Revealed: The Secret of How to Bowl Fast
Research into fast bowling has revealed two simple changes to your action goes 50% of the way to top bowling speed.
Forget about "hip drive", "chest drive" and "pulling your non-bowling arm in": It's all about the feet and legs at the crease. This simple knowledge, which so far has been ignored by coaches, can be turned to your advantage.
You see, coaches sometimes forget that our world is ruled by the laws of physics. As a result, we have simply guessed why some bowlers are quicker than others without any physics to back up their assertions. It becomes pot luck if a bowler can deliver at pace. This situation is unique to cricket: no other sport has such a lack of understanding of the physical principles which govern their discipline.
Until now.
Because I'm going to show you the results of my extensive research into the physics of throwing and the anatomy of the human body. Fast bowling should be surprisingly simple and can be taught to anyone who has the dedication to stick at it.
What has physics got to do with fast bowling?
There are three concepts that govern fast bowling. Good technique allows you to successfully perform all three in the correct order. The good news is that good technique is very easy to understand.
- The generation of 'kinetic energy' in the run-up. In a human body, kinetic energy (think of it as movement energy) arises from the contraction or shortening of muscles. These muscles are fuelled by chemical energy stored in the body.
- The stretching of elastic tissue prior to delivery. Like an elastic band, the muscles store 'elastic' potential energy. This stored energy allows the muscles to return explosively to their original length. Correct technique will allow us to use these stretched tissues to speed up our bowling
- The efficient transfer of energy to the ball. An efficient bowler uses the kinetic energy generated from his run-up and transfers it to the ball by using correct technique. This is ultimately an issue of controlling the energy to take it where it is wanted; in other words, the ball.
These points form the backbone of good bowling: We must run in to create kinetic energy, move our body in such a way as to put our muscles on stretch and then allow that kinetic energy to be transferred from our legs to the ball. There are two things to note about these points:
- Each leads naturally onto the next.
- Poor execution of one will dramatically affect your ability to perform the next.
For example, many club bowlers run in fast but cannot transfer the kinetic energy they have generated to the ball. Many club bowlers also fail to put their muscles on stretch. This means they are not bowling as fast as they could.
Use your legs to bowl faster
What gels the three elements together to make the complete product is a combination of technique, power and flexibility. Although equally important, today we will look at two simple technical points.
After the bound, the back leg should land and bend at the knee. This allows you to conserve your run-in energy through the back-leg landing. Imagine that the cricket field is a scale; your back foot landing should make the reading on the scale as small as possible. It looks like this:
On the other hand, the front leg must be as straight as possible. This action stops a huge proportion of the straight line speed of the bowler, but by the 'conservation of energy', this kinetic energy is transferred to the upper body.That looks something like this:
'Conservation of energy' is simply the idea that energy will stay constant. For example when two balls hit each, energy is transferred from one ball to the other, but the total energy of both the balls stays constant. As a fast bowler you are keeping your front leg straight to transfer the energy from your legs to your upper body (and eventually the ball).
By doing this with your legs, you set yourself up to bowl ridiculously fast.
We are not going to "push off" our back leg onto the front leg. The reason is that pushing off requires you to register that you’ve pushed off. By the time your brain has told you that you’ve pushed off, it’s already too late: you’ve lost your run-in energy.
All we want to do on back foot landing is to allow our energy to keep on travelling towards the batsman until our front foot lands. We then want to decelerate as rapidly as possible, which is achieved by the braced front leg.
Want proof?
Watch a long jumper. They don’t push off the board; they just allow their run-in energy to propel themselves through the air.
By positioning your legs in this way you won't want to follow through much at all. If you feel like you have to follow through right down the pitch, it is clear that you are not transferring run-in energy to your upper body very well. In other words, you need to practise keeping your front leg straighter.
While much of bowling is an art, there is definitely a very important place for science in cricket. I hope that with time, we will all be able to improve the quality of the cricket we play by accepting a little bit of physics into our lives.
This article was a guest post from Tom Matcham, Mathematics student at Imperial College, London with a keen interest in Biomechanics and Sports Science.
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Comments
Hmm, I am not very convinced by some of the stuff the author in this article talks about.
He talks about pace being a combination of technique, power and flexibility. I would agree with this. We forgot about the flexibility part when we were talking about the fast bowling equation, so this is another thing to add to make it better. The flexibility I imagine has got to do with this notion of a stretch reflex I have read about.
In regards to the bent back foot, I read a paper quite recently that went to say you should have a braced back foot. Have a look below:
http://www.quintic.com/research/The%20Fast%20Medium%20Bowler.pdf
It basically says quite the opposite to what this chap is writing on the back foot landing
However, a braced front foot is essential, that part is correct.
So Tom does that mean all pace bowlers must keep their front foot pointing down the wicket when delivering the ball?
Great article Tom, provides a lot of food for thought. Trying to retain/utilise the energy of the run up seems an intuitively attractive idea.
Thanks to everyone for their comments. In answer to the questions and comments:
Aleksandar, the link is broken, but if what you're saying is true, I don't agree. Bending the back leg allows you to keep on travelling at pretty much the same speed as when you were running in. With a straight back leg, there is a small risk of decceleration upon landing. And besides, what more evidence do you need than that all the quickest bowlers in the world do it? There's a video on youtube from the 70's about the fastest bowlers in the world. Watch the slow motion footage of Jeff Thomson and you'll see the quickest bowler of all time bending his back leg!
Radomir, I would strongly advise your front foot to point straight down the wicket. If it points at any other angle, there going to be a lot of force going through your ankle in a compromising position. Basically, if you don't do it, ankle and knee problems may ensue.
I hope the link works now.
http://www.quintic.com/research/The Fast Medium Bowler.pdf
It goes on to say that you lose 25% of your momentum if your back leg collapses.
If you still cannot get it, go to Google.com, type in "the fast medium bowler" and click on the pdf file with the name The Fast-Medium Bowler. Its the third link from the top.
http://www.google.com.au/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3...
Alek, I have a few problems with the section you're referring to. I agree with him that you want to get off back foot landing as quickly as possible, but how does keeping your leg straight help that?
Also he discusses bowlers who run in at an angle, which is a silly thing to do anyway. Thier back leg might collapse more than other bowlers, but only becuase they fall away at the crease to make up for thier angled run in. If they didn't run in at an angle, thier back leg wouldn't 'collapse' but would just bend, with thier momentum travelling straight towards the target. THe issue is not the leg collapsing, but the stupid run-up. In other words, falling away is the effect of the cause.
Anyway, I don't agree this whole idea of the back leg collapsing. It doesn't collapse, it bends to allow your momentum to continue travelling forward. He doesn't help his case by having all his photos taken at bad angles. Not one photo is taken behind the bowler's arm, only one photo shows a bowler who probably runs in at an angle, which would account for his weight falling off to the side. Also, he then goes on to show other bowlers performing good mechanics with BENT BACK LEGS!!!
He's really missed the point with the bent back leg. He's treats a bent back leg like a cause of loss of momentum when in reality its the other things that bowlers do wrong (stride too high, run in at an angle) that cause it.
Anyway, none of this matters. Why? Becuase ALL THE FASTEST BOWLERS EVER 'COLLAPSE' THEIR BACK LEGS! You can't argue with the guys who play the game and create incredible ball velocity. Fact of the matter is, the good bowlers disagree with him, isn't that the most important thing?
It says that 25% of the bowlers 'suffered' from collapsed back legs, it says so on the opening page, not that a collapsed leg will lose 25% of the momentum
Well Tom, the question is, if these quickies didn't have a collapsed or bent back leg, how much more pace could they have extracted? But if we look at the front leg, any bend in the front leg will result in a leak of energy. I don't think its too far a fetch to suggest the same could apply to the back leg. A bend in the back leg could also involve a leak of energy/momentum, as the report seems to suggests.
Either way, this stuff needs to be put in practice and tested to see if it makes a difference to bowling speed.
Thanks for the correction Blake, you are half right. The 25% does refer to the prevalence among bowlers, but it also says that a collapsed back leg absorbs momentum.
3) Back Foot Collapse: (Unstable base! – Absorbs Momentum! 25%)
Alek, I think you're missing the point: the front leg has a precise job: to stop the linear velocity of the bowler. We want the back leg to allow momentum to continue moving forward until the front foot lands. This is best achieved when the back leg is bent.
If keeping a straight back leg was the way forward then I'm sure there would be a rapid bowler doing it. The fact of the matter is, there isn't one.
Anyway, the amount the back leg bends is insignificant when compared to the other points I want to discuss. It's a point which is completely missed out by every coach I have ever read, including the article that you link. I also think it attributes for 40% of bowling speed. Without doing what I'm going to say, you will never be able to bowl fast.
And the beauty is that it's so unbelievably simple. I have full faith that it's going to be a 'why didn't I think of that?' moment.
Tom, since we are talking about feet position, maybe you can help me out with something else.
For a side on bowler, the back leg lands parallel to the back foot line. Now I am interested to see what is the correct position for the front foot to land. For a side on bowler, the front foot will be open compared to the back foot.
Have a look at my crude diagram below.
http://i900.photobucket.com/albums/ac210/Aleksandarcricket/sideonbowlerf...
Should the front foot land in Position 1,2 or 3? Which one of these feet positions is the bio-mechanically correct one to avoid injury?
http://i900.photobucket.com/albums/ac210/Aleksandarcricket/sideonbowlerf...
Aleksandar there is some kind of bug in our comment software that is stopping the whole link being automatically picked up. It should work if you use the
Tom, in response to your previous post, you are ignoring one important detail. If the back leg, as you say, is supposed to allow momentum, then it also should transfer the full momentum onto the front leg. However, if as the report suggests, a bent bent back leg releases momentum, well then your theory becomes unstuck.
Someone like Alan Donald had a very slight bend in the back leg compared to some of the other guys shown in the report, so his back leg is closer towards being braced than the other guys, which is what may be working for him.
As I said, this idea of braced/bent needs to be tested to see if it makes a difference.
But I think the bigger point your trying to make is to transfer the run up into bowling speed. And by what I've read, the run up only contributes maybe 10%-15% or so towards bowling speed.
Alek, it has been tested. It's been tested by all bowlers who have bowled above 95mph. Show me a quick bowler who doesn't bend thier back leg who has bowled that fast.
There's another reason why the back leg has to bend as well, but I'm not willing to say what it is yet. I will say it eventually, but it really is the key to bowling fast so I want to sit on it for a bit.
I'd agree that for an average bowler with poor mechanics that the run in would contribute to about 10-15% of speed. However, the key point is that most bowlers don't utilise the stretch reflex. When you start to bowl with your body, the run-in becomes key to generating ball velocity because the run-in transfers energy to the system. The stretch reflex is 'fuelled' by the kinetic energy you generate.
I'm glad you made this point becuase it highlights where coaches have been going wrong. The fastest bowlers in the world don't throw the ball with muscular contraction: they utilise the stretch reflex becuase it's much more explosive.
Here's an example of Olympic weight lifters. What they don't do is pick the bar up, curl it up to thier shoulders and then press it over thier head. Rather, they generate momentum and then use correct technique to effeciently transfer this momentum up thier body.
I have plenty of evidence to show you that the REAL quick guys bowl this way. When you start transferring momentum instead of trying to generate it, you really start to make use of the full potential of your body.
My theory is nothing new. Other sports realised the importance of the stretch reflex and the generation of kinetic energy in the 70's. All I'm doing is applying the same principles to cricket. You have a choice: if you haven't had results with the very limited advice that other bowling coaches give you, my methods are an alternative. They're backed up by good science and have plenty of evidence to be found in the best bowlers of all time.
So, out of interests sake which front foot position is the safest?
Your front foot should point in the direction your momentum is travelling: straight!
Tom, you're giving a few mixed signals. In your article you talk about forgetting the hip drive, chest drive, pulling your non-bowling arm, etc, and then you talk about the importance of mechanics and technique. So you need to figure out where technique fits into your theory. Don't forget, that in the Olympic weight lifting as you mentioned, the hips play a big role in providing this momemtun.
But lets look at the run up. If as you say , the run up is the main thing, then the faster someone runs in the faster they should be able to bowl. However, with this, you wont be able to stretch and contract your muscles properly at the crease.
I can recall Simon Jones who was basically walking into the crease and bowling at over 90 mph, he wasn't getting anything from his run-up, it was all at the crease. This was before he did his knee at the Gabba.
I can also recall two bowlers who actually bowl with a bent front leg, Dale Steyn and Shaun Tait. Both can bowl over 90mph, Shaun Tait got clocked at 160 kmh in a one dayer aginst New Zealand, which is about 99-100 mph.
SoI don't think there is one be all and and end all way. I think we need
a holsitic approach that incorporates all these bits and pieces.
I don't think my signals are mixed. Technique has a very important role, but I teach technique in a very different way to a traditional bowling coach. To me, technique is more about getting your body in the right positions to allow energy to be transferred through the body to the arm. When utilising the stretch reflex, you don't actively drive your hips using your hip flexors. Instead, I teach that you must get your hips in the right position to allow a stretch reflex to occur. The point I was making about olympic lifters is that muscular contraction cannot lift the ball alone. The transfer of momentum plays a crucial role in the lifts.
I think you've extrapolated from what I have written. You're right: there is an optimal run-up speed. If an individual bowler runs in at a speed higher than his optimum he will find it difficult to get his boy into the right positions, inhibiting his performance of points 2 and 3 above. This speed is different for all bowlers: however, with technical practise, an untrained bowler will be able to increase the velocity with which they can bowl.
Simon Jones is a strong bloke. He, like quite a few bowlers, 'threw' the ball, in much the same way as Ian Pont teaches. However, the use of muscular contraction to bowl has a much greater risk of injury, and in my opinion is not the most effective technique. The stretch reflex, when trained like any quality, produces a much more forceful, sometimes violent shortening of the muscle. However, the risk of injury is minimised becuase the muscles don't contract. Of course people will disagree with me, but the fact of the matter is the fastest bowler who ever lived, Jeff Thomson, did things my way, as does every modern javelin thrower. The Americans used to 'throw' the javelin, and always came up short of the Europeans, who 'pulled' it using very similar principles to what I teach.
You're right about Dale Steyn and Shaun Tait as well. I'm not saying it's not possibly to bowl quickly without a braced front leg, but surely you can understand the reason for doing so. Physics is not guesswork. The body is a mechanical system, and it obeys the laws of physics just like a pendulum or a car. Like you said before, think how quickly they could bowl if they did things correctly!
I'm writing a follow-up article to this one, hopefully that will answer some of your questions. Please continue to ask questions, I am confident that I shall be able to answer all of them.
I don't think my signals are mixed. Technique has a very important role, but I teach technique in a very different way to a traditional bowling coach. To me, technique is more about getting your body in the right positions to allow energy to be transferred through the body to the arm. When utilising the stretch reflex, you don't actively drive your hips using your hip flexors. Instead, I teach that you must get your hips in the right position to allow a stretch reflex to occur. The point I was making about olympic lifters is that muscular contraction cannot lift the ball alone. The transfer of momentum plays a crucial role in the lifts.
I think you've extrapolated from what I have written. You're right: there is an optimal run-up speed. If an individual bowler runs in at a speed higher than his optimum he will find it difficult to get his boy into the right positions, inhibiting his performance of points 2 and 3 above. This speed is different for all bowlers: however, with technical practise, an untrained bowler will be able to increase the velocity with which they can bowl.
Simon Jones is a strong bloke. He, like quite a few bowlers, 'threw' the ball, in much the same way as Ian Pont teaches. However, the use of muscular contraction to bowl has a much greater risk of injury, and in my opinion is not the most effective technique. The stretch reflex, when trained like any quality, produces a much more forceful, sometimes violent shortening of the muscle. However, the risk of injury is minimised becuase the muscles don't contract. Of course people will disagree with me, but the fact of the matter is the fastest bowler who ever lived, Jeff Thomson, did things my way, as does every modern javelin thrower. The Americans used to 'throw' the javelin, and always came up short of the Europeans, who 'pulled' it using very similar principles to what I teach.
You're right about Dale Steyn and Shaun Tait as well. I'm not saying it's not possibly to bowl quickly without a braced front leg, but surely you can understand the reason for doing so. Physics is not guesswork. The body is a mechanical system, and it obeys the laws of physics just like a pendulum or a car. Like you said before, think how quickly they could bowl if they did things correctly!
I'm writing a follow-up article to this one, hopefully that will answer some of your questions. Please continue to ask questions, I am confident that I shall be able to answer all of them.
Just had a look at Shuan Tait, his front leg's hardly bent at all!
Tom have a look at the photo of Shaun Tait below. Apart from the photo, the way you can tell he bends his front knee is from his low bowling position at delivery. He gives it a fair bend.
http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200704/r137554_468125.jpg
I can recall seeing a photo of Alan Donald a while of ago where his back leg was braced, I am going to try to see if I can find it.
Let’s focus on the stretch reflex for now. Once your back foot and front foot land and your arms are stretched, that is your bowling arm is fully stretched around about shoulder level or above and your front arm is stretched forward, what happens next in your theory? We have just finished the stretch part, what's next? Since you don't advocate muscle contractions, what happens from here?
P.S What really would be a help if you had any info on the question I posted above regarding front foot landing for a side on bowler in terms of my diagram?
http://i900.photobucket.com/albums/ac210/Aleksandarcricket/sideonbowlerf...
What happens next is that you bowl! The fuel for the system is your run-in energy, if you use it properly you'll feel your arm being hurled over extremely quickly. This is not a voluntary contraction: the motor unit does all the work for you. I'm going to write about this in the future (as I said above, the feet is about 50% of the story) I don't want to write it all in a comment and then write an article about it. This article was simply a taster for what is to come.
It's a good picture of Shaun Tait. Obviously it doesn't impact upon his bowling much so I probably wouldn't change it. Remember, as a coach, my job is to get people bowling fast and accurately. Shaun Tait bowls fast, so why would I change it? The only reason that I can think of is if his action was causing him injuries. My methods and systematic and backed up by science: they provide a framework to coach around, but you have to use your head to see where you can apply them. I would still stand by my belief that I could get anyone bowling faster using them however.
With regards to your diagram, I wouldn't put my foot in any of them! A simple guide is that your feet should be landing about shoulder width apart. You should feel comfortable and balanced. There are quite a few variables to consider such as the width of the hips etc so I could never give you an answer from the diagram. What do you want to use it for?
Well basically its for my own action. I am trying to get everything lined up, mainly because I have a nagging lower back problem. My hips and shoulders are in line as I deliver the ball, but I still have the problem. So feet alignment may be letting me down. From what I have read, your front foot shouldn't be closer to the leg side than the back foot, so my inkling is that either position 1 and 2 would be most appropriate, so that you are not closing off the hips.
The Shaun Tait and Dale Steyn example basically shows that you can still be a quickie with a braced front leg. The reason why I pointed that out is because with a braced front leg your knee takes a lot of force so knee injury is a high risk factor. And knee injuries aren't much fun. I'm trying to practice having a braced front leg but I can feel pain in my knees when I do it. And I do a lot of gym work on my legs, so I probably have to do even more work on my quads and hamstring to support the braced front leg. Obviously these guys are generating pace from somewhere else, which goes to show we haven't unlocked the complete picture of fast bowling.
However, the braced front knee is a big factor, I am not trying to indicate the other way.
Tom, your theory is interesting, there are things I have a few issues with, but I guess the more information there is, the better.
All my lower back pain has disappeared since I started doing a proper conditioning program. I suggest Ross Enamait as the first place to look.
knee Injuries may be a bit of an issue, but I don't think your front leg can ever be completely straight anyway. Your body is designed to withstand high impact movements such as running and jumping, so with a good conditioning program I think knee problems are only a minor issue. Shoulder problems are much more likely with bowlers who don't bowl properly.
With the guys you're referring to, there is still quite a bit of bracing occurring even if their front leg isn't dead straight. They're getting the rest of thier pace from their body, i.e. they're generating it with muscular contraction. There's no big secret to it. I would argue that I have compeleted the big picture. In my opinion, you can bowl like Ian Pont says and Shaun Tait and Simon Jones did, or you can bowl my way like Brett Lee and Jeff Thomson. Personally, I think my way produces quicker bowlers with less training, but again the choice is yours.
If you still have any questions, please email me at gffc@hotmail.co.uk. I have full faith in my work, so I'm ready for any questions you have.
Hey tom great article..and i do not know why but without even trying it your facts make sense to me.I am a young fast bowler myself so i am going to try this and let you know if i feel any difference or more pace in my bowling.I have a question hope you would answer.
I am almost 20 years old and bowl at pretty decent pace i am right handed..But after reading and doing research i found a problem in my bowling action and as people say if you diagnose the cause the solution is half done.When i reach the bowling crease and take a jump after that my front shoulder collapse really fast which makes my front leg bend so much that the fingers of my right hand hit at really low on my left leg below the knee and just about few inches above the ankle, even my finger gets sore at time and i really feel if i avoid the shoulder collapse and bending of leg i would generate real good pace because doing so i still have good pace.But the problem is I really do not know how to avoid collapse of my front shoulder and front leg? By the way my action is kind of like bret lee u can say in a way.its not exactly like him but a bit modeled on him.
I hope you will reply soon.
Thanks.
I agreed that ideally you need a braced front leg and bent back leg but you say to forget chest drive and hip drive. I don't agree with this. You could bowl with a braced front leg and bent back leg but if your hips are lagging behind you and your chest is not driven forward it will be very hard to bowl quick. Even the picture of Brett Lee in your article shows this. His hips and shoulder are parralel with the batting crease and chest is well forward.
Simon, please see my follow up article about the involvement of the Hips in bowling.
Obviously you are from the Pont school of thought, personally I see no evidence that chest drive is an essential part of bowling. I even did some mathematic research on this to demonstrate this point. The fastest bowler of all time, Jeff Thomson had no chest drive whatsoever. Hopefully this is food for thought.
It's great that Tom has researched this whole area and discovered CORRECTLY that the base of the action (legs) is important in transferring energy. In the February 2010 edition of SPIN magazine, you will find an entire article on this with the fabled 'drop step' and 'front foot block' way to bowl fast. which will back up Tom's theories. They show my drill for this and explain how it works.
I just wanted to add that the hips ARE important because it depends on where they point that makes the legs effective. And also we want to ensure the knees close up because this means the hips are lined up correctly on release of the ball.
Finally chest drive is inevitable if this is done because (as in the Brett Lee still) the energy transfers and creates a sideways 'V' shape on release of the ball with the hips set back and the head and front foot forward.
Secondly, arm pull is also relevant as once the legs have driven the top half takes over.
I think where Tom is coming from is that the base is really important for bowling fast - and in this, he is spot on. But you cannot forget about chest drive and arm pull as you cannot stand bolt upright and bowl fast. Finally, Jeff Thomson had a really good chest drive (chest ahead of hips on release) so I am not sure why Tom got that wrong.
All this information is out there already...
Thanks Ian, interesting stuff...
Good to see that people are taking notice, although I doubt my input to the subject will be taken seriously!
Ian, I think the problem is that I haven't written everything that I want to say. It would be silly to stand bolt upright and bowl, I'm not saying that at all.
The reason why I don't write about chest drive and all that sort of stuff is because I am of the belief that your upper body doesn't do that much work. I think chest drive is a REACTION not an action.
Real quick bowling is determined by a stretch as you well know. Muscles driving the chest or pulling the arm simply can't work as fast as a prestretched muscle. As far as I'm concerned, as soon as you get muscles involved your interferring, slowing down the system. We just have differences in opinion.
I would say Jeff Thomson appears to have a great chest drive because his legs are making him predominantly.
Although you say this info is already out there, I would like to point out that I did write this last summer, long before similar information was published in Spin and was researching the subject long before that. I got interested in the subject because I couldn't find any widely available information, so to say it's already out there was not true at the time.
Well javelin drills being used for fast bowling (a la Atul Sharma) and as featured in the article http://www.spincricket.com/2009/05/08/atul-sharma-speaks-exclusively-to-... have been used for more than 5 years (stretch reflex, front foot block and soft drop step) but unless there is some deliberate chest drive a cricket ball will go up rather than down.
The work being done with fast bowlers shows that unless they get into a sideways 'V' shape on release of the ball (front leg braced, hips set back, chest driven forward) they are not transferring energy fully in the ball - as well as it going over the batters head!
The chest drive is a definite action with a base of reaction from the hips, so the top half HAS to do some work Tom otherwise there would be no control over the ball release. Javelin throwers don't have to throw into a line and length, but rather into a huge wide open space. If the top half ''doesn't do that much work'' we would create inaccuracy and inconsistency of the outcome - and ONLY raw speed.
When my ABSAT methods first came about in 2002, they were constantly tweaked to amend the release position so bowlers could both fast AND straight simultaneously. The Fast Bowler's Bible came out in 2005 while much of the work was being finalised and 2006 was the start of the methodology of pace and accuracy that we now see.
There are very, very few coaches who understand this subject and it's great to read that you are aware of the importance of the legs and hips for generating speed. But coaching at the 'sharp' end also requires being able to utilise drills everyone can take on board because the theory of it has to relate to what is actually possible.
Don't dismiss the top half (and I know you are not) because it does do work to create a final position that affects the outcome.
And Tom... much of this stuff is already in my book (2005) with regard to hips drive, legs etc. And it's all based on Javelin drills that are adapted for pace bowling. It's not really a discovery anyone can claim. It's just a fact...
Interesting comments Ian. However, I get the feeling that the chest drive is a follow on reaction of the top half of the body after the non bowling arm is pulled down forcefully. You find that once you pull your non bowling arm down the rest of your upper body follows. It is difficult to consciously integrate pulling your non bolwing arm down and also consciously drive your chest, especially when you are bowling.
I completely agree that the top half has to do some work. It's job is to follow a certain path in space so that the bowl follows a certain path. I agree that all of what you said occurs: the chest does rotate around the hips for most bowlers, but not becuase of a conscious effort to drive the chest forward, it is a consequence of the front foot bracing efficiently. I think it DOES HAPPEN, just not deliberately. Conscious effort is slow.
Here is my view: the job of the upper body is two-fold: stretch reflex (unconscious once correct technqiue is in place) and stabilization of the trajectory of the ball in hand. Why should it do anything more? This way we get pace and accuracy.
You make the point that javelin throwers do not worry about direction, only release angle, yet a lot of javelin throwers exhibit chest drive as well. If driving the chest is so important in getting the ball to land on a given length, then why do javelin thrower's do it as well? It is simply a consequence of the conservation of energy.
I'm pretty sure that if we thought hard enough we could design an experiment to settle this matter for good.
You say this information is in your book yet being perfectly honest, if I had got this information out of your book we wouldn't be having this discussion
You make the point that javelin throwers do not worry about direction, only release angle, yet a lot of javelin throwers exhibit chest drive as well. If driving the chest is so important in getting the ball to land on a given length, then why do javelin thrower's do it as well? It is simply a consequence of the conservation of energy. TOM, HAVING WORKED WITH THE OLYMPIC JAVELIN CHAMPION ANDREAS THORKILDSEN IN 2008 AND HIS COACH ASMUND, I CAN ASSURE YOU JAVELIN THROWERS CONSCIOUSLY DRIVE THEIR CHEST UPWARDS TO ACCENTUATE THE STRETCH REFLEX AND ALSO TO ENSURE THE CORRECT ANGLE OF RELEASE IS CREATED SO THE JAVELIN'S OPTIMUM TRAJECTORY IS CREATED. FAST BOWLERS NEED TO BRING THEIR CHEST DOWNWARDS TO HELP GET THE CRICKET BALL INTO THE CORRECT LENGTH (DOWNWARDS).
I'm pretty sure that if we thought hard enough we could design an experiment to settle this matter for good. TOM IT'S NOT A COMPETITION... WHY CAN'T YOU ACCEPT OTHERS MAY ALREADY HAVE DONE THE THINGS YOU ARE SUGGESTING AND TAKEN IT FURTHER? YOUR WORK IS ALL THEORETICAL AND NOT BASED ON FIELD TESTING OR WITH FAST BOWLERS - JUST OBSERVATIONAL. PLEASE BE CAREFUL ABOUT SAYING WHAT IS FACT WHEN IT IS SIMPLY OPINION.
You say this information is in your book yet being perfectly honest, if I had got this information out of your book we wouldn't be having this discussion THE CONCEPT THAT THE HIPS AND LEGS ARE IMPORTANT IN CREATING SPEED ARE IN THAT BOOK. A MENTIONED BEFORE, MUCH WORK HAS BEEN DONE WITH BOWLERS SINCE THEN (SUCH AS ATUL SHARMA) BASED ON THIS INFORMATION AND WORKING WITH JAVELIN COACHES. YOUR PREMISE TO 'FORGET AND HIP DRIVE, CHEST DRIVE AND PULLING YOUR NON-BOWLING ARM' IS SIMPLY NOT UNDERSTANDING FAST BOWLING AT ALL. IN JAVELIN THEY ROTATE THE HIP, DRIVE THEIR CHEST AFTER THE HIPS HAVE COMPLETED AND ENSURE THEY GET THEIR NON-THROWING ARM OUT OF THE WAY. WHAT IS SAY IS JUST PLAIN WRONG. YOU ARE 100% CORRECT ABOUT THE LEGS BUT YOU BOWL WITH ALL PARTS AND NOT JUST THE LEGS. I HAVE SPENT MUCH OF MY TIME DOING LOWER HALF DRILLS OVER THE PAST 5 YEARS WITH FAST BOWLERS AHEAD OF USING THE TOP HALF. AND IT'S NOT JUST SAYING WHAT'S IMPORTANT IT'S ALSO HAVING SKILL DRILLS TO GO WITH THEM.
MY OVERVIEW IS THAT IT IS QUITE 'DANGEROUS' TO SAY ONLY THE BOTTOM HALF IS IMPORTANT. NO ONE READING THAT WILL KNOW HOW TO DO IT, USE IT OR UNDERSTAND HOW TO INCORPORATE IT AND MAINTAIN ANY TIMING. ADDITIONALLY, UNLESS THE TOP HALF IS LINED UP CORRECTLY, THERE IS A RISK OF INJURY OF TRUNK TWISTING, SPINE FLEXION AND POTENTIAL STRESS FRACTURE IF THE HIPS ARE MISALIGNED.
PS. Sorry about the capitals...! I was trying to show my response and wasn't shouting... shhhhh.
You advise pointing the front foot straight down the wicket but if a bowler walks with his feet splayed it wouldn't be natural.
I would like to know if the height of the leap for the load up has anything to do with bowling fast. Some bowlers have a very high leap and others hardly any at all.
The front foot should ideally be straight for two reasons: efficiency... and accuracy. In addition, it's hard to brace or lock out the front leg if your foot isn't straight. A locked out front leg through the energy transfer helps the ground speed through the action and into the upper body.
The height of the leap does depend on whether you are sideways, midway or front on with your back foot landing. The only reason you need to jump is to turn your foot into a sideways position, so it may be preferable to not jump too high as when you jump you lose speed. And we are looking to transfer energy from the back foot into the front foot and not simply jump up and down. A javelin thrower for example barely clears the floor with their back foot, because they are already virtually sideways as they hit their final stride, and also they want 'fast feet'.
There is always a 'substance over style' issue here and sometimes it just LOOKS great to have a leap at the crease. But you are seeking long jump rather than high jump and some of the leading fast bowlers have a 3 or 4 to 1 ratio in distance to height jumped - this means you are looking to jump THROUGH the crease rather than down into it.
As mentioned, many front on bowlers hardly jump at all, so consider why you wish to leap at the crease dependent on your bowling style and work from there.
All very valid points. I still think you're not quite getting my point of view however. I'm not saying it doesn't matter, I'm saying it's not as fundamental. It's not the first thing I would teach, it's more advanced.
Perhaps it's my poor writing style that's the problem, but I wrote the article becuase I wanted to take the focus of fast bowling away from the upper half and onto the legs. Everywhere I went I didn't think coaches and cricketers had got the wrong end of the stick.
I did say that the chest is important in creating a stretch both in throwing and bowling. I'm a javelin thrower myself.
I was going to point out last time that it doesn't really matter what I think: like you said you have practical experience and have dealt with famous fast bowlers, I have very limited experience. I'm not trying to compete, I'm not even disagreeing with you really, I'm just defending my position that chest drive etc. are all advanced techniques: you could drive you chest to Australia but bowl military mediums if your hips and legs weren't doing the right things.
You say that my suggestions are dangerous, misguided etc when i doubt you really know what my entire philosophy about bowling is. ALl i'm getting from your respsonses is that either:
1) I'm not expressing myself very well
2) YOu're not reading what I'm writing
I've only published two very short articles. You say I haven't got to have the drills to back it up: I do, I just haven't published them yet. To be honest, I probably won't publish them. I don't really care about bowling that much, mathematics is more important to me.
Whatever you say Ian, I read your book from cover to cover and was left confused. The book describes what to do, not how to learn it: to me that's equally dangerous as me writing an introductory article to my technical standpoint. Some of us don't have to money to go on ABSAT courses. I was just an average reader- if I couldn't get the information you're saying is in there out of it, then I suspect other people are in the same position. Hence why I got interested in the subject. Through discussing the subject with you it's clear TO ME that we're saying the same things with slightly different emphasis. However, if I got all my information about your principles from YOUR BOOK I would say we have vastly different opinions.
If there's no room in this world for one bowling coach and a cricketing mathematician...
Welcome back Tom..for a while there I thought you'd vanished!
Tom please listen carefully. The legs and hips are the most important part of being able to bowl fast, so we are in TOTAL AGREEMENT. And I am reading what you write - I am simply taking it on further because the information has moved on further.
The hips have to be lined up otherwise there will be extra stresses on the back, so it IS sadly quite important what the top half does and thus has equal importance for keeping the energy flowing and not blocking by being out of line. It's not so much the speed that is affected by the top (agree with you) but injury prevention and rhythm (timing) or the 'feeling' which is the intangible part of bowling fast.
My book DELIBERATELY doesn't have my drills in because then I would be redundant! It tells what you should do but not HOW you do it because that's what I do for a living. It was done on purpose. Additionally, the premise for the book was created in 2004 - some 6 years ago - and was groundbreaking at that time (and still is). But we know far more than even then. And the javelin coaches keep me busy with ideas for drills that we can adapt for cricket to create explosive power. They are pretty good!
Always room for differing views Tom. The world is full of people who have great ideas and theories and those who have none. But we all have an opinion - and they welcome.
Very insightful comments, good discussion.
Ian, if the chest drive is the main movement of the upper body, do we simply relegate the motion of pulling the non bowling hand to complete the shoulder rotation, as you suggest here (http://www.spincricket.com/2009/03/16/bowl-faster-3-using-the-other-arm/), or are the two movements, pulling the non bowling hand and chest drive, linked?
Hey guys - as a fast bowler I'd like to thank Tom, Aleks and Ian for this debate/discussion: This is the best ever! Its really interesting. Keep it commin!
Not like coaching in my day! What's wrong with "get side on" and "slow down son you're trying to bowl too fast"?
Alek everything is related. It's all you that's bowling and nothing happens accidentally or in isolation. We don't separate movements because they flow as consequences of each other. It's a complex 'ripple' effect that starts from the feet and travels upwards into the hand that delivers the ball. There's a sequential muscle stretch and contraction at play that creates this..
All parts of the body are relevant therefore and not just one part, but they have a sequencing or order that happens in fractions of seconds. The back ankle starts the turn in of the knee, the knee drives the hip against a blocked front leg, the front arm starts the chest drive and shoulder rotation which help drives the arm pull...there are positioning issues such as knees closing up, dragging the back foot, the chest driven forward with hips set back to create a sideways 'V' shape, the non-bowling arm accelerating up and behind to complete the shoulder turn.... it's really all interrelated.
Having said all of this, you can do isolation drills to perfect the positioning of the body in preparation for the sequencing. It's an understanding and conscious feeling that is almost impossible to feel in real time. The isolation drills ensure you have a 'framework' for the sequencing making it easier to cope with them. The ABSAT Drills cover all aspects of the action technically. I will post a link to a clip showing the drop step and front foot block, which is teaching the body to drill the exaggerated sequential movement needed to access maximum power from the legs.
Regardless of the understanding involved the challenging part is to make the movements seamless or feel that way. It's not just enough to know how to do things, it's about how to help bowlers actually do this so they can learn it, feel it and do it without thinking.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3DPlt74n1M
Sorry to post that all twice guys... it didn't load first time!
Anyone who has attended my workshops since 2006 or have been to coaching sessions I have held will know these drills. I have many coming up at half term and Easter and feel that £65 is pretty reasonable to get all this knowledge http://www.maverickscricket.com/pace-bowling-workshops.html
Thanks for the reply Ian. Very much appreciated.
I hope we will get to see more of you here and on the fast bowling forum of your Pitchvision academy course.
I wanted to ask you Ian about the "drop-step front-foot block". In your recent SPIN cricket article you talk about needing to get your "shoulders and hips 90 degrees apart from each other". Are you encourageing counter rotation becuase i thought this puts extreme pressure on your back at front foot strike?
I've watched the video you posted and also others, including Allan Donald & Brett Lee. They seem to keep there shoulders and hips in line throughout there actions. They both seem to drive there hips and shoulders through together.
Even Javelin throwers don't counter rotate there hips and shoulders as far as i can see.
Is it not correct to collapse your back leg and drive your hip through before front foot strike but bring your bowling shoulder with you as this happens? To get them 90 degrees apart seems to require a lot of twisting.
Simon... you have to create a shoulder/hip separation to generate arm delay or the stretch reflex required. It's not a counter rotation - it's a delayed bowling arm to allow the hips to drive first.
Donald, Lee. Akthar... anyone you care to mention who bowls fast... create a delay between hips and shoulders, but the greater the separation the better. Akthar's stretch reflex in this position is HUGE. Just stop any sideways video clip of them when their arm is stretched back straight behind them and you'll see the hips ahead.
Javelin throwers have the BIGGEST OF ALL shoulder/hip separations as do baseball pitchers. It is a vital power position with hips leading the shoulders through the range of motion. This means the top half becomes 'neutral' until the hips have driven from the back foot and knee.
Ian thanks for the quick responce
Am i right in thinking is it more about focus on forcing the hip through and not focus on holding the shoulders back?
I beleive that at the point of delivery both your hips and shoulders should face the batsman?
Why do you think this hip drive separation is not widely coached? Also at what point in a bowling action do you look for counter rotation?
Simon.. yes. Hips drive ahead of the bowling shoulder to create the ripple effect in the body. On release of the ball the hips and shoulders will be fully lined up.
You raise an interesting question about why this is not widely coached. If fact, it is not coached at all I don't believe. Let me say something about fast bowling coaching - no one really understands it. If you take batting coaching, which ANY coach is happy to work on with a player, it's always about the technique. We say to a batsman things like.. ''move your feet... get to the pitch of the ball... play straight.. pick the bat up over off stump... get your head into line... keep you elbow high...'' etc etc. It's always technical and we all know that the technique is vital if you want to be a great batsman.
But when it comes to bowling... NOTHING. And if there is any advice, it's very superficial.
Most bowling coaching is all outcome based - such as swing, line & length, hitting the seam, where the ball goes, how many times we can bowl a ball in a certain area etc etc.
So in batting we focus on HOW we do things, yet in fast bowling we don't. Maybe it's a complete lack of understanding and knowledge of the technique of bowling fast and straight that stops coaches from touching this area. But it does explain why we don't produce more fast bowlers in my opinion.
Ian I think your right about there being a lack of quality fast bowling coaches. Possibly spin bowling as well?
I went to Somerset in door school a couple of years ago and was coached by a ECB level 3 coach. I land with my back foot parallel to the batting crease but was still advised to not load up my front arm across by chest, like most side on bowlers.
I have recently changed this and now do load up like Graeme Napier in your fast bowling book. I think that trying to load up my front arm like Steve Harrmison for example has held up my own bowling a fair bit. I ended up with my front arm behind my head which just doesn't work.
Are you holding any coaching courses in the near future and if so how would i sign up for it?
Hello Simon
If you go to Ian's website it will give you dates. Google Ian Pont, MCI or Mavericks cricket coaching.
I know a player who is using Ian and they can't speak highly enough of his coaching.
Regards,
Robin Collins
i honestly believe a fast bowler will become a fast bowler on his own! its all about what suits you most there is no point doing something you dont feel right doing.
Well, in a way, but if you have a horrible action you will never be a fast bowler. There are certain universal constants.
Let me just say this to anyone and everyone who is unsure about intervening with someone's bowling:
Coaches teach batting technique all the time. You simply would not just 'leave' a young player to 'become a batsman all on their own' (Ben) and the same applies to any discipline. The simple reason why we don't have many world class fast bowling coaches is that coaches are not taught how to coach fast bowling.
The reason? The ECB does not teach it either, so how can they coach the coaches?
In every other professional sport you care to think about, it is the technical coaching aspect and skill acquisition of that sport, which makes world class players (assuming some degree of natural aptitude). But The ECB and county coaches or coaches taught by the ECB just do not now how to coach pace into bowlers. They certainly understand how to coach pace out of them!
Ben your views are your views on fast bowlers coming through on their own. But we are not blessed with hundreds of Jimmy Anderson's for the amount of players we have and the millions spent on development.
That result could be DRAMATICALLY improved if we taught speed and accuracy to bowlers from the start, instead of this useless, box-ticking and frankly unknowledgeable coaching we get served up but 'qualified' coaches. That is the REAL shame of it...
Ian, I hope you have applied for the England bowling coach role. I would love to have you work with Anderson, Onions, Broad, Finn, Shahzad etc and be able to keep them fit. Do you think that a bowling coach who understands bowling should be in charge of their fitness rather than a general fitness coach. We have Huw Bevan who is an ex rugby coach.
Karen - I applied for the vacancy but I have not been shortlisted. I think the ECB, along with other national boards, believe that ex-test players are best suited to be coaches, even though Troy Cooley was the most successful bowling coach we've had and never played at that level. To me, you need to be a master of understanding technique to be an outstanding coach in your discipline and not how many test wickets you took.
There has been (again) a massive spate of back injuries with the bowlers so something is clearly not working despite all the amount of extra S&C coaches, 'prehab' work and insistence on overall fitness. The guys LOOK great by the swimming pool with all this extra fitness though and are better at the bleep test than ever. But I just don't see an obvious decrease in injuries, nor is there a visible uplift in skill levels.
I do believe that the ECB are aware of overloading bowlers and the stress of bowling, but IMO it is far better to bowl than go in the gym, so somewhere we need a balance that has been lost. It might therefore be, as you suggested, that a bowling coach is the main person when it comes to fitness. Any S&C or fitness coach should come under that bowling coach at the very least.
Hi Ian,
I was hoping you could clear this up for me. You talk about the 90 degree angle seperation between shaoulders and hips, I understand why that is, to create power from the hips. But that sounds just like a mied action?
Thanks for your help.
Sorry I forgot to ask, I read in your article with Atul Sharma, that side on bowlers are faster because of the hip drive. Does that mean every fast bowler should be side on to be faster, what are the advantages of front on then. I am front on, but am considering side on as I have powerful hips and have worked on them with olympic power moves in the past.
Thanks again.
j... no, a mixed action is on back foot landing when your hips face one way and the shoulders the other.. this move we are talking about is on FRONT foot impact and is desirable to create 'torque' in the body.
Side on bowlers tend to be faster (like for like) due to being able to drive the hips into the action further. Everyone RELEASES the ball front on. A front on bowler is already front on but can still create a shoulder-hip separation
Hi Ian, Surely on front foot impact with the biggest forces in a bowling action going through your body don't you need your shoulders and hips to be in line?
I thought that the hip drive/shoulder separation should start just after the front foot impact? It just seems dodgy to hand on your front foot with a braced front leg while your back is twisted.
Regards
Simon
Simon...This very point was covered in the article in Feb's spin magazine called ''drop step, front foot block'' featuring Brett lee and Mitchell Johnson.
and yes the separation happens when the foot has landed but there is also a slight move before. The hips simply 'go first' towards the batsman a fraction ahead of the hips, creating a 'ripple ' effect through the torso. This is the catapult effect. It is based on a kinetic energy chain that begins with the back ankle, foot, knee driving and then hip. The shoulder shouldn't go ahead of this move if you want to maximise speed.
Don't get confused by the hips being able to move independently of the shoulders.. the body is DESIGNED to do that. We do it when we walk as the right shoulder moves when the left hip moves. If we moved the hips and shoulders TOGETHER, we'd look like a robot made of tin and have no muscle stretch or contraction which creates the speed and natural power movement.
Hi Ian, I am about to buy your book very soon and I am very excited. In the book does it also talk about fitness, or just drills and tips on how to bowl quick.
Also as a 14 year old how much bowling do you reckon I should be doing. I have just recovered form a back injury (last year) most likely from over bowling and slamming my front leg without following through.
Ian, which do you think is better for players , the online fast bowling course, or the fast bowling bible?
The book is a 'Bible' which covers mental state, fitness, (not drills), what you need to do etc etc.
The online course is all about the drills.
You would probably need both. The online course also contains more up to date information.
Ian wrote:
and yes the separation happens when the foot has landed but there is also a slight move before. The hips simply 'go first' towards the batsman a fraction ahead of the hips, creating a 'ripple ' effect through the torso. This is the catapult effect. It is based on a kinetic energy chain that begins with the back ankle, foot, knee driving and then hip. The shoulder shouldn't go ahead of this move if you want to maximise speed
Ian could we simplify the above in 2 steps:
1)Upon front foot impact, hip drive is the first movement, gets driven first, while keeping the bowling arm at maximum stretch behind the bowler, creating the long lever and what you refer to as "delaying the bowling arm",
2)Finish the movement by driving the chest
The result being trying to achieve this shape:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/Mitchell_Johnson_bowl...
Aleks.. yeah that is very simple.. my point was to share that we are taking stored energy from the run up and transferring it into the ball by a series of specific movements.
Ian, in terms of time frame, what in your experience would be the average time period needed for a bowler to incorporate all these specific movements in his bowling action? Lets assume that a bowler is doing a toal rebuild, that is, he has broken down his action into these movements and trying to piece them together, assuming he is consistently working on his action e.g say 2 or 3 sessions per week. Afcourse everyone learns at different paces, but can you estimate a rule of thumb for time needed? 3-4 months etc?
Hard question to answer definitively as you acknowledge.
Shahbaz Choudhry has been working with me for almost 12 months and he has pretty much got everything sorted now. Shahbaz is currently on Northants' books and will hopefully feature at some stage this year.He bowls around 90 mph.
17 year-old Catherine Dalton has been doing this work for about 14 months and is good to go such an action rebuild as you suggest. She used to bowl at 56 mph and is now around 74 mph. She s on the verge of England recognition.
I see people whenever they can afford it, and would always suggest once or twice a month if possible to start with. The players who are serious about change usually do the drills as often as they can on their own and practice getting the precise movements. My role is to help them piece it all together so they can access it as a continuous movement.
You can do the drills without them affecting your current bowling negatively, because they only appear in your action when they are cemented.
I guess someone COULD make the changes you allude to in the time frame of 3-4 months with some genuine passion to get it right.
Aww what a shame I wish I lived in England so I could get your coaching, although I found an immediate effect when I tried the "delay". I was just wondering, is there any drill on this in the online bowling course.
Deano..yes..the arm pull drill
But just practicing delaying your arm generally until you feel the stretch is also a good way of trying it. Juts imagine someone is pulling your backwards by your arm...
Ian, if you get a job with the ECB you couldn't give me a job could you?
Hi Ian,
I been looking a some of the previous posts here (10th Aug ish) and there's a little conversation about back leg collapse. There is a guy arguing with "Tom M" about how braced, or not, your back leg should be.
I've looked a Allan Donald and Michael Holding and they don't seem to bend there back knees much until after front foot landing. They keep there back legs pretty straight until this point then the knee bends and drives through.
bowlers like Brett Lee and Stuart Broad though seem to bend/"collapse" there back knee well before there front foot has touched down.
What do you think about the two methods? Both methods seem to get the knees together at the point of release but the bending happens at different points in the action.
I'm inclined to think that Allan Donald & Michael Holding had it right.
Simon ..we have already covered this really (DROP STEP/front foot block).. collapsing the back leg into the front is far more efficient for transferring energy. But by no means all bowlers do it of course.
This soft step (not a hard impact as the ECB like to say) helps move the base weight forward into the plant (front foot). There should also be a 'fast feet' base and not a l-o-n-g and stretched out delivery stride where that energy can be lost (the ECB seem to like a long delivery stride).
So it's a soft landing, quick collapse and knee drive into the straight front leg to make the base with a fast plant.
This is technically perfect for generating speed, but as i said, it doesn't mean you cannot bowl fast without it.
Ian, going back to the point you raised, what would you term as a long delivery stride? If you look at the photo below, brett lee has his back foot planted quite a distance behind the back foot line.
http://www4.pictures.gi.zimbio.com/Australian+Cricket+Training+HeLAJys6FKGl.jpgIs the above an ok delivery stride or should his back foot be closer to the back foot line?
It seems to me that almost all fast bowlers land there back foot behind the line of the stumps (like in the photo). Regardless of whether they use the drop step front foot block or not.
Bowlers like Brett Lee hit the bowling crease with such large amounts of energy they seems to be carried forward a few inches before there front foot lands.
I can't see how collapsing your back knee shortens your delivery stride if you've run in hard anyway. Perhaps Ian means that this tactic speeds up the delivery stride rather than shortening it.
Hi Ian,
I posted previously, you said that front on bowlers can still produce a hip drive, how exactly woudld one do that if the hips are already facing the batter. Also you seem to be an advocate of a side-on javalin style bowler, e.g Sharma and Chwodary, do you not work with front-on bowlers. Aslo I bought your book and am proabbly going to buy the online stuff, but am wondering if it all applies to front on bowlers as well. Also I am still a bit confused, you once said Atul used to bowl front on at 70, now he is side on at 100, so why would say, Harimson not try side on and go faster, does a certain style suit certain physical charatersitics. Side on bolwers have strong hips for thier hip drives, what about front-on bowler.
Thanks again Ian.
Front on bowlers seem to be very tall and heavy, (accept for Malcolm Masrhall), does that mean front ons need to be tall and heavy to have large momentum and lever action, and side-ons don't as they generate speed from thier strong hips and core. So if you are not tall should you be a side on beucase you cant be a fast front on.
J.. front on bowlers can drive their hips but just not with as much 'torque' as a side on bowler. I indeed do work with front on bowlers (I teach pace to ALL bowlers) and I have a protoge in Catherine Dalton, who I hope will go on to be a great female fast bowler. She is just 17 and we have completely rebuilt her action from scratch. Last year she bowled at 53 mph and is already 65 mph now and can go to mid 70's soon.
You mentioned Harmison, but he is SIDE ON by the way already (his back foot lands pointing sideways).
Atul could bowl side on already as he USED to be side on but some stupid coach changed him to front on when he was a kid. It was easy to get him to revert back.
You are quite mistaken about the size of bowlers relating to their back foot position. People land their back foot pointing wherever feels natural and it's nothing to do with their build.
Pace comes from being able to transfer speed through your body and through the crease. You can bowl fast from ANY back foot position - the important factors slightly alter dependent on which one you are.
Hi Ian,
Have read through your book, great stuff. I had question though, I read somewhere in an interview with you, you said Atul being 5'11 and stocky needed to be side-on to acess his power, and you mentioned front on bowlers tend to be tall and rangey. this was on pakpassion I think. From that I feel being 6ft and stocky I shoudl change to a side-on action. Was wondering what your thoughts are, is it more complicated than height and mass. Is it and individula thing.
Thanks again mate,
Jay
Hi Ian,
I have a dilema. I have a fast bowler with a mixed action. His back foot is side on at impact but has a front on top half. He is sharpish but struggling with back issues due to his mixed action. What is the best way to coach this out of him. Unfortunately as it is in season and not the ideal time to remodel an action. He is also mid 20's so not a youngster. Any advice will be awesome.
Cheers
Hi ian,
i have a problem with my bowling arm having abend in it. i think it is because my head goes away from my body and then my arm and wrist compensate by bending (the arm) and by angling down the leg side. when i do try to bowl with a straight arm and a with my head staying straight, i lose a lot of pace. is thare a way to increase pace but solve my problem. btw im 13 years old and play at county level. im an all rounder that bowls front on (medium-fast). im ready and prepared to adapt or change my action if neccessary. Advice would be fantastic. tnx
Any ideas why left arm quick bowlers tend to "close off" there bowling actions with there feet alignment? Basically front foot landing across and to the off side (as if bowling at right hand bat over the wicket) of there back foot.
I think perhaps the angle of approach might not help because more often than not we're bowling at right handed batsmen over the wicket. It seems hardly any right arm bowlers have this problem and i'm finding it difficult to change.
Ian Pont says it's difficult to bowl as quick as you can without getting your hips fully facing the target. Without good foot alignment this is very difficult to do fully. the more side on i try to get in my action the harder it seems to be to get the front foot to land leg side of the back foot! I think perhaps i need to push off the back foot more before front foot landing.
On a different point any thoughts on what's best to aim at when bowling? Stumps, pitch, wicket keeper? I personally aim at a spot on the pitch especially when the ball is swinging. I hear Dennis Lillee and Brian Statham used to aim at the bottom of off to hit the top! Seems strange to me but i guess it worked for them.
great article. One question - at delivery, should the back leg be in the air or grounded, but bent(perhaps dragged a little)? Which offers more power for delivery?
Any update on Tom's progress with his bowling and with his coaching techniques? It is a special variation to have someone of playing age who believes that they understand fast bowling biomechanics.
hi i am 14 years of age i am a left armer while bowling my front foot lands on the right side this is right or wrong
Lyndon _ make sure there's an imaginary 'piece of string' between the front knee and the front elbow thus aligning hip and shoulders when your bowler gets in the first 'tent peg' position (back foot impact). Far easier to come round with the top half than change the base, so make sure elbows and knees line up at the front.
Muhammad - hard to say without seeing you bowl but the fact you are front on and falling away probably means your bowling arm over past vertical and way outside your body width? Short fix is to impersonate Malinga and keep your arm slingy and low to get the feel of what its like to bowl on the right side of your body. A bent arm can be caused by many factors. Hard to sling the ball with a bent arm though IMO.
Simon - you are right that closing hips and shutting off feet is not good for maximising pace, and left arm bowlers angle their runs to the crease and generally make it far worse. They mistakenly think it helps to swing the ball but we all know that you swing the ball with your wrist and not your feet. The front foot should land directly underneath the bowling shoulder at the front and if it lands anywhere else it is NOT fully supporting your non-bowling side. Just watch where your foot lands in relation to your body when you walk and that should show you how we are built as humans to land a supported front foot.
Dhruv - your foot should be in contact with the ground right up until tent peg 3 (ball release) with your knees closed up and no gap between them if seen from sideways. The front leg should be locked straight and angled back so your hips can drive against them.
Lyndon _ make sure there's an imaginary 'piece of string' between the front knee and the front elbow thus aligning hip and shoulders when your bowler gets in the first 'tent peg' position (back foot impact). Far easier to come round with the top half than change the base, so make sure elbows and knees line up at the front.
Muhammad - hard to say without seeing you bowl but the fact you are front on and falling away probably means your bowling arm over past vertical and way outside your body width? Short fix is to impersonate Malinga and keep your arm slingy and low to get the feel of what its like to bowl on the right side of your body. A bent arm can be caused by many factors. Hard to sling the ball with a bent arm though IMO.
Simon - you are right that closing hips and shutting off feet is not good for maximising pace, and left arm bowlers angle their runs to the crease and generally make it far worse. They mistakenly think it helps to swing the ball but we all know that you swing the ball with your wrist and not your feet. The front foot should land directly underneath the bowling shoulder at the front and if it lands anywhere else it is NOT fully supporting your non-bowling side. Just watch where your foot lands in relation to your body when you walk and that should show you how we are built as humans to land a supported front foot.
Dhruv - your foot should be in contact with the ground right up until tent peg 3 (ball release) with your knees closed up and no gap between them if seen from sideways. The front leg should be locked straight and angled back so your hips can drive against them.
Hi...
First of all thanks to Tom and Ian for this article.
Ian I would like to ask how important is height for bowling fast?
Most of the fast bowlers are tall but we have many short bowlers bowling with 90 mph.
Is it possible to bowl at this speed being 5.8'?What are the areas to look in to to acheive this?
Your advise will be helpful.
Does the wrist has any impact on a bowlers speed?
To be honest, I think having the correct technique will not get you bowling REALLY fast, no matter how good it is. However, I have noticed that most of the REALLY fast bowlers from the past and present(tait, thomson) go against the textbook and bowl it with sling or a drawback and hurl like thomson used to bowl it. Look at this, Lillee had correct technique and thomson has incorrect technique, but thomson was faster. Brett Lee has correct technique and Shaun Tait has incorrect technique, but tait is faster.
Ian - don't confuse power with timing and co-ordination. If Tait had a perfect action technically (correct muscle sequencing and stretch) he would have been FAR quicker than he is now. We cannot have a parallel universe to find out but let's take ANY OTHER power based sport and find that the technique of the power generation is key.
A sport closest to us like Javelin is all about technique. Coaches have a saying "All Power, No Technique" for throwers who cannot get ultra long distances in.
There will always been an odd fast bowler you can pick out (you chose Tait from 2010 and Thomson from 1975 - just 2 examples in 35 years) but mostly great technique equals the best version of a bowler possible.
That's why understanding HOW to generate pace is very important, rather than simply hurling it...
hey Ian Pont
can you explain the way to generate pace?
I have been reading these articles and I found all points of view very interesting.I have coached at various levels in the game both overseas and here in Australia and my main interest is the bio mechanics of fast bowling or how to make a bowler bowl fast without hurting himself.The talk about javelin throwing is interesting in that the fastest bowler Jeff Thomson was a champion javelin thower whilst he was at school.I was at the school with him at the time of this. But as he says his action was developed in his back garden when he was a kid before he started to throw the javelin.He also was very flexible and still is. I disagree with the statement that Lillees technique is better than Thomsons.Lillies first action and breakdown was the catalyst into the whole mixed action and back injury debate. Thomsons action never caused him the same back injuries as most of the fast bowlers had from that era and he was bowling very fast at the same time. If was looking for a fast bowling action that would do this I would go for Thomsons slinging action. Do not put Shaun Tait and the other so called slingers of today in ths same catagory as Thomsons as they are clearly not.Compare videos and photos and the difference is startling.
Great Article Ian!!!!
I am 16 years old and i am 5'5 does that means i cant bowl fast?
hey guys.
first of all i want to say that this is the best cricket coaching website all over the web.
i have been really curious about a guy, some years ago. He was about 5'10-5'11. there were his attributes
age 16
thin wrists
thin arms
used to bat with a lighter bat coze the regular bat felt heavier for him.
Now tell me something, how on earth was he bowling fast. I mean there were 20 yr olds who were quick but this lad was bowling faster then them. But since he has not good stamina so he would hardly bowl 2 overs of full intensity.
I am just curious how did he generate such a pace.
@ Ian Pont, I'd just like to say, I've read your book, and it's helped me so much. I've gone from a 3rd grade bowler up to 1st grade in my local comp, I'm bowling with more pace, bounce and accuracy before thanks to the fast bowlers bible. I just have a few question on it. With the section on closing of with your feet, how would you say to stop that? I'm a right arm bowler and my feet land in line. How do I got about getting the left leg more to the left? Also with the run up, my run up has a natural jump in at the crease, which I think causes me to close of, so are they any drills which would help me straighten my run up and stop me closing of? Thanks very much.
@ Ian Pont, I'd just like to say, I've read your book, and it's helped me so much. I've gone from a 3rd grade bowler up to 1st grade in my local comp, I'm bowling with more pace, bounce and accuracy before thanks to the fast bowlers bible. I just have a few question on it. With the section on closing of with your feet, how would you say to stop that? I'm a right arm bowler and my feet land in line. How do I got about getting the left leg more to the left? Also with the run up, my run up has a natural jump in at the crease, which I think causes me to close of, so are they any drills which would help me straighten my run up and stop me closing of? Thanks very much.
I think this will help me through the rest of the season. I am going to try it in the match tomorrow thanks for all this information.
Hey,
I am a Fast bowler...i was into the national team 3yrs back but had to give bowling a pause b'coz of my academics...and now when i again started playing...i had lost all my pace,bowling action and rythm...i feel scared to take that jump..and tend to bowl slower..with horrible line and length...i am in trouble as i am scared that hav i lost it??
Plz help me out on this...i would really appreciate.
Reply soon!!
Animesh,
You can't expect to pick up where you left of from three years ago. You have to get back in the nest and do the hard work to get yourself back to match fitness. Its unrealistic to expect otherwise, simple as that. In addition look up the stuff on the website regarding fast bowling technique and conditioning that may help you out.
Bottom line is, take it day by day, session by session, make gradual improvements until you feel confident you are back to your best. Get back in those nets.
Hey man my bowling is not that much straight. Any solutions?
Improve your action with our fast bowling section here: http://www.pitchvision.com/cricket-coaching/category#cat_pbw
Hello to Ian & other writers of this blog
I am from India & I have a sad story(fact) to let you know. Please read & comment if you can.
I am a Six feet tall guy now at the age of 32, weight 83. Since my child hood I was dreaming of bowling fast but don't know how it happen that whenever I tried to bowl my bowl hardly reached to Keeper, some times on second bounce. Or if I put excess effort it gone wide of leg stump (may be to the nineth or tenth stump).
Sooner I was left a side by my cricket playing friends, I was yeilling & watching broken heartly others playing. A good cricketer who is my neibhour, all my friends & people from other destination come to call him and nobody was even looking at me & that guy was just 5' 3".
I was not allow to bolw even in the practice we use to do every day for two hours, sooner I left to do the practice also.
Just couple of months ago I understood that my jump is not right, my head & whole body falls down to third / forth slip, I don't have good run up.
As nobody was ready to play with me, I even not able to run and practice to bowl. Nobody was their to help me even to drill. I was just practice in my small room of 10 x 10. But whenever in I tried in open space (alonely) my whole body looks me different.
Currently in the organization where I work is circket tournament is going on but I was not even looked at by my department. Just imagine how frustrating it is to see that every body else is playing around you and your even consider at all.
Can somebody please help me about this, I will really appericiate?
Regards,
Raga (name changed)
hey,
...yea ryt ..i'll try nd get back...asap..im trying 2 recover frm a knee ligament tear ...coz of which i stopd playing...coz i fear taking the jump on my ryt knee.....well lets c..thx a lot for your advice though!!
That is a sad story Raja, but what do you need help with?
Dear David
I want to learn bowling fast. As I said in previous post that I am strong guy but whenever I bowl people laughs at me.
I don't want to die with this regret.
I really loved bowling action of allan donald.
Can somebody please provide me complete bowling action video of alland donald / tim southee in slow motion.
I will really thankful a lot if anybody can explain me how to jump, what should be the head, hand & leg position when back foot land and every next movement thereon.
please help.
You didn't mention any injuries in your original post Aminesh. In that case, make sure your knee is ok and do your strength work on your legs before you start doing bowling
Here is a good introductory video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KumakBKaOjs
Ian Pont's Fast Bowler's Bible is a good place to get information. Any basic book on cricket skills will also outline the basics.
i find it difficult to engage the hips when bowling, if i do then my neck kind of flings back. what is the proper way to do the hip drive? Also i find it very difficult to bowl quick with a straight arm. I kind of push the ball out as my arm straightens. I bowl front on but i am not sure whether i should because i kind of break to the left to actually get my arm round. How do increase pace legally!!! Also is there a way to fix my bent arm as i am 14 and have played quite alot of cricket.
What are some drills to get the correct landing (colapsing) and to keep the front knee straight through the action? any help is much apprieciated!
Paul
Dear Ian Pont,
I'm 14 yrs old and i can ball both front on and side on.I'm confused which one i should adopt since you have mentioned that side on gives a bit more pace.I'm more comfortable with front on but i don't mind changing to side on as i can do it also.Please give me advice regarding what i should do.
Awaiting your reply,
Antony.
I believe you need a braced front leg and 'dig' your head into the ground very much like James Andersen. This ensures a quick rotation of shoulders
hi SHAFIQ,
when you are bowling just try to bend slightly towards left(if you are righty) and then put the bowl...when you are taking your jump try to bend your upper half to left slightly and then bowl...and yea also make sure that after bowling your foot falls and goes towards left side on pitch....if you are throwing the ball then you might end up goin towards right...which is wrong!
hope it helps!
al the best
@animesh
Stop arguing about stupid matters , bowling is simple , line length , do the movements that come natural ,
Denum, it might be simple to you, but part of the crux of the matter is how to be able to bowl line and length in the first place when bowling quickly. It isn't always the "natural" movements that you have that generate pace, or necessarily enable you to bowl a good line or length (and I'm not entirely sure how natural it is to stretch your muscles at speed in the way that fast bowling requires, but that's another, separate, argument).
The point here is that contributors are discussing how bets to improve their game from where it is at present, and methods of getting to a position where their bodies are in the best position to deliver the ball with pace an accuracy. I don't believe that these are "stupid arguments", but discussions that are all the better for a knowledge of biomechanics in a bowling environment and the sort of exercises that enable people to improve their potential.
Sorry if it seems like a waste of time to you.
Don't feed the troll!
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I think both of you are missing the point a little bit here as far as the back leg is concerned. The article was about how bowlers can improve their actions to bowl quicker. Tom is right in that all of the fastest bowlers ever bent their back leg, and that a straight leg may cause a decelaration in momentum. However, if you are a fast bowler, unless you are specifically trying to keep your back leg straight, it should bend naturally. I do not think that bowlers like Thompson , Akhtar and Tait were/are so fast because of them bending their back leg, but their back leg was bending because they were so fast. Think about it: running in that quick and bowling that fast, whilst trying to keep your back leg straight would apply a massive amount of pressure on the ankle, knee and hip and would cause serious injury. The back leg bending is just the body's natural way of transferring momentum without causing strain when a bowler is quick (that pace, of course, would come from other factors essential to fast bowling). Therefore bending the back leg would not be a concious factor to be changed in an action to make a bowler quicker. I can guarantee you that if a bowler, trying to bowl very quick, specifically tries to bend his back leg upon landing, he will just hurt himself.
1
Hello tom
My name is vinod kumar i am a fast bowler . I have a problem in structure of my body my height is 5"8" but the problem is my legs are or my lower trunk is shorter than my upper trunk that is not usually the case in normal.because of this i think i am not able to create more pace and jump higher .can you please give me any suggestion.
Thankyou.
Sent from my iPhone
Hi sir I am balling with drop step and I am no gaining ny pace and it seems like when I am bending my front knee I am bowling quick. Can you help me with that please and I am bowling with drop step for 5 months and I am not gaining any pace sir please help me. I am in big confusion thank you
Hello
Would it be a positive thing if you have a straight front leg as a wrist spinner?
I'm trying to use the front foot block technique where I keep my front leg straight as it lands but I just can't do it because I feel my leg will snap in two. There's too much pressure on the knee joint and I don't know what to do. Anyone have a similar problem or advice?
how to make the toe point straight?
I was curious to know the secret behind fast bowling. There are a number of techniques practiced by bowlers to increase their bowling speed. I am glad that you revealed the secrets for fast bowling and I will share this with my friends too. Windows 10 download
This is old news and by the time cricket coaches catch onto what's needed to bowl fast underarm bowling will be brought in!! There is a framework, "tent peg drills" by Ponty, there are general strength exercises to do, cricket strength.com and there are specific strength exercises to do, Steffan jones. Let's stop talking and coach our kids using these methods. Cricket is stuck in the dark ages and old fashioned coaches stop it moving forward. That's why I'm off to Finland to work with the coach of the top 2 javelin throwers in the current world championship to find a javelin thrower who may be able to bowl. An athlete whose raw, not influenced by other coaches, just ready to bowl fast using the correct methods. I'm ready to discuss new ideas but let's not go over the same things all the time. I wish ECB would just educate coaches in these methods so English bowlers can take wickets on pitches other than green, wet seamers. Pace is needed.
Hi Mate,
I believe the chap has hit the nail on the head here regarding bowling fast. You do have to use ground forces to bowl fast that is why you deliver off both legs. About back foot landing I believe he is right you do have to bend your knee. You are confusing bend knee with collapse knee, there is a big difference.
You also do not have to push off the back leg as he says it should be a flowing motion which again as he says comes from the run up. It is almost like a rocking chair.
Fazil
if you have a braced back leg you will completely reck your knee in the first over. you need to have a straight leg, not braced; there is a large difference.
It's the front leg that needs to be braced, not the back.
HI SIR ACTUALLY I WANTED TO KNOW WHETHER A BOWLER CAN BOWL WITH A MIXED ACTION ACTUALLY MY BACK FOOT LANDS SIDE ON AND MY UPPER BODY IS FRONT ON IN KNOW ITS DANGEROUS TO HAVE SUCH ACTION AS RISK OF INJURY BUT FRANKLY I M VERY COMFORTABLE WITH SUCH ACTION ONCE I TIED TO BE SIDE ON BOWLER BUT DUE TO IT I LOST MY SPEED N IN WASNT COMFORTABLE WITH IT SO WHAT YOU SUGGEST???