In England, I was bought up being told that you should not hit against the spin.

You can't hit with control and the bowler will end up getting your wicket, they used to tell me.

Every time I hit an off spinner for 4 between mid off and extra cover I was told it was risky.

But I reckon that in all my batting career scored 2000 runs with that one shot.

I  got out only once (bowled by Durham's off Spinner Jason Searle).

Hit into the spin, not with the spin

Later, when I worked with England, Duncan Fletcher talked about and coached hitting into the spin.

The ball spinning into the stumps can be met by the full face of the bat when you hit through the off side because more of the ball and more of the bat will come into contact with each other.

 This means more power and - crucially - more control.

Contrast that to hitting a ball that is moving away from the stumps into the off side (hitting with the spin).

The bat face has to catch up with the ball rather than the ball coming to meet the bat.

Less of the bat face and less of the ball come into contact with each other. This means less power and less control.

I am not suggesting that hitting with the spin is risky. Players who hit with the spin well generally get close to the ball which enables them to control the shot.

All I am saying is that a greater understanding of the principles of hitting spin will help players to develop their scoring options against spin bowlers.

So the next time you hear a coach telling a player off for hitting against the spin, bring up the principle of hitting into the spin. Have a constructive debate as this is the way that understanding is developed and limiting beliefs are challenged.

Shots to play

When the ball is spinning into the stumps you can hit with the spin by playing;

• Back foot drive (back foot on leg stump) through the off side
• Front foot drive between mid off and extra cover
• Using feet and hitting up and over mid off and extra cover (often described as hitting into out, yet we now know it is hitting into the spin)

When the ball is spinning away from the stumps you can hit with the spin by playing;

• Sweep along the ground to deep square leg
• Use of feet to hit over mid on
• Hitting leg stump half volley through mid-wicket (See Sachin Tendulkar, Younis Khan, Rahul Dravid or Jonathan Trott)
• Hitting back foot either side of mid wicket  (See Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid) 

With Mark Garaway away in the West Indies, cocktail in hand, it’s over to Burners and David Hinchliffe to run the ship.

The show discusses how not to use PitchVision (as this video shows) and defining roles for players with a wide skill set. Irfan Sait of the KIOC Academy in Bangalore comes on the phone to talk about what it takes to become a pro.

Your questions are also covered on bowling to tail-enders and how to captain an inexperienced side.

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