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[fazza1970]

Hi all, first time poster - so go easy on me!

Just wondered if anyone else has club nets where each batsman first faces the bowling machine, then switches to the adjoining net to be bowled at by team-mates. It's a routine we've got into, but I find the contrast between the human bowlers and a) the reliability (even on a 'varied setting') and b) the pace of the bowling machine is doing me no favours at all.

I'm keen to face the bowling machine at a decent pace - at around 70 or above it's pretty sharp for me and gets my feet moving. But nobody is within 10 mph of that when you go and bat 'next door', and you find yourself going through your shot too early time and again, rattling what confidence you'd built up facing the robot.

Of course, it's vital the bowlers turn their arm over, so can't see an easy solution. Other than to sign better bowlers...

[ProCricketer1982]

Hi all, first time poster - so go easy on me!

Just wondered if anyone else has club nets where each batsman first faces the bowling machine, then switches to the adjoining net to be bowled at by team-mates. It's a routine we've got into, but I find the contrast between the human bowlers and a) the reliability (even on a 'varied setting') and b) the pace of the bowling machine is doing me no favours at all.

I'm keen to face the bowling machine at a decent pace - at around 70 or above it's pretty sharp for me and gets my feet moving. But nobody is within 10 mph of that when you go and bat 'next door', and you find yourself going through your shot too early time and again, rattling what confidence you'd built up facing the robot.

Of course, it's vital the bowlers turn their arm over, so can't see an easy solution. Other than to sign better bowlers...

Not really much point facing 70+ if no bowler is anywhere near it. Might as well face 60Mph and groove the shots. It'll help you more in the long run than facing it too on a fast setting. Just have a play every so often on a higher setting so you are sort of used to that speed. There really is no point training on anything above 65 if you are looking to learn shots, if you just want to nail it around and look good then wack it on 80 and watch the ball ping off the bat

[PedalsMcgrew]

Actually, I disagree on this one. In a match situation your likely to be facing bowlers of all different paces so it's good to give yourself that kind of variation at nets. Bowling machines are fun and good to practice a specific shot with but bowlers are more 'real' and imo are far better to practice against.

Set the bowling machine to about the fastest pace your likely to face in a game...no point going too much faster, practice your shots and get them grooved, then go into the 'bowlers net' and you should have loads of time to get into position and play the ball. Nothing beats practising against the real thing....

[Buzz]

sounds like you aren't playing yourself in again.

I once had a 30 min bowling machine before a game. I made 0.

you are comparing very different bowling, so you need to react differently to them.

[fazza1970]

Cheers lads. Anything above 65 is very unusual in our league - not to mention very alarming on our pitches! So we tend to stick to 60-65 on the machine in the main.
I think it's the instant contrast you get from stepping out of the machine net and into the human one which is the problem. By the time you've adjusted, someone else is padded up.

[Liam-SCCC]

I'd stick to bowling machine before Christmas or early pre season, to help with technique. Then I'd make the switch to bowlers about 2 months (allowing for a month of outdoor pre season) before the start of the season as you shouldn't really be working to hard on technique then

[fazza1970]

I'd stick to bowling machine before Christmas or early pre season, to help with technique. Then I'd make the switch to bowlers about 2 months (allowing for a month of outdoor pre season) before the start of the season as you shouldn't really be working to hard on technique then

This is Co Durham, so our outdoor pre-season is in June...