Coaching | Cricket coaching, fitness and tips

Move from Indoor Nets to Outdoor Skills with This Batting Drill

The transition from indoor - with the ball coming on to the bat, being able to hit on the up - to outdoor surfaces with slower decks, seam and variable bounce is a tricky one for any batter.

Here is an indoor drill (elements can also be used outdoors) to help batsmen build skill and a precise mental approach.

It really works.

Save Your Season By Making Your Culture Worth Catching

Malcolm Marshall coached a team I played in as a pro. We had played badly for the 3rd game in a row. The great man asked us if "our attitude was worth catching?"

We were being challenged because our professionalism and character had been lacking. It was a great question which made most of us reflect and - ultimately - turn our season around.

As coaches, we should have a good attitude. We are leaders whose role is to inspire and shape teams and environments.

So, the question that I ask of coaches is not about attitude: I ask "is your culture worth catching?"

Graham Gooch: How to Coach Batting Concentration

This article is an excerpt from the Graham Gooch Runmaker eBook available on PitchVision Academy. For more details, click here.

Anyone can score 30 if they can play a bit, but to make a big score your concentration has to be better and stronger. Whether it's a long match, one day match or even Twenty20, it doesn't matter. If concentration is sharp, alert and in tip top nick, then you make less mistakes.

Video: Spin Bowling Coaching Session

Here's the next cricket coaching video filmed recently at Millfield School. This time it's all about the spinners.

Turn a Wicket into a Golden Coaching Moment

Last week we looked at the importance of "golden moments" in coaching. There are a heap of individual moments for a coach and a player in a game of cricket. I am going to focus on one such opportunity today: When a wicket falls.

The time when I see most coach-player interaction directly ahead of performance comes when a wicket falls. The incoming batter on puts on their helmet and gloves before standing up and walking to the wicket.

You may get 10 seconds to add value to a players performance.

What considerations should we take to shape our interactions?

Batting Drill from Graham Gooch

This video is from the Graham Gooch Runmaker onine coaching course videos available on PitchVision Academy. For more details, click here.

Graham Gooch has coached a lot of players to batting success. He has a compleet system that locks together to create runmakers. This video is an example of just one of the simple drills he uses in runmaking.

Don't be deceived by the simplicity of this drill. There are a number of benefits to grooving this shot, even for professional batsmen like Graham Napier (who is pictured doing the drill). The obvious thought is to lock in good technique, but it is also good for developing balance and footwork dynamically. Plus, for players looking to work on bat speed, the movement towards the ball encourages a higher backlift and faster downswing to really make the ball fly.

Here is the drill:

Video: Bowling Technique Coaching Session with PitchVision

Here's a treat for you: a coaching session filmed at Millfield School with Level 3 Coach, Dan Helesfay.

Inspire Your Team by Using Golden Moment Speeches

How important is a speech to rally your players?

According to Jolyon Finck, it's crucial. Jol is the Director of Swimming at Millfield School and was the successful coach of the England Squad in the Commonwealth Games of 2014.

Recently Jol spoke about having to deliver those "Golden Moment" speeches to his athletes ahead of each heat, semi-final and final.

In total, Jolyon gave 57 speeches.

In these moments the coach aims to focus, relax, motivate or positively distract the athlete to help them get into their ideal performance state.

Graham Gooch on Coaching Batting Technique

This article is an exerpt from the Graham Gooch Runmaker eBook available on PitchVision Academy. For more details, click here.

I want to talk a little about working on technique with a batsman, one to one.

Develop Your Very Own "Runmakers" with England's Greatest Run-Machine: Graham Gooch

PitchVision Academy are delighted to announce today England record-breaker and batting coach Graham Gooch is sharing his knowledge by joining the online coaching panel.

Click here for full details.