How to bowl off spin

STEP ONE
The middle joints of the index and middle fingers are well spread across the seam. The ball rests
against the third finger but the thumb has little involvement.
STEP TWO

Turning the wrist and the index finger generate the spin on the ball, turning the ball in a clockwise
direction.
Use your first two fingers to give the ball a good "rip" at the point of delivery

. How to bowl a googly

STEP ONE
Hold the ball as if you're about to bowl a normal leg-break.
The top joints of the index and middle fingers should be across the seam, with the ball resting
between a bent third finger and the thumb.
STEP TWO
At the point of release, the palm of your hand should be open upwards, towards the sky, with the
back of your hand facing the batsman.
Your wrist should be 180 degrees to the ground, while the seam of the ball should point towards
fine leg.
Again, it should be your third finger which does most of the work, turning the ball anti-clockwise
on release.
 How to bowl a top spinner

STEP ONE
Hold the ball like a normal leg break - the top joints of the index and middle fingers are across the
seam, with the ball resting between a bent third finger and the thumb.
STEP TWO
For a top spinner, the wrist will be about 90 degrees to the floor and the seam will be pointing to the
batsman in flight.
Like a googly, the back of the hand should be facing the sky when the ball is released.
The ball should be rotating in an anti-clockwise direction with the seam facing the batsman.

How to bowl a flipper

STEP ONE
Hold the ball like a normal leg-break with the top joints of the index and middle fingers are across
the seam.
STEP TWO
Unlike the leg-break and googly, it's the thumb that does most of the work. Imagine you're clicking
your fingers when you release the ball.
The ball should be rotating in a clockwise direction with the seam facing the batsman.
 How to bowl a doosra

It looks very similar to a normal off-break, but rather than spin towards the bat, it goes
the other way like a leg-break.
The doosra is bowled from the back of the hand with a lot of top-spin, but the wrist still moves in a
clockwise direction

6 Simple,Fool-proof Batting tips!.

• 1st Batting Tip – Keep your eyes level, it’s been shown that having your eyes level helps
speed up your reaction time, as it makes it easier for the brain to process the incoming
information.
• 2nd Batting Tip – Your first movement should be from the shoulders towards the line of the
ball. The rest of your body will follow naturally and will help ensure you get correctly inline
with the ball.
• 3rd Batting Tip – Play the delivery based on its length, if it’s short; even if it’s in line with
the wickets it should be ‘tonked away’ (Andy Flintoff style) to the boundary. The same
principle applies with full deliveries and half volleys.
• 4th Batting Tip – One of the most important things is to watch the ball from bowlers hand in
run up all the way to the bat. By watching the ball in the bowler’s hand you can see what the
bowler may be trying to do with the ball. Try to identify which is the shiny side or rough
side, so you can determine which way they may be trying to swing the ball. The same
applies with spinners; but also make sure you closely watch the wrist movement to
determine the type and direction of spin.
• 5th Batting Tip – When batting against spinners, try doing an initial ‘forward press’, making
an initial half-step on to the front foot as the bowler bowls. This will give you good base to
play from and help give you quicker feet.
• 6th Batting Tip – It is essential to maintain a solid base when batting and to be in a solid
position when you play the ball. If you watch for example Brain Lara play a cover drive, he
has a solid base from which he plays the stroke, he is perfectly balanced.

How to play the square cut

To play the square cut start from your normal batting stance, stay nice and relaxed, with your head
still and your eyes as level as possible.
 • As the bowler is about to bowl take your backswing, and as you see the delivery is going to
be suitable for a square cut move your back foot, back and across towards the off stump.
• Move your weight onto your back foot and establish your base of support over it. Bring your
bat down and across the line of the ball towards the off side, increasing your bat speed into
contact, from a high position to lower one. As you hit the ball ‘roll your wrists’ over the ball
to keep it down.
• Follow through the shot naturally and stay relaxed and balanced.

How to play the Backfoot drive

• Take your normal batting stance with your eyes level and remember to always stay relaxed
to help you react quicker to the delivery. Once you’ve judged that the ball/delivery is
suitable for a back foot drive, take your backswing and step backwards simultaneously.
• You should now have an established and well balanced base with your weight fairly evenly
distributed over both feet, ideally it should be slightly forward on the front foot.
• Initiate your down swing ensuring that you bring your bat down straight (remember the drill
with the two stumps?) and move your front leg backwards at the same time.
• Increase your bat speed into contact with the ball and swing it down and through the line of
the delivery, keeping your elbow high and keeping control of the bat with your top hand. Try
to follow through naturally, stay relaxed and well balanced at all times during the shot. Don’t
try to hit the ball too hard, use the pace of the delivery to maximise the shots power.

How to play the Cover Drive!

• Watch the ball out of the hand all the way onto the bat
• Lead with your front shoulder into the shot
• Get your foot to the pitch of the ball
• Keep you elbow high and bat straight
• Hit the ball along the ground
• Keep a solid base of support
• Follow through naturally

How to play the pull shot!

The pull shot is played with a crossed bat and is an aggressive back footed shot. It should be played
to a ball which has been pitched short, on or outside leg stump and will pass over the top of the
wickets.
To play the shot, start in your normal batting stance as you would any delivery and play the shot in
response to the appropriate delivery, e.g. short and on/outside leg stump.
Take your backswing and step back and across towards your off stump with your back foot and
establish this as your base of support. Bring your front foot backwards naturally, ideally keeping it
on the ground if possible to help your balance.
Bring the bat down and across the line of the ball, increasing the bat speed into contact with the
ball, hit the ball in front of you body (your body needs to be behind the line of the delivery). You
are aiming to hit the ball between mid-on and fine leg, between any fielders who may be in the area.
‘Roll your wrist’ over the ball as you contact it, so that it goes straight to ground; the face of the bat
should end up pointing down to the ground. You can also bring the bat down from a high position
and finish lower; this will also keep the ball down. Finish the shot with a natural follow through,
staying relaxed and balanced.

6 ways to boost Cricket Confidence!

1. Make deposits in your confidence bank

Write down your strengths (technical, tactical, physical, mental and skills). Stick this list
somewhere it can be seen and add to them where possible. This will remind you of the positives of
your game.
2. Use mentally tough and confident role models
Look at people who you admire within and out of cricket. What makes them so confident? Ask
yourself how you can reflect their actions in your own game.
3. Take a reality check
Focus on the positive things you got from practice or matches even if the overall result was not
good. Think about why things have not gone well and what you can do to change it.
4. Keeping a diary of training
Write down all the technical, mental and physical work you do. If you refer to it regularly you can
see what is going on and how you are improving. Your memory is always less reliable than you
think.
5. Recall your good performances
As soon as you achieve something write it down. Include how it felt to succeed. Regularly recall
these performances in your mind like a video. It is important that they recall the feelings associated
with that performance because that will make it more likely to happen again.
6. Think through skills and situations
This aids familiarity and builds confidence because you have met such issues and situations before.
Take the time to plan out ideas in your head and think through solutions to problems. It helps to
have a good support system to bounce ideas off.

Fielding tips!
The Throwing Grip
Hold the ball across the seam, as this helps generate more back spin on the ball as it travels through
the air so that it carries further.
The Throw
 • Take a big stride and establish a strong side-on throwing base, with your lead foot pointing
at your target and the back foot at 90 degrees to it. Stay relaxed with your knees bent.
• Bring your throwing arm back, point with your front arm at or slightly above your target.
• Keep throwing elbow above shoulder height.
• As you throw bring your non-throwing arm in towards your body and rotate/push your hips
and shoulders through towards your target.
• Your throwing arm should come through the line of your target as you release the ball.
• As you throw you should feel a slight weight transfer from the back foot to the front foot,
don’t forget to allow your body to follow through naturally once you’ve released the ball.
Aim to always throw the ball above the stumps, ideally to the wicket keeper or bowler on the full
(with out bouncing) or with one bounce a few meters in front of the stumps, so that it bounces up
above them.
To practice throwing is simply a case of repetitive practice of throwing at the wicket keeper or at a
stump or set of stumps (if you’re practicing going for direct hits run out chances). Practice at
different ranges and positions on the field.
Also practice under pressure situations. You could have batsmen running between the wickets and
you have to field the ball and try to run them out by getting the throw in accurately to the keeper
before they complete the run(s). Practicing under pressure will help you a lot when it comes to
having to perform in matches, where stopping a single or a two could make the difference between
winning and losing.