Net sessions and discussions with other players

What happened? (work in progress 5/8/25)

Played in a couple of games that went OK, but let down by some loose deliveries

See here for decent coverage of the Raleigh game - skip through to 1 hr 4 mins for the start of my spell.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JyzFea26MiE&t=3934s

This is the analysis of my bowling in the Raleigh game associated with the video above.

Raleigh cricket week 

This is the aprroximation of what happened in the game at the weekend 

How do I feel it went? Went OK especially the weekend game, as I came away from the Raleigh game with some ideas about how to improve and these were implemented in the game against the 5th XI and it worked.

What was good/Bad? Good - my stock delivery. Bad the execution of variations. The variations are what cost me all the runs.

Analysis; So, the main take-away that seems obvious is... Not to attempt to bowl the variations. My current strategy in almost all scenarios is to bowl at the stumps. Anything outside of leg, even if it's turning tends to be attacked. Whereas, the balls at the stumps and outside seem to be the most effective in terms of economy. But with regards taking wickets there's limitations. A lot of the teams we play against in the friendly games seem to have a definite policy of not giving LBW's unless they're ridiculously obvious, but I felt the LBW in the Raleigh game fell into that catergory - a full (Yorker) top-spinner on midddle and leg and the bloke didn't give it, it's rare that I get any LBW's. 

One of the most likely outcomes off my bowling is the edge to the wicket keeper or slips, I think in the 6th XI game 3 of these weren't taken, if not more? The conclusion I've previously drawn and been advised to do is develop a straight ball option... The Top-Spinner. I've been working on it on and off, but not mastered it, some days it works really well, other days, as in the Raleigh game where I was desperate to get more wickets and tried it way too many times, ending up costing me a lots of runs. 

The 6th XI game I reigned it in and used it twice as a slow loopy option and both times it was mis-timed by the batter being hit down the ground and plugging before the boundary at deepish mid on and off. In discussion today with one of the 1st XI players who was in the Raleigh game with me, said that I bowled consitently flattish. He then said that Yan, the clubs best bowler (Pro player) who bowls left-arm orthodox (See data below)

every now and then tosses one up loopy with the field set back and gets wickets that way and advised me to do the same very now and then and to be fair the two balls that were hit off the top-spinners in the 6th v 5th's game may have been caught if the fielders had been deep and would have probably have only gone for 1 rather than 2. So, that's something to try and implement. 

Looking again at the wagon wheel of where I was hit in the Raleigh game, all of those 4's were off of bad balls (The 6 was a good ball and he just got hold of it). The obvious conclusion therefore, other than don't try the variations in actual games is to put more time into practicing them and that's what I did last night in the nets...

I had 2 hours in which I only bowled 3 leg-breaks. Thankfully there were some decent batters and a 'Leftie'. The weird thing was the first person I bowled at was Koush and I expected (going on what had happened in the 2 games) to bowl crap Top-Spinners, but right from the off they were bang on the money causing Koush to defend them. One or two strayed slightly leg-side and these were flicked off to fine leg for a potential single. But overall they were coming out OK. 

Then I moved to the other nets as they had a 'Leftie'. Initially I got the line wrong (Coming around the wicket) bowling at the off-stump and the bloke was hitting them easily down his leg-side. So then I went wider as I did against Ted Currington and that was a different story. Eventually getting him twice, the same approach works with Sri Kumar when I bowl at him. 

Once Koush left the net 3 other big-hitting aggressive players followed him and using the Top-Spinner with the ocassional Flipper I easily would have had all their wickets for virtually no runs if that's how they approached their batting in the nets. Stumpings, caught mid on and mid off if they were up and point as well as bowled a couple of times. They were completely fummoxed coming out of the nets saying 'Well bowled mate'. Joe said they were 3rd XI middle order batters. By this time the ball was coming out differently - not a pure top-spinner, but a small leg-break with lots of over-spin. The question now is... Was that 2 hours of bowling Top-Spinners enough to execute the same ball in match conditions? I think what I need to do is get Sri and some others to have a practice on Thursday over at Holy Cross on the artifical wicket.

Conclusion;  Leave the Flipper, not practiced enough with that, keep working with the Top-Spinner.

Action Plan; As mentioned above try and get another practice session in again at some point against batters or go over to Mopsies with a bucket of balls, a target and stumps and practice without a batter. Although I think Sri is off this week, so I might ask him if he wants to join me?