Leaving the ball outside off-stump does not sound like the most interesting subject to write about! We all want to hit the ball and score runs! However the art of leaving the ball is a critical batting skill that every batsman should master as a wide range of benefits go to a player who is patient and can leave the ball.
The benefits of leaving the ball outside off-stump:
- You are minimising the risk of caught behind the wicket by leaving ball wide of off stump and effectively making the slips fielders a wasted position
- You can pressure the bowlers into changing their tactics and bowling straighter line, which will create leg side scoring opportunities
- You are demonstrating to the bowlers that you will be selective in your choice of shots and therefore tough to get out
- You are demonstrating that you value your wicket
- You are giving yourself time to get comfortable at the crease
- You can begin to develop a feel for what attacking opportunities will be available outside off-stump later in your innings by having a good look at the bowling while you adjust to the conditions
- You can get your eye in and establish yourself at the crease at the most difficult part of your innings, the start. If you bat for long enough you will make up the runs later as your confidence grows and the bowlers tire
Technically, the key to leaving the ball is knowing where your stumps are in relation to your eye position and the best way to do this is to match up your body position with the stumps. That is if the ball is coming at you it is also coming at your stumps and if the ball is wide of you it is wide of the stumps. Of course this means you have to play straight, but you can’t expect to play across the line of the ball and score runs anyway!
Additionally, by adopting a front and back foot position that covers your stumps you are also managing your risk by giving the bowler a smaller target and as the old saying goes you can score runs from the pavilion.
Good luck
Mark
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Hi, Mark
i am 15 years old, right handed and bat at number 3 for my club.
it is now round 4 and i have had these scores, 41*,0,55*,and 1. Both times i have got out, it has been early. both were because of playing that defensive front foot shot at a ball swinging away outside off. I think my mindset when i go out is that earlty i have to defend everything.? like i am TO carefull? Advice?
Hi Jake
You’re going pretty well in averaging around 50! Well done. It’s a bit hard if you end up not out but remember everyone gets knocked over early from time to time and as such making sure you cash in and make a really big score when you get a start is important!
I’d refer you back to the article in terms of a check list to identify your mistake and add that you need to be precise as you can in defending the balls you need to, that is if it’s not hitting the stumps you don’t need to defend it. Good luck.
Mark
All Test players and Sheffield Shield players please follow Mark’s advice!!!!!!! I watched an ODD here a few weeks ago against S.A. Good strong breeze behind bowler who changed field half way through an over. Put in 4 slips and 2 gullies. First ball after change a top Qld batter tried to square drive. Result – another wicket to Dan Christian!!
Good to see Adam Maher doing well for the Tigers.
I thought Xzvier Doherty would have kept the Poms quiet but this is a different team – they are prepared to move out of their crease unlike a lot of earlier teams.
Regards
Hi Mark, loved the article about leaving the ball outside off-stump. Another factor for young cricketers to remember when aligning their head position to their off stump, is to take into account the angle of the bowler – for example the angle of a left arm-over-the wicket bowler is likely to take the ball further away from your off stump, and will be safer to leave, than a right arm over-the-wicket bowler (for a right hand batsman). Elite batsmen will often slightly realign themselves to take this angle into account. Possibly failing to do this was the mistake Andrew Strauss made when bowled by Bollinger in Adelaide ?
As they say all good high order batsman “know where their off stump is”. Inevitibly on occasion it will be cartwheeling back towards the wicketkeeper, however the benefits of this tactic continue to be employed to great effect by all the best players.
Maybe you could forward this article on to ryan harris! not a good idea to leave the inswinger on a king pair!
Thanks mate!