Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer used a marble slab to recreate a fast, bouncy wicket for the 2nd Test against England.

As a coaching aid it wasnt the most successful ploy ever.

Is there anything we can learn from it at a lower level?

1. Reactions are vital even for club cricketers who dont face many bouncers, but you cant improve your reactions over a couple of training sessions.
2. In fact, the technique does work over a longer period. How do I know? In my back garden as a kid we had a concrete slab. It ended up halfway down our makeshift garden wicket and to this day, playing a bouncer is no problem for me.
3. Using innovative ways to improve could fail. However, the point is to keep trying. The next idea might give you the edge.
4. Bob Woolmer is a great coach and if you want to improve you could do a lot worse than buying his excellent DVD: Cricket - The Bob Woolmer Way.