INDIA VERSUS AUSTRALIA
The recent India versus Australia Test series was a fascinating and highly competitive contest involving two excellent teams. Not only was the cricket great to watch, it was also an opportunity to learn from watching world class players in action. Below I have highlighted a few of the points that I feel are worth mentioning from a coaching perspective.
- Be In It To Win It – While there is more to batting than simply staying in the ability to occupy the crease is an essential skill for any batsman who wants to make big scores consistently (and who doesn’t!). The outstanding players in the series Gambhir, Laxman, Tendulkar, Katich and Hussey were all able to occupy the crease and allow the runs to accumulate around them while waiting patiently for opportunities to attack frustrated and tired bowling. Impatience and poor shot selection are great ways to throw your wicket away! The ability to occupy the crease is built around a solid defence and good concentration and are the keys to batting success.
- The Best Form Of Defence Is Attack – It’s always better to be on the attack than in defence. When batting this means making runs and when bowling it means taking wickets. The majority of wickets fall in 3 ways – bowled, lbw and caught behind the wicket and simply these forms of dismissal can only occur consistently when bowlers are prepared to challenge the stumps! By challenging the stumps (specifically the top of off stump or thereabouts) bowlers not only maximise their chances of taking wickets but also restrict the opportunity for the batsman to score by denying them width to free their arms. The successful bowlers in the India-Australia series took their wickets by challenging the stumps – Sharma, Khan, Harbajahan, Krezja (former Elite Cricket guest coach) and Mishra.
- Identify and Adapt – Excellent cricketers can thrive under a range of conditions including those that don’t necessarily suit their game – they are able to quickly assess the prevailing conditions and adapt their games accordingly. The Indian pace bowlers Sharma and Khan were successful as they worked out the line and length that they needed to bowl under the conditions and were resourceful enough to find a way to reverse swing the ball – skills that the Australian bowlers struggled to execute consistently enough to win. Significantly the Indian tactics were very simple and largely involved bowling to hit the stumps with the seam up!
DECEMBER 2008 PROGRAMS
For many cricketers late December and January are a break from competition but it is vitally important to maintain the momentum your have built in the season to date and continue to play and practise over the break.
In December we have 2 and 3 day programs over a range of venues including a High Performance BOOT CAMP (places limited).
Click on the links below in red for enrolment details
This program has a minimum skill requirement and is specifically designed for cricketers playing at representative level or its school equivalent and is limited to 10 players only.
Over 2 days our Academy players will train like first class cricketers and be challenged by an intensive multi-disciplinary program to further enhance their existing skills and match awareness by a range of high performance coaches.
The program features analysis of bowling action by video and extensive bowling machine batting technique work.
- St. Ignatius College, Riverview – 11th & 12th December 2008
The program is suitable for ages 7 – 14 and will be conducted from 9am to 3pm in both 2 and 3 day formats at the venues listed below.
- Scots College, Bellevue Hill – 8th, 9th & 10th December 2008
- St. Ignatius College, Riverview – 11th & 12th December 2008
- Lindfield Oval, Tryon Road – 15th & 16th December 2008
THE ‘ON THE BALL’ BEGINNERS PROGRAM
‘On the Ball’ is for girls and boys from 5 -7 years, who have perhaps never played cricket or who have just begun their cricketing career. In these sessions run from 9am to 12pm and are a great way to have fun and learn about the game of cricket.
- Scots College, Bellevue Hill – 8th, 9th & 10th December 2008
JANUARY 2009 PROGRAMS
We are just waiting to finalise two January venues but at this stage can confirm we will be starting the January 2009 School Holiday Programs on 8th and 9th January with our annual High Performance Academy at St Ignatius College. This will be an intense program offering turf nets, indoor facilities and full video analysis for players aged 13 years plus who are already playing at district representative level (or school equivalent). We will also be selecting an Elite XI side from this academy to play against a team from Riverview later in January.
- High Performance Academy – St. Ignatius College, Riverview – 8th & 9th January 2009
- Lindfield Oval, Tryon Road – 12th, 13th & 14th January 2009
- TBA -15th & 16th January 2009
- St. Ignatius College, Riverview – 19th & 20th January 2009
- High Performance Boot Camp – Five Dock Indoor Sports – 21st January 2009
- TBA – 22nd & 23rd January 2009
We will be loading the application forms onto the site next week but please contact us should you have any queries regarding the programs.
Cheers
Mark
Expert Cricket Coaching
Marks cricket coaching credentials and expertise are second to none. Get in touch today.
