at first I would try too hard after one mistake and it would all become sloppy for an over or so as I was trying too hard.

The final thing I struggled with was getting up to the stumps. Often on a small leg glance as nearest fielder I would get sucked into chasing it down myself or caught in indecision about going to the ball or the stumps. It meant that occasionally when the ball went behind the stumps I wasn't behind the stumps in time for the throw leaving the fielder with a choice between throw at the stumps or throw to the keeper.

Otherwise don't sweat the small stuff. If you are taking the ball silky smooth into the gloves, the opposition will stay firmly in the crease to the spinners as they won't know you have never stumped anyone before.

Karlo84 · « **Reply #19 on:** January 12, 2016, 06:07:46 PM »

@NT50 Hi mate, I put this together on another thread, hopefully it may help you, too. With regards to gloves, its like bats. What is right for one person may not be for the next so my advice is to try every glove you see on, sooner or later you will find 'that' pair.

"Hi Centurion,

Ive been keeping for the best part of 15 years and kept at county 2nd XI level. Although this certainly doesn't qualify me as an expert and i'm sure there are far more qualified people on here, here's my two penneth. I wont go into how to stand etc as there are a million youtube videos on that but I'll just add a few points to hopefully help you out.

Extreme basics but some of the most important elements to keeping (often paid lip service to but you would be amazed how many keepers, new and old, dont do the following)
- Eyes level
- Relaxed hands
- Come up with the ball
- Let the ball come to you

Next step - your set up.
- Your springs/Shock absorbers - Elbows, Knees, Hips and believe it or not ankles. Ensure they are all relaxed to take the energy out of the ball. Far too many keepers are rigid, this causes them to lean back when taking the ball. Off balance resulting in your head moving - keep your head as still as possible.
- Always be leaning into the ball. If you look at any decent keeper, apart from the hands the furthest thing forward will be their head.
- 90% arm extension, do not lock your arms straight. Take the ball well in front of you using your elbow shock absorbers to take the ball cleanly. Taking the ball too close to the body will A) prevent your shock absorbers from working B) create a snatching 'take' and C) prevent you from adapting if there is any ABS (after bat swing)

Feet
- Probably the most neglected part of Wicketkeeping but arguably as important as hands. All good wicketkeepers (and batsman) have excellent footwork whether stood up or stood back. Diving should be the last resort so get practising side to side drills. A good one which I like to do is two cones approx 3 meters apart with a tennis ball on the top of each and one in your hand. For 2 mins straight and as quick as you can be on your toes side stepping to each and replacing the ball on top with the one in your hand. 2 mins doesnt sound a lot but if your posture is right (head as still as possible, leaning slightly forward) and you do it a few times you will start to feel it in the quads, calves and hammys. It also helps hand/eye coordination by ensuring your hands are doing their job before you start moving ( a good drill for stumpings etc, no point moving until you have taken the ball cleanly)

Basic Habits
- ALWAYS take the ball to the stumps if you are within reach - although dont always take the bails off - umpires have a sense of humour failure on that one.
- ALWAYS Want the ball, whenever an outfielder collects the ball, demand it to be thrown in. This not only keeps energies high but lets the batting team know your team mean business.
- NEVER GO QUIET. Youre the fielding general, your energy should be high for every ball. If the keeper is quiet, the team is quiet.

Mental side.
- Whilst learning (and indeed at any point in your keeping career) there is always a chance you may miss a stumping or drop one - You have to have the ability to put this to the back of your mind and concentrate on the next ball. This is where keeping is unique, you cant be sent to ride the boundary if youre not seeing it well at slip or you cant be taken off cos youre bowling a bad spell. Keeping has nowhere to hide, although saying that, it is the best place to be.
- Learn how to switch off between balls. If a batsman bats out the entire innings people commend him for his powers of concentration, the keeper has to do this every game. As soon as you have passed the ball to a fielder, completely switch off. As soon as the bowler has it in his hands switch back on. It is important to have an 'on button' too. Have a movement that through muscle memory switches you on. I take two steps forwards and touch both gloves before going into my stance then power position. Not saying you should do the same, but find your cue!

Lastly but by far the most important....Enjoy it! You will never be as good as you can be if you dont have a smile on your face.

Theres a few basics for you, if you want any more technical questions answering, feel free to send me a direct message.

Hope this helps

Karlo"

Author Topic: Starting as a WK (Read 5492 times)

waikik

Re: Starting as a WK

dt-second-hand-cricket

Re: Starting as a WK

AlanB

Re: Starting as a WK

Nothing2SeeHere

Re: Starting as a WK

Karlo84

Re: Starting as a WK