How to bounce back from failure
We have all had games we want to forget. Out for a duck, smashed all over the park and looking like the village idiot in the field.
Failure is inevitable because perfection is impossible in cricket.
If Bradman couldn't be perfect how can you be?
What you can do is bounce back from your failures as quickly as possible, even if it seems like you will never get another run or wicket, there is always a way out given the right approach.
- Don't try to be perfect. Mistakes are the way we learn. Be aware that they will come and set some realistic, achievable cricket goals instead.
- Analyse at the right time. The time to work on technique and fitness is during training, not games. Go to each practice with an aim in mind and leave those aims behind when you leave for the game.
- Write down the positives. It's easy to analyse failure, but that can get negative. Note down at least 5 things you did right too and review your notes regularly.
- Relax, refocus. Try and put failures into perspective. A dropped catch or even a bad summer is not life changing, just a pain. Pick yourself up, relax and refocus on the next ball, game or season. You may still be on target to reach your goals despite failures.
- Have a word with yourself. Use the stop technique to clear out any negative mindset during games. In between cricket matches take some time to visualise success. It sounds a bit wishy-washy but it's proven to work.
In many ways, your ability to put failure behind you is the mark of a highly successful player.
You may be in the face of a terrible run of form or results and it's your ability to keep smiling, remembering your successes and keep trying that makes you stand out from the crowd.
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Comments
i am tense when iam on batting or on bowling when i go with school team mates to with another school or when i play with my friends i have full confidece and i have a bigger scorew of myself on the other hand when iplayed from my school in other place to a new school i am tence and i bowled or cath on 8 or 9 ball i know how i face these balls so tell me please something
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I'm not really sure what you mean. Can you rephrase your question?
Hi,whenever i bowl this season i am constantly becoming frustrated at the slightest fielding error or if i bowl a bad ball i want to try and remain calm but it seems too hard. I also find it hard to recover if i am hit for a few boundaries and the afternoon goes pear shaped from there on in.
No one likes getting hit for boundaries. Everytime I get hit for one, I try twice as hard and make sure it doesn't happen again. I try not to show the batsman get the better of me. They say that a great player can be defined by how they respond to failure.
Patrick said...."Everytime I get hit for one (boundry), I try twice as hard and make sure it doesn't happen again"......that's where the problem is Patrick, you should focus on every ball you bowl not just after a bad one. If you cut out the bad balls then you don't have to beat yourself up about not trying hard enough.
I try to focus on every ball, sometimes this doesn't happen which I'm sure is the case for everyone. It could be due to fatigue, pressure, injury, etc. If I get hit for a boundary I don't beat myself up about it because there's always a reason why it happens and plus it can aid in getting the batsman out by 'setting them up' based on the ball that you just bowled. I know Shane Warne would agree with me there cause he used this tactic to perfection.
The point is if I get for a boundary I make sure that I bounce back the next ball because the next ball is generally going to give you a greater chance of getting them out. Usually the ball is going to be an effort ball because it will more than likely 'catch them out' and is the 'wicket ball'.