68. Visualise your shots - get in position and picture the delivery and your movements in your mind (but don’t premeditate; let the ball decide the shot). Mental rehearsal will prime your muscle control and can make a real difference when you are under pressure. Only visualise and rehearse shots you can play and would play if the ball is in the right slot.

It's inevitable that the day will come.

Your regular keeper is out injured/hung over/unavailable. Despite the captain desperately searching for a replacement, none can be found.

Straws are drawn and someone gets the short one.

A pair of gloves are located and shoved on the mitts of the unsuspecting batsman (it's always a batsman).

This is the first in a regular series of articles looking at the techniques and tactics used in IPL 3.

The 2010 IPL got off to a rip-roaring start with all the franchises playing over the opening weekend. We watched every game and picked out a few choice cuts that you can take into your games this season.

So here are the first tips, separated by team:

67. When batting, try and observe and exploit the gaps by knowing which opposition fielders are left-handed and which are right-handed. Pay special attention to positions where run-outs typically originate from: point, cover, backward-square and mid-wicket fielders.

Gary Palmer, PitchVision Academy Batting Coach, has 20 years of coaching experience and has come up with a fool-proof way of achieving perfection in batting. If you would like group or one-to-one coaching with Gary visit CCM Academy.

With Kevin away, David is joined by Gary Palmer and we get the final part of our interview with ECB and Lane4 psychologist Wil James.

If you missed the other parts of the interview with Wil you can get them here:

Imagine for a moment you have signed for the Deccan Chargers. It's your first game and the stadium is packed to the rafters.

On TV millions more watch on hoping you will put in a match winning performance for their beloved team. Meanwhile the world's finest Twenty20 players warm up in preparation to take you on.

Succeed and you will be adored. Fail and you will be nobody.

66. Know your enemy as your friend. All batsmen should understand the principles of swing and spin bowling. Learn to judge the likelihood of what a bowler is bowling by their grip on the ball when running in and from their delivery position and action; then watch the ball out of the hand and trust your judgement. If you pick it, play for it.

This article is part of "The complete guide to cricket field settings" series.

This guest article by first-class and international 'keeper Nic Northcote is an extract from his new book "Wicket-Keeping: The Ultimate Guide to Mastering the Art": Available now on PitchVision Academy.