CHAPTER 4

Fast Bowling Coaching Made Easy

Tell me and I will forget. Show me and I will remember. Involve me and I will understand.

Benjamin Franklin

To coach or not to coach, that is the question. Do you leave raw talent alone or do you interfere with it? And if so, when is the best time to coach?

The problem is, someone with raw, genuine talent may have a technically unsound action or, at least, an unusual way of delivering the ball. There would be an overwhelming temptation to correct it. Let's take Shaun Tait of Australia as an example.

Fast bowler Tait took more Pura Cup wickets in the 2004-2005 Australian domestic season than anyone else. That might be because he bowled really well. Or it might be because it summed up the standard of Australian domestic batting. Either way it got him selected for the Ashes squad. Yet his action is riddled with challenges from a biomechanical point of view. I am being polite. He does many things wrong and some of them are working against him in his quest to have a long career.

Yes it's true he can get the ball out of his hand at around 90mph. And that's why the general view is he should be left alone to bowl as he wants. So I can see why this 'non-intervention' option would be very appealing. However, despite appearing as though change would be difficult, it could be done. The results, I think, would be spectacular and he could enjoy startling success with greater pace, accuracy and straight lines. Perhaps the changes ought to have been made in development as a junior, although some coaches will say maybe not.

Another player who had some issues with his bowling was Jason Gillespie. But his situation is completely different. Two seasons prior to the 2005 Ashes summer, Gillespie was one of the world's leading fast bowlers. He had pace, movement and bounce. This meant he troubled even the best of the batsmen he came up against. Yet in 2005 I watched this giant of a man visibly wilt under the pressure of inconsistency. His Ashes summer fell apart. And the dreadful thing was that no one seemed to know how to correct it, least of all the bowler himself. With approximately fifty differing pieces of (incorrect) advice ringing in his ears, I can imagine the poor guy was the most confused man on the planet as everyone rallied to tell him what he was doing wrong.

The sad thing is his remedy was quite simple, and covers two of the fast bowling keys mentioned later (chest drive and exit stride). Gillespie has the type of action where he needs momentum to get out of the crease. He has fast arms and a big rotation. That's why, when he doesn't bowl particularly well, it's because he gets 'stuck' in the crease and doesn't get out of it. The solution is not to run in harder or faster, as I heard he had been told to do. His 'bouncy' run-up is for rhythm, not ground-speed rhythm like Lee or Akhtar. It would seem that Gillespie's solution is a very personal thing, and should take place under the watchful eye and help of a knowledgeable coach. This will also help build confidence, which is another attribute of a good tutor.

So, generally, at what point is bowling coaching the right thing to do? My own personal view is that sharing of information is the key. By having all the knowledge available, a player can choose what they want to do. After all, it is the bowler who has to buy into it.

That's why a coach's knowledge of fast bowling dictates how well he can help others. And that's why this book gives you the ammunition to make the right decisions.

Bowling coaching is made up of many things. Understanding the action is an integral part. Knowing how to avoid injury and keep a stable position at delivery is another. But when you think of bowling coaching, you also think of line and length, swing and seam, accuracy and bowling in the right 'areas'. So let's be honest here, none of that has changed.

'Traditional' coaching still holds good today. Indeed, some argue that we've moved too far away from those values. And I agree. Bowlers seem to spend less time bowling at targets, learning how to move the ball or knowing which type of delivery to bowl, and when. Equally, unless their bowling actions have reliability, they cannot reproduce results again and again, since bowling, by nature, is a repetitive business.

So what is exciting is the blending together of all that knowledge - and the use of coaching in 'bite-sized' pieces. Plus, of course, being positive. It's really easy to find faults with bowlers when they are not performing. It's human nature to be critical, to be cynical, to have a 'half-empty glass' approach. However, great coaches have to understand human behaviour too. They need to be optimistic, generous in praise and, above all, upbeat and enthusiastic.

Over the years I have come across coaches who do none of this. They are negative, downbeat, always looking for reasons why someone will fail. This, of course, is a recipe for disaster, with either the player or coach (or both) failing miserably to produce the goods. This book is an exciting and vibrant manual with a 'can do' attitude. And just before you get into it, here's one piece of advice. I'd like you to experiment and exaggerate. By that I mean when you practice you should experiment and exaggerate so you experience changes. Never be afraid to change. Never be afraid to question what you do. (In fact always question what you do - it helps you understand.)

The golfer Tiger Woods works on his golf swing pretty much all the time. In his highly technical sport making key adjustments to become consistent are crucial for success. Yet in cricket we've tended to avoid practising those very skills we seek to improve. So get out there and practise. Try it out. Make mistakes. Because it's only by making mistakes and discovering our limitations that we truly learn. Make as many mistakes as you like, just don't keep making the same ones.

THE KEYS TO SUCCESS

It is very important to discover as early on as possible the keys to success that will help you bowl faster and straighter. When you understand them you will realise just how it is possible to improve both pace and accuracy at the same time.

This is an important point. In fact, it's so profound that it's worth repeating: it is possible to improve both pace and accuracy at the same time.

Due to the way we coach and the beliefs we hold so dear, it is thought that speed and accuracy cannot go together. Let me dispel that theory, because if this were really true then the slower you bowled the more accurate you'd be. And we'd all be bowling slower balls all the time. So let's not confuse bowlers who are 'trying to bowl too fast' with incorrect mechanics. If the ball comes out badly or inaccurately, chances are the mechanics are wrong. And these can be put right.

I did not bowl a lot when I was young and I think that sort of helped me. How you look after yourself is very important off the field. I train quite hard in the gym and look to build my strength and flexibility up. The other one is to have a very good action. I have been lucky that I have a very stress-free action. I am quite front-on and tend to go through the crease using my side muscles and stomach muscles more than my back muscles, and that puts me in good stead. If you have a very good action and work well off the field then you will be fine.

Glenn McGrath

One of the most common coaching phrases to a wayward young quickie is 'slow down son, bowl a line and length.' Every coach reading this book who has uttered those infamous words to a young speedster is responsible for potentially shattering the dreams of another hopeful. That's because the most important element to becoming a fast bowler is desire.

So I want to look at this the other way round. Embrace the young bowler who tries to bowl fast, wants to bowl fast, and likes to bowl fast - and explain to him how to bowl fast. Desire is something that you cannot teach. So why snuff it out by stopping him from trying to bowl fast? Rather, help him to perform the mechanics correctly from the start, and watch him grow into a special talent.

When you understand what's going on in the bowling action from a technical point of view, you've got half a chance. The line and length is simply a result of the action. So focusing on the cause is the answer. Otherwise, all you're asking a bowler to do is compensate and make allowances for incorrect biomechanics. The bowler will then either evolve with a problem action or, worse still, never be able to bowl truly fast.

Let's get the biomechanics right first. The rest will follow. This will give youngsters the best chance of success. Personally, I would rather see a young fast bowler trying to bowl too fast. I feel that more inaccuracy comes from bowling slower balls than faster ones.

I recall a conversation with the great Middlesex and West Indies paceman, Wayne Daniel. On hearing that I had been told to concentrate on trying to hit the seam and shape the ball better when I bowled, he remarked 'Man, just bowl at 100mph and let the batsman negotiate...