Cricket | Cricket coaching, fitness and tips

How to bat like Chris Gayle

Regular contributor Ben Baruch brings another insight on batting. West Indian opener Chris Gayle gets the examination this time around.

What is perfect cricket practice?

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We love getting questions on miCricketCoach. It helps us be more specific about what you want. Recently friend of the site Dhruv emailed in this one:

"I would like to know exactly what makes up the 'perfect practice' part in the phrase 'perfect practice makes for perfection'?"

'The Map' part 4: How to stay focused on playing the game

There is a large mental side to cricket and it is often our thinking that gets us out or stops us bowling well.

There are a lot of distractions going on through the course of a game: In the middle, waiting to bat, waiting to field, taking lunch, tea or a drinks break. What is required is a set of routines or processes you can employ, almost without thinking, that will allow you more time and ‘brain space’ to focus on playing the game as well as possible.

Play the high percentage shots

13 year old Ben Baruch is back for another in depth look at batting strategy. This time he examines what we mean when we say 'Play the high percentage shots'.

What are high percentage shots?

If the ball goes in the air, does that make it a low percentage shot? Are shots the same percentage with different bowling or batting?

This will help you decide what shots are the safest early on.

Are you destroying your technique with fielding drills?

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Fielding drills can cause injury and hold back improvements in technique if players are not given enough rest. It's rest times that can make or break a good fielding drill session.

It's a delicate balance. Too much rest and waiting between drills can quickly make the activity boring. On the other hand, too little rest leads to fatigue building up and sloppy technique creeping in.

'The Map' part 3: What should I do the night before a game?

Parts 1 and 2 of this series dealt with Practice Routines and Non-Practice Training Routines that a player should develop as part of a ‘Map for Cricket Success’.

This article will deal with your ‘Game Eve Routines’.

How to be a good coaching student

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There is a lot of advice to coaches about how to be better at coaching. One thing that is rarely talked about is how you can be a better student to your coach and how this can help your game.

Good coaches are hard to find.

If you are a young player with a coach at your club you are lucky if you find one who can develop you. It's not that these coaches are unwilling or unable. It's just most are part time volunteers with good intentions but incomplete knowledge.

'Transfer' is the key to good cricket fitness training

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When I started this site in 2006 I thought the words 'cricket fitness' meant roughly the same thing to everyone. How wrong I was.

Play to your spin bowling limits

Today's article is a guest post from Dr Paul Botha from Spininfo: All you need to know about the art and science of spin bowling.

The spin bowler walks a lonely road. 

He never is part of the seam attack who clamour over the pros and cons of the new ball. They sit at the end of a long day’s play with their feet up in the dressing room claiming all the accolades for bowling the opposition out cheaply. 

Reading the signs: How to decide whether to bat or bowl when you win the toss

WG Grace, it's famously said, used to call "the lady" when tossing up. Seeing as coins of Victorian times had Her Majesty Queen Victoria on one side and Lady Britannia on the other, he was a certain winner.

True or not, the good Doctor always knew what to do once he had won the toss and that was to bat. The exception being when he though conditions favoured the bowling. The he would think about it and still bat.