There are two kinds of club cricketers, traditionalists and innovators. In my view, those who innovate are doing far more to improve their cricket than the ones who stick with tradition.

Look at the praise heaped on modern innovative coaches like Peter Moores and the late Bob Woolmer. The ability to innovate is seen as a sign of a success coach at the top level.

Quite simply, those who question the status quo and come up with new ways to do things are more likely to succeed.

There is no reason why this can't apply to club cricket too.

Yet for some reason the traditionalists far outweigh the innovators. Most players and committee men stick to what is known and trusted and scoff away new ideas. Why is this?

Is your fear holding you back?

I can't prove this, but I feel fear is a big factor in those who stick with tradition. It's easier to do what has always been done than to risk failing by trying something new.

Tradition is important, but it can't exist for it's own sake. That's why I always advocate players should question everything.

The answer you get may be the one that tradition dictates, but many answers won't be:

• Is our warm up effective?
• Do we need to strength train?
• Does the junior man always have to go in at short leg?
• Do we need mental training as well as nets?

Tradition says one thing, experience and science says another in all these cases.

You only have to look back at what was considered acceptable 20 years ago to now to see how the game can change.

Ultimately I feel the question should not be “how have we always done things?” but “how can we improve?”

Whether the answer is through a traditional approach or one of new ground is up to you, but I'm willing to bet the latter will bring you more success if you try it.

What innovations would you like to try and what's holding you back?