Elite Cricket is very pleased to present this exclusive Masterclass article by my former teammate Dan Marsh. In an outstanding career Dan has represented South Australia, Tasmania (captain), Leicestershire and Australia ‘A’. Enjoy.

Cheer

Mark

Captaincy

One of the first things that I learnt about Captaincy was to trust your instincts. Usually the first thought that comes in to your head is going to be the right one.

I always like to try and stay ahead of the game, be pro-active rather than re-active. Don’t be afraid to try a few different things.

Treat your bowlers well; they are the ones you need to take 20 wickets so you have to have them in the right frame of mind. Include them, and encourage them to set their own fields and help them with their plans on how to get batsmen out.

Use the people around you. Senior players, coaches and the wicket keeper all come up with good ideas.

Always play in the right spirit. As you are the captain it is your job to set the example and it is your job to make sure all your team plays the same way.

It is important to communicate what the plan is. Make sure it is drilled into the team before you start the match, and if the plan changes as the game unfolds this needs to be communicated as soon as possible.

Slip Fielding

There are some great advantages in becoming a slip fielder, you don’t have to chase all those fours to the boundary, you get a great view of the game and you got someone to talk to while you are spending those long days in the field.

They key to becoming a good slipper is a lot of practice. Make sure you are doing extra catching at every training session. The majority of catches will either come to you or the keeper and the bowlers expect you to catch everything. Your practice should include some longer catches 10 metres from the bat, and some short reflex catches 1-2 metres away.

The other side of slip catching is the mental side. You can stand all day in the slips and not get one catch. So when one comes your way you are expected to be ready. You have to learn to switch your concentration on and off a bit like batting. In between balls it is fine to have a joke or a laugh with your teammates but it is really important to switch back on when the next ball is bowled. My routine is to get down just before the bowler lets the ball go, others go down earlier but the most important thing is whatever you do it is consistent.

Dan Marsh

Elite Cricket is very pleased to present this exclusive Masterclass article by former Tasmanian and Somerset captain and my former teammate Jamie Cox. Among other things Jamie scored 51 first class centuries and is now an Australian selector. Enjoy.

Cheers

Mark

An old batting mentor of mine once said that batting was 90% mental, to which I responded that I thought he had been hit in the head one too many times! However, the longer I played cricket, the more I realized that, if anything, at 90% he may have even underestimated the importance of the mind in batting.

The reason I say this is that I have seen some of the most technically gifted players fail time and again due to poor shot selection or concentration lapses, yet on the other hand I have seen players of very limited technical ability thrive at all levels of the game, simply because they had a positive mental approach.

Batting is a reactive skill, with often less than half a second available to react. With such a limited time frame there is no time to think and the response needs to be automatic. Training nets are not only used to train muscle memory; more importantly they are used to train instincts, which must be intimately trusted once competition starts.

Whilst a solid technique is an important part of batting success it is virtually useless if the mind isn’t in sync. Train the mind and batting success will follow more regularly.

Jamie Cox

BACKGROUND

• Experts believe that as little as a 1-2% decrease in the body’s fluid levels can be enough to negatively affect performance through a drop in energy levels, decision-making and your body’s ability to cool-down
• Prolonged dehydration in hot and/or humid conditions may increase risk of heat stress

This advice is intended as a brief checklist to assist cricketers that may be at risk of dehydration. For more detailed advice it is recommended that you speak to a medical expert or sport scientist

DAYS LEADING UP TO GAME DAY

• Aim for 3L of water on each of the 2 days prior to the game
• Consider adding salt to food and electrolyte formula (i.e. “gastrolyte” or “hydralyte”) to drinks if it is very hot/humid
• Minimise alcohol, a known diuretic
• Use urine colour to check hydration status
  • Clear urine = good hydration
  • Dark yellow urine = dehydration

GAME DAY

• Upon waking have 1-2 glasses of water
• Over the course of the morning aim to drink 4-6 glasses of fluid (water or sports drink best). If you suffer badly from cramps add some salt or electrolyte formula to drinks

DURING THE GAME

• Look for all opportunities to ingest fluids
• Add extra scheduled breaks
• Water or sports drinks are recommended
• Look for every opportunity to cool down
• Use of ice vests/cooling fans where possible
• Recover in shade where possible
• Be aware of heat stress
• If you show signs of heat illness (exhaustion, cramps, dizziness or collapse) seek immediate medical support

POST-GAME

• Weigh yourself after game to measure fluid loss
• 1kg weight loss = 1L fluid loss. Aim to drink 1.5 x fluid lost in the 4-6 hours afterward (water or sports drink best)
• You should have returned to pre-competition weight within 6 hours
• Use ice baths or cold showers post-match to cool the body down and assist recovery
• Minimise intake of caffeine and alcohol

Cheers

Mark

Elite Cricket is very pleased to present this exclusive Masterclass article by Australia A and Tasmanian spin bowler Xavier Doherty. Enjoy.

Cheers

Mark

In the shorter forms of the game, the first thing the goes through a batsman’s head when a spinner hands his cap to the umpire is – cheap, easy runs!!!!

This provides a huge opportunity for spin bowlers to have a positive impact for his team. To do this you must have clear ideas in your head about bowling plans, field settings and weaknesses you might know about your opposition.

Spinning in one day cricket is about building up pressure and forcing the batter to play a shot that he is not comfortable about. Even if you aren’t a big spinner of the ball there are still ways to be a successful one day bowler. Mixing up speeds and flights are very important, as well as mixing up the amount of spin you put on each delivery can help with deceiving the opposition.

It is very important that you start well; there is nothing harder than conceding 10 or 12 runs in your first over then having to fight your way back into the game. Make sure that the batsman is playing a great shot if he wants to hit a boundary, this may mean you need to start with a couple of extra fielders on the fence, especially for a set batter. Conceding a single will allow you to target the other batter and crowd him in the field, this will put pressure on both players to score faster.

Taking a wicket is the best way to slow the scoring rate down. Like I mentioned earlier, there are a few ways to go about doing this. Drawing a false stroke is not all about bowling huge turning leg-breaks pitching outside leg and taking the top of off stump (but if you can do this, go for it!!).

If, like me, you don’t turn it anywhere near as much as Warney used to, mixing up your speed and flights will make it hard for the opposition to get into a rhythm and score at the rate they want to. Not many players out there are happy just knocking the singles around against spin bowlers.

See if you can stay one step ahead and read what a batter is doing. If he looks like he wants to come at you, keep him trapped on the crease, or on the other hand, drag him down the wicket when he wants to stay at home. Try and beat him in flight and get them spooning catches to mid on/off or to your short catchers.

Some spinners change their game for the shorter versions and become dart bowlers, constantly bowling flatter and faster. The most important advice I can give about 50 over cricket is that you still spin the ball hard and give the ball air. The great weapon for spinners is that a batter has to make all the pace if they want to hit the ball hard and long, so don’t make it easier for them by constantly giving them that pace. Giving the ball revs will also allow the ball to drift, drop and obviously spin, all helping your chances for a wicket. Putting plenty of revs on the ball and flighting the ball will sometimes take some courage, but in the long run with enough practice, you will get the results.

Xavier Doherty

Think strategically – objective, plan and execution

• Play to win
• Where are we now?
• Where do we want to go?
• How do we get there?
• Stay on message!

Change the game

• Patience vs. Letting the game drift
• If your approach is working keep going if not change the game
• The don’t overbowl your quicks and underbowl your spinners

Keep it simple

• If you want your bowlers to bowl consistently give them consistent fields

Trust your hunches and be prepared to take calculated risks

• Back your judgment and if it’s not working try something else
• Be flexible and open and prepared to try the ideas of your teammates

Control the game

• Take charge of the game strategically and tactically and work with your bowlers and fielders to execute the plan

Setting fields for your bowlers

• Protect the good balls because you can’t protect the bad ones

The Perils of Overattacking and Attacking by defending

• Overattacking fields place excessive pressure on the bowlers and makes their job harder
• Ring and outfielders are attacking fielders too
• You can’t score runs from the pavilion or take wickets while your not bowling

Good luck

Mark

Batting

• The best players are not one-dimensional and have the ability to create their own tempo and manipulate the game to suit their needs, they sense when to attack and when to defend

• Defending your wicket has more ramifications towards a bowler’s mindset then we realise – the more we can defend our wicket through tough situations, the more powerful our counter attack will become

• Captain and bowler alike will become more frustrated the longer a defensive period of batting lasts

• The key to successful defensive batting is the lack of wickets lost and the ability to turn those periods into a measurable performance

Bowling and Fielding

• Consistency and execution are the two key ingredients to bowling success when attacking batsmen

• When defending the field and minimising scoring opportunities, field settings that look defensive, can often have attacking implications, for example – having a long off or long on might look defensive, however, with 2 fielders in catching positions on straight angles can entice the batsman into a loose stroke looking for a single to boundary fielders

• Bowling one side of the wicket with field set accordingly. This can be a very defensive option but equally can be very frustrating for the batsman and can create poor shot selection

• Ultimately, cricket is a game of cat and mouse, a war of attrition. The winner is generally the team that is more patient and outwits it’s opposition, either through attack or defense but more often a mixture of both

Thanks Jon and good luck to all!

Cheers

Mark

As we know cricket is a very challenging game! Every time we step onto the field our strategy, skills, thinking, fitness and technique are tested. Additionally, (and if this was not enough), we also face a lot of uncertain and at times rapidly changing elements that influence our performances such as the weather, ground and pitch conditions, umpires and opponents.

It is very easy to become distracted during a performance, as there are lots of things to focus on both from the past e.g. your last match or the previous ball and future events such as how many wickets you will take or how many runs you will score or is a selector watching you! Focusing on events that are over or haven’t happened do not help you deal with the most important thing in the game, the next ball!

One of the most stressful things you can do during a performance is try to control something that you cannot change and this is because no matter how badly you want it you can’t do anything about it.

There are no guarantees in cricket and this is partly due to the high level of uncertainty we face within a game. For example you can be the best prepared you have ever been for a match and the umpire gives you out first ball when you didn’t hit it! Regardless of the quality of the decision and although it is frustrating, you have very little control over the outcome, you cannot control the umpire as much as we would like to in this case!

So what can we do as players to manage the uncertainty we face?

• Recognise and accept the elements of your performance you cannot influence
• Control the controllable elements of your performance that do influence the quality of your performance.

The great challenge we face in playing cricket is the main reason we enjoy it – let’s face it – it’s pretty satisfying to master your opponents and conditions to score a century or take a big bag of wickets.

The most important thing you ever have to deal with in cricket is the next ball and you will need to focus all your effort on doing the very best you can when it arrives and to do so you can’t really afford to be distracted by events that have already passed or events that haven’t happened!

All can really do on game day (after you have done all the preparation) is to understand what are the key elements of your performance that you can influence and let the unimportant things pass. In other words control the controllables.

Good luck

Mark

Starting your season is a very exciting time. It presents you with the opportunity to apply the skills you have worked at and developed during the off-season to make runs and take wickets, catches and stumpings.

Getting a good start to the season is the key to setting you up for a big year, as knowing you have put up strong performances early in the year can give you confidence and momentum for the rest of the season.

Here are a few of my tips for starting your season.

• Be patient, you haven’t played a match in 5 months, so easy does it and take your time
• Don’t expect too much. For example, getting time in the middle early on in the year is a great way for a batsman to get used to batting again and it will help to put you in top form and as they say you can’t score runs from the pavilion
• Relax, remember that everybody will be just as, if not more nervous than you, so relax and enjoy the challenge. A few deep breaths before you get set to face the bowler or at the top of your run-up can really help to calm you down if you are feeling a bit nervous
• Have a plan. Batting and bowling in the middle for the first time after a long break may feel a bit strange, having a simple and realistic plan that you can apply will help you through these uncertain times
• Stick to your plan and as above be patient
• Have fun and test yourself to see how good you can be

Good luck

Mark

There are two levels at which you need to deliver precision in your performance as a cricketer one is the strategic level and one is the technical level.

The strategic level concerns the plan you have in place and deals with the selection of shot or delivery you make in a given situation. For example if a batsman chooses to defend a ball on the front foot which he thinks will miss the stumps he takes on the risk of being caught behind the wicket for a return of no runs as opposed to a bats

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