Last night at net practice, one of my team was sent in to bat. In one hand was his bat, and in the other hand was a bunch of cones. I had to ask what he was up to.

We have all heard good old coaching advice: Wait for the bad ball and put it away. But there is another way.

At training it’s easy to “just bowl” for long periods. This is useful for batsmen, but not good for you as a bowler.

Imagine batting against a paceman who can get the ball up to 150kph. No one is comfortable, not even the best.

If you get it wrong at that speed, it’s going to hurt.

Has it been a while since you got to nets? If so, this article for you.

 Use this drill to combine low tech mats and smart nets to improve your batting against spin. Footwork is essential, this drill forces fast feet.

The season is fast approaching.

Cheteshwar Pujara is a throwback, but he proves beyond doubt that cricket is about a relentless thrust towards doing the basics at a world-class level.

There are two types of cricketers: rivers and frozen rope. Which are you?

Middle - or centre wicket - practice is a powerful, realistic way to train to improve your game. Now we can make it even better.