What makes a great cricket captain?
Everyone knows a good captain, but not everyone knows how they became one. That's the mystery of leadership. However, many have studied the phenomenon of great leaders and we as cricketers can tap that knowledge.
In short, understanding the principles behind leadership will help you to become a better captain or coach.
Fielding Drills: Attackers vs. Defenders
Purpose: To add a pressure element to stopping and picking up the ball
Description: The attackers aim is to get the ball over the goal line by passing it to each other along the ground. The defenders must intercept the ball only moving sideways or backwards. If the attacking team fumble the ball or the ball is intercepted they must return to the start line.
Do you make these mistakes as captain?
Who was the best captain you ever played under? Hopefully you learned a lot from them. If you didn't you might still be making these mistakes:
- Ignoring advice. Advice is a funny thing. There is always plenty around when the team is doing well, but when you are getting soundly thrashed the captain is on his own. Despite this a good captain always takes on as much advice as he can (even if he has to seek it out). Everyone has an opinion and often it's different from your own so consider everything.
How a low fat diet means lower cricket performance
Fat, we have all been taught, is the enemy to health and sport performance. We must lower our fat intake to be healthy. But what if fat has had a bad rap? Can we use the nutrient to improve our cricket?
Lets start with the normally accepted view of fat in the modern diet. You could well think the same, after all we have all be taught it from an early age.
Precison Cricket Nutrition
8 Ways for fast bowlers to get more stamina and less belly fat
Mohammed emailed me recently with a question.
"I'm fast bowler, however my stamina is very low. After 3 or 4 overs I get tired quickly. Can you please tell me the exercises and nutrition that I should take in order to improve my stamina and reduce my belly?"
This is a common question, especially with bowlers. Not having the capacity to bowl at your best must be frustrating. It certainly is for the rest of the team.
What is fast bowling stamina? '
Fielding Drills: Fielding circle
Purpose: Practicing stops, pickup, shy and backing up.
Description: An even number of players jog in a circle around a stump with a coach (c) in the middle. The coach rolls/hits the ball out to a fielder who picks up and shys and the stump. The throw is backed up by the opposite fielder and returned to the coach.
How to avoid and recover from a hamstring pull in cricket
"It is beyond belief to see players miss months with a hamstring pull. That is appalling and alarming. There is either gross negligence, incompetence or a completely flawed rehab and training methodology."
Vern Gambetta's views on hamstring injuries in baseball can just as easily be applied to club cricket. Here is how you can reduce your chance of those missed weeks and recover from them effectively.
Jeremy Snape Twenty20 World Cup Diary
Jeremy Snape (top cricketer and friend of the site) has decided to keep a diary of his experiences at the World Twenty20.
The interesting part is that he will be doing it from his perspective as a psychologist as well as a cricketer. That means a greater insight into the preparation of a high performance cricket team.
Fielding Drills: In goal diving
Purpose: To practice diving and stopping the ball on the boundary
