Nicks, Flicks and the Odd Big Six

  This is going to be something of a controversial post as I'm going to start with a statement that a lot of people won't like "There are lots of bad coaches out there who are poorly educated, fast tracked as a "coach" into community cricket which is where many young bowlers learn the basics. Fast bowling, one of cricket's most demanding skills, has seen a worrying rise in injuries, particularly stress fractures and back problems. Young bowlers are being pushed to deliver results without being taught proper biomechanics. Poor actions, and weak bodies, combined with low intensity, lack of recovery etc. are leading to: Long-term injuries: Persistent physical issues like stress fractures are sidelining promising bowlers during critical development phases. Reduced career longevity: Many bowlers face recurring injuries, forcing them to retire or change their role early in their careers. Months of recovery time: Extended recovery...

The old saying catches win matches certainly still rings true today. Whilst we see more brilliant athletic fielding/catching in club cricket than we did 20 years ago has the overall catching efficiency dropped? Personally, from experience I think there has been  a definite decline in catching skills in club cricket over the last few seasons. So, have standards declined? The way we practice catching is one. How often do you see drills where the ball is hit straight at the fielder, that doesn't really replicate a game situation as more often than not the fielder has to move to complete the catch plus the fatigue factor is rarely replicated in practice. Screen Time and Its Impact on Cricket Vision Here is an extract from an interesting article which highlights an area that many coaches would overlook. In today’s digital age, excessive screen time is taking a toll on cricketers, especially batters. Smartphones, tablets, and gaming systems dominate downtime, significantly impacting play...

A couple of other metrics I'd look at would be the following. Boundary Percentage of Bowlers I'll also look at the boundary percentage of our bowlers every few games, which can give some useful insights into how your bowlers are performing. The stats below are for 2-day cricket where fields may be a little more attacking at times but some of the numbers look very high.  It enables me to have a debrief with the bowlers initially to get their views on the numbers. Wrong fields, too attacking, bowled at the wrong time, etc are all potential feedback that can then be discussed with the captain to improve on. Catching Completion Percentage Catching completion rate also gives great insight into who your better fielders are. Basically, have you got the right fielders in the hot spots on game day.  Fielding Stats This one would be the job of the fielding coach but alas we mere mortals don't have one so it's either a case of DIY or find a parent/spectator to do this for you. The...

  Apart from the obvious of running the warms ups/pregame preparation what happens when that first ball is bowled, and you are stuck on the sidelines? You'll have seen numerous coaches on TV scribbling away in their notebooks during games on TV. What are they writing down and is any of it relevant to club cricket? I'll give you an idea of what I collect and how it helps with my coaching.  I'll be watching the game, taking notes and getting messages to the captain/bowlers on things I might see, and they are missing. I use a notebook because, with a game that potentially lasts several hours, it's very difficult to make mental notes of every incident and clearly recall everyone when you give feedback to the team post-game.  I'll usually have jotted some KPIs down and challenged the team to attain these. These can be things like the number of runs scored/conceded in powerplay, dot balls, wickets taken/lost, boundaries scored/conceded, etc. I usually "pull" the...