Adi's Club Cricket Blog

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Thanks CF. It's really nice to be part of winning team, after giving the best for the team in batting or on field. I hope i enjoy as good a winning streak as you had in this season. I think you are out due to hamstring injury for month at least. when are you playign your next match. Lookign forward to your blog update as well.

CF, what are your views of point No3 that i posted in my previous post. Eager to know your views about it.

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I was just in the school team, Adi! Though played many years afterwards in the parks, or climbing over the fences of the school playing fields. Which have all been built on now. Never could bat either.

Regarding fielding positions, with remarkable variable bounce at times in this series in India, why is it so rare to have a fast bowler given a short leg?

Yes, the bounce is variable in India. Today i saw it with my eyes from distance of approx 10-15 metres. Some bouncing only half feet off the pacers as well as spinners.

(1)Indian captains right from club level to international level are more eager to have a short leg or close in fielders for spinners than pacers. That mentality is perhaps carried out as they progress to higher levels.

(2)Secondly, the bounce for pacers even for first 5 overs is maximum at shoulder level if they bang it at good length. for getting more bounce they have to shorten the length and the DBSL or DMW or BSL comes more into equation than short leg. It's very tough to get the ball rising from good length on Indian wickets and thereby get the short leg into play. India do not have anyone apart from Ishant, who has an action and height to get that fielder into play to reasonable probability justification to have short leg.

[Arthur Crabtree]

The cracks meant that batters have been hit on the gloves sometimes. I think you put a short leg in if the ball bounces with the batter pushing forward. With catches not carrying to the slips, it seems an obvious attacking position. Maybe in club cricket, the bowlers aren't quick enough to make it an issue.

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The cracks meant that batters have been hit on the gloves sometimes. I think you put a short leg in if the ball bounces with the batter pushing forward. With catches not carrying to the slips, it seems an obvious attacking position. Maybe in club cricket, the bowlers aren't quick enough to make it an issue.

Agree with the point that club pacers generally hit 120 - 130 or lower than most international pacers. They don't practice keeping the no ball in mind in nets. When most of them bowl in matches, they are cautious about them jump and it affects their rhythm and pace as they come close to delivery stride. Still that is good enough as edges fly over 20 meters at slips. The ball still is quick enough in air, but yes, on Indian pitches it just loses a lot of pace after hitting the surface.

Cracks do play a part. Gloves catch will pop up to short leg . If there is crack on wicket then the pacers have to exploit it with short leg. No doubt about that.

Silly mid. off, silly mid on are gathering trends nowadays as well.

The captain, keeper and bowler should be the ones to decide the most of fielding positions.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Fielders on the drive are positions that have gained cachet recently. On slow low pitches.

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Arthur, just rolling back few posts, was the school cricket format you played in involved hard (season) ball.

I first saw Aussies getting the silly mid on, under Ponting's captaincy i think. I like that fielder. I would like if our club captain tries that trick sometimes in the overs 25- 40/50.

[Arthur Crabtree]

I think there was only hard ball cricket. In England, if you live in the city, cricket has a low profile. All the urban grounds have been sold off. There is a lot of cricket in villages and small towns though. Which is very picturesque. Often with a pub in the ground. it is one of the most charming aspects of the English countryside.

I was a footballer when younger. I played that at weekend for a few years.

[andy]

yup adi i am out for about a month, but luckily our pre-season dosent start until around, March-April time..so i should be fit to lead the boys for a 3rd season

erm to be honest, i would much rather my side did the basicis properly and used the long barrier approach to fielding. Minimises the risk of a mis-field and is a run-saver..i would only advise not using the long barrier if you are 100% sure you can do it, without mis-field. I.E. if the outfield is as smooth as a billiards table! So yeah i prefer the long barrier method.

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Thanks for that info, Arthur. sounds nice. A victory followed by drinks at the pub. Our whole team had gone the beach along with coach once, with beer , even after we had lost.

yup adi i am out for about a month, but luckily our pre-season dosent start until around, March-April time..so i should be fit to lead the boys for a 3rd season

erm to be honest, i would much rather my side did the basicis properly and used the long barrier approach to fielding. Minimises the risk of a mis-field and is a run-saver..i would only advise not using the long barrier if you are 100% sure you can do it, without mis-field. I.E. if the outfield is as smooth as a billiards table! So yeah i prefer the long barrier method.

Thanks for the views.

Long barrier is what i have been using a lot when the opportunity provides to use that technique. Usually, it's better to form the long barrier after you cut the distance by moving to the ball and forming the barrier when it is just about 7-10 metres away. I see that many fielders do not use it even when the batsman is not putting pressure for a double. Misfields chances increases. More importantly, it covers the bumping ball or going between the legs as we see even at international matches. My view is similar. Long barrier is the basics and one should be knowing it and apply it. After thhe basics , come improvisations in fiedling and then depending on the quality of fielder, the outfield as you pointed, the situation a judgement of the technique to be used in fielding can be made.

When there is a batsman who is quick runner and puts pressure on the fielder for a double, the long barrier formation and release will take some extra seconds. So the fielder has to judge the approach , especially in the era we are playing. IMO it is important to be a versatile fielder technically nowadays. I prefer the right foot to form the barrier because thats what i have doing since my early teens.

Also, as you said if the outfield is as smooth as a billiards table then a fielder can give up the long barrier technique and pickup and throw even with one hand. On those outfileds i agree that a good confident fielder can try it. Those at the boundaries should be very good at it, otherwise it's going to cost a boundary instead of single or two.

[Alviro Patterson]

Decent effort all round there Sport Unfortunate to get run out on your return, but a big score is always round the corner.

Surprised to learn about diving being discouraged - can understand the injury risks of diving about on hard and uneven surfaces, along with any cuts/grazes that could get infected. From personal experience (although pitches are generally more softer and greener) diving stops in the field are widely encouraged and applauded. Captains/players get annoyed if a fielder doesn't genuinely go all out to stop a moving ball within range. As Andrew Gale says "You can't always control what happens with bat and ball but you can always control what happens in the field."


Out of interest, what is a long barrier technique in cricket?

[Arthur Crabtree]

Decent effort all round there Sport :clap Unfortunate to get run out on your return, but a big score is always round the corner.

Adi's due a few.

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Decent effort all round there Sport Unfortunate to get run out on your return, but a big score is always round the corner.

Surprised to learn about diving being discouraged - can understand the injury risks of diving about on hard and uneven surfaces, along with any cuts/grazes that could get infected. From personal experience (although pitches are generally more softer and greener) diving stops in the field are widely encouraged and applauded. Captains/players get annoyed if a fielder doesn't genuinely go all out to stop a moving ball within range. As Andrew Gale says "You can't always control what happens with bat and ball but you can always control what happens in the field."


Out of interest, what is a long barrier technique in cricket?

Thanks, Alviro.

Yes, i hope the big score comes and i am looking forward to start knocking 50's once i get enough net sessions in a week. Currently i am batting only once a week in nets which is not good enough practice. I have played the straight defense, drive, flick through mid wicket, sweep, reverse sweep, glide through third man from the three batting sessions in nets. However, i still have to get enough practice about moving out of the crease and lofting the ball over the spinners head, driving through covers off pacers and spinners. So some more nets continuous net session with lesser gap are required.

It is a cultural thing and way the Indian youth are bought up in nets or develop their own mindset towards fielding, batting and bowling. Probably , the mentality is that if you are going to save about 5 runs by diving thrice then why take the risk personally for so fewer runs at so lower level of cricket. Also, to refresh, about 70 members at club, only 10 participate in fielding practice at the most willingly. Out of the 70 club cricketers at our club, there is only one who is diving to save runs. Cricketers who are 10 years lesser than me are providing no competition at fielding. Actually, i had thought that the younger generation will put pressure on me at toughest of techniques in fielding. Sadly, there is none to put me under pressure. There are good catchers in our side but from my view point they are uni dimensional. Just like a batsman can only play strokes through the leg side. I hinted to the captain during fall of wicket that fielding was poor, but he didn't care to make any field changes even on reminding. At one point of time i was thinking that although he positioned me at SL to save singles, he could have made better use of me at midwicket or silly mid off. If the same captain keeps me at SL in the next match then it will tell me a lot about how well or badly he observes the happenings of the match. I don't feel the need to be appreciated about fielding because like a batsman scores good runs, a bowler take enough wickets, a fielders should save enough runs. In that context there is nothing great if i do good fielding. It is an average performance to save 5 runs in 40 overs IMO. if i save 10 runs in 40 overs then i would say it's had a lot of impact on the match, because it's giving the opposition about two overs less.

A agree 100% with Andrew Gale. I had this opinion since years. We can get in bad batting or bowling form because opponents are at times in form with their skills. But a fielder does not has any excuse to get in bad fielding form, unless he is injured.

The long barrier technique is the basic technique of ground fielding. It covers the misfields due to bad bounce in outfield, or simple misfield. It's better formed at 90 degrees. I prefer to cut the ball depending on the distance between the ball and me and the pace at which it is traveling. Hereis one of the pic.

Long Barrier.jpg

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I might buy the season bat this or next week.

CF, Alviro..any good English willow bats that you have come across this season. I am also gathering inputs from other clubmates as well before i finally have a look at shortlisted bats and choose one that suits me.

Handle shape should be strictly round
Avoiding ones with the chopped wood at the back of the bat
It's okay if the English willow bat needs to be knocked (ball or mallet)

[andy]

to be honest mate i just Gray Nicholls!!!! Always have done...

currently i have a powerbow

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to be honest mate i just Gray Nicholls!!!! Always have done...

currently i have a powerbow

Is the balance of the Powerbow good. How many grain lines are there on the face of the bat.