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[fasteddie]

Hello all.

My son, 17, is 6ft 4 and could be properly quick (I played for the Army a while back and he could be as quick as our openers, that's the context of my 'quick').

He is a reluctant trainer so I need something to add some pep to his short ball.

What training tips, regimes, would be recommended for someone of his age and potential.

I could do weights, press-ups ect with him to give us both some zip.

Thanks in advance.

[alba caerulea]

I would suggest minimal weight training, certainly the heavy stuff - if he is 17 he could still have quite a bit left to grow!

Core strength, running or similar for cardio and most importantly his action needs to be fluid and repeatable - you need to speak to a cricket coach for that one

[Vitas Cricket]

Look at 2 examples. Morne Morkel, Shaun Tait. Both similar height, both bowl with pace and bounce.

Morne is able to reel off his lovely flowing action over after over, day after day in test cricket.

Shaun Taits action looks like an Octopus falling out of a tree.

Morkel is rarely injured, and generates serious pace despite not being noticeably well built.

Tait spent more time of his physique than his action it seems, and now is basically restricted to T20 stuff due to near constant injuries in his career.

Get him some coaching at this age, let his body develop naturally.

[RightArmRapid]

Nets until his feet bleed, oh and lots of core work, if he's like me the pace will come naturally with rhythm. The control however is a different story, i find the only way to achieve it is nets. It would help if he has friends that he can go down with to muck about! The second thing is endurance no use being quick if you can only do it for 2 or 3 overs, fitness for me comes from playing a large cocktail of sports and core work, that being said I myself struggle with running long distances/ bowling for prolonged periods of time. Always been the strong rapid sprinter type. Whichever type of fitness describes him be sure that he works on his weaknesses.
I am also 17 years of age,  main difference being im 5'11.

[Nickauger]

Leave him to develop naturally..... If his technique is good, then let him decide how much he wants to bulk up

[PedalsMcgrew]

Shaun Taits action looks like an Octopus falling out of a tree.

Great quote! 

[The_Bird]

Get some proper footwear!! If he hasn't already

[Manormanic]

The key things here are as much mental as physical training.

1. Get him to accept that he will never have a "beach" body.  There is nothing - and I do mean nothing - more damaging for a fast bowler than having large amounts of pointless muscular bulk on their upper bodies; all that weight does is pace additional strain on the lower limbs and cause stress fractures and knee problems.  Don't believe me?  Look at Chris Tremlett, Simon Jones, Shane Watson etc.
2. The biggest key is a repeatable action.  This is gained by bowling a lot, but not by over bowling.  The latest ECBCA guidance is that under 19s should not bowl more than four days in seven, and at most 14 overs per day - he'd be well off when netting, doing so in a way that recreates a match situation, so bowling six ball sets with three to four minutes inbetween.
3. Cardio.  He doesn't need to run enormous distances, but a couple of moerately paced 5ks a week would be beneficial.

You asked specifically about getting more pep in his short ball.  He can work on the right muscles using a medicine ball, trying to propel it into the ground acrosds his left hand side, which will give him a little more strength.  But in many ways it is as much about getting him to think about where he wants to stick it - he needs to have three varieties of short ball ideally - one that rears from just back of a length to around the nipple area, one that goes through slightly higher and a genuinely quick bouncer (often best delivered after the high one).

And if he is really that good, get him to a club where he will get the necessary support and coaching pathways...

[Chad]

I would recommend buying the Bob Woolmer's Art and Science of Cricket book and reading through the bowling section of that. I was recommended it by Buzz for batting, but it has very in depth analysis and advice about fast bowling. The main thing is to make sure that he maintains a good action which is fluid, and also to make sure he likes bowling fast!

[Manormanic]

oh, and to make sure that he makes full use of his height...

[fasteddie]

Many thanks.
A lot of good advice.

Fingers crossed he can develop this year.

[Buzz]

Fingers crossed he can develop this year.

I have to admit, i don't know much about the attitudes of 17 year olds, I know a little about bowling - but I think the key is that the lad has to want to do the work. That has got to come from inside and encouraged. I suspect at that age confidence and boosting moral may be a key thing. There will be good days and bad days... helping the enthusiasm will be helped by having mates who want to practice and play - so help them train together.

[Manormanic]

It might also be good to get him to be clear about whathis aims are - not just long term, but the building blocks along the way...

[Nickauger]

With the greatest of respects, the last thing you should do unless you're a qualified coach is to mess with his action. i would think twice as a relatively experienced coach. If his attitude is right then he'll be fine anyway. I never had any coaching and ended up playing prem cricket so its not the be all and end all!

[RightArmRapid]

A decent read for those interested? Addresses some recent questions on the forum..http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/537876.html