Hitting School

[ZIMDOGGY]

Something I have noticed (and I'd bet on a bee's dick Im not alone) is just how abysmal Zimbabwe are when it comes to quick runs being needed and needed ASAP. As soon as it gets to 7 an over and the opposition just puts fielders back then its game over. No real sixes presence, the 4s are usually from deft sweeps, including the reverse sweep variation, and just overall lack of power.

This is most evident in the T20s where we are ranked lower than the local pub team.
Now that BT is gone, If it werent for Elton, who's the only player close to the exception to this rule in the national side, we'd be even lower and would seriously struggle in all limited overs formats.

Compare that to the Matador cup thats happening right now, people are digging out yorkers for 6. They are clearing the rope for fun effortlessly or with sheer power. Some dude got 200+ from 100 balls the other day. Everywhere in the world you see this, except in Zim. Where all the players appear coached to play the test match type of game. It seems very clear to me traditional batting techniques are seen more in Zim than anywhere else in the world. This is a positive when we play tests. But we need to adapt, Darwinism, I-Ching etc.

So what I propose is a hitting school where guys are taught to whack.



We need Bliggie to head up this academy with Streak and maybe Craig Evans or some big boy from the past.
If this was established last year, then Williams would have got his ton in the World Cup and we'd have beaten the Irish.

I dont have the full answer, but I know some steps in preparation.

1. Buy some protein powder for breakfast and for an afternoon snack. These are widely available and you can get them everywhere such as here http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/OPTIMUM-NUTR ... ?pi=466130 . This particular brand has some nice flavours like Chocolate Malt and Ice Cream, and is cheap enough that even a zimbo can afford it. If that isnt the brand for you, there are plenty of alternates available. Just make sure they have at least 24 grams of protein a serve.

2. ^If the above is too much effort, I'm sure a few of the boys can meet a few Nigerians downtown in an alley, who can sell you some quick acting 'vitamins' to add muscle in no time....if you get my drift

3. Sign up to the gym. Harare seems to have a fair amount of gyms. This one has a pool https://www.facebook.com/BodyActiveGym and is open till 8pm every night. Join it and stick to a timetable.

4. Whack shit. It worked back in the mid 2000s when Brendan Taylor started whacking and killed the Mongoose (side note, that makes Twitter posts like this by him seem hypocritical https://twitter.com/brendantaylor86/sta ... 4713698305 ).
Make sure its done with a cricket bat and it hits the middle. I propose using a mexican piniata, or Prosper Utseya, or a piniata that looks like Prosper.

Happy Gilmore could be a good movie to watch beforehand here as well to get the mindset right.


Thats 4 points from coach Zimdoggy (who Bayhaus once called the Player coach of the forum like Grant Flower). I am not paid the 50 bucks a year to coach like the ZC guys get, so ill leave it to others to further develop the hitting school.

[brmtaylor.com admin]

North Sydney Oval is the size of a postage stamp, unleash Craig Ervine on the CA XI there and he'll make a double century too.

I'd include Raza alongside Chigumbura by the way.

The only problem with teaching guys how to whack it further is... if Zim is at this level supposedly teaching good technique, where would we be if they taught bad technique?

[bayhaus]

On point dude. have always said this on other fora, one of the reasons I have insisted that T20 is our worst format. That is also the same reason we have so many close games when chasing i used think it was just not being able to pace an innings but I think it comes down to not being able to hit. A game that is supposed to end in 44 overs ALWAYS seems to trickle to 'nail biting finish'. UAE was a good example of that as well. We are useless at hitting once asked some of the current players if they ever just practice hitting the ball like 30mins of just going at everyball to hitting. Negative. I also once asked if Vusi ever practised his pull shot like a whole afternoon just pulling. Negative. This is professional sport things dont just happen, unless you are AB who is just a prodigy and in his own class. Everyone else has to practice.

deft sweeps, including the reverse sweep variation, and just overall lack of power.

I cant stand it when the commentators positively comment on these shots when we clearly just need to whack the ball to the boundary.

Another thing that I observed especially at the ground is that for some reason our bats just sound different compared to the oppositions. What is it with the bats???

[eugene]

Vusi needs to practice his pull shot for an hour without getting out.

[foreignfield]

Yep, Zim is a haven of orthodoxy. Someone must have buried the MCC coaching manual in the middle at HSC a hundred years ago. The only innovation that ever reached Zim are (reverse) sweeps. The thinking seems to be: If they were good enough for Andy Flower they are good enough for me.

Even when the people on the ground talk about schools' cricket and they mention a guy who can hit a long ball it's mostly like "yeah, he can hit, but he's just a T20 slogger. His technique is going to be found out". It is no wonder our greatest and already lost batting talents of recent time (Byrom, Welch) look like perfect Test players.

I guess even Elton would have been lost if he hadn't been given the allrounder's licence to play freely when he was younger and arguably a better bowler. If it hadn't been for his bowling he might have ended up like Cephas Zhuwao.

[eugene]

Completely agree. Anyone with unorthodox technique has it beat out of them.

[CrimsonAvenger]

Yeah, very good points there Zimdoggy and Bayhaus. Probably the reason why we look more competitive in longer formats compared to the shorter ones. A real anomaly among all teams.

We are useless at hitting once asked some of the current players if they ever just practice hitting the ball like 30mins of just going at everyball to hitting. Negative. I also once asked if Vusi ever practised his pull shot like a whole afternoon just pulling. Negative.

That's just appalling.

Another thing that I observed especially at the ground is that for some reason our bats just sound different compared to the oppositions. What is it with the bats???

I've always thought about it too. And I've seen on numerous occasions Zim batsmen taking every opportunity to check out the bats of the opposition teams. Latest was Hammy putting Malik's bat to serious test when we won that light affected match. Who can forget Vusi's bat shattering to pieces in the WI? Clearly indicates our folks are using substandard equipment. Who knows? this could be a difference between averaging 3-5 runs higher!

But yeah, bottom line, we don't rate power hitting at all, probably explains why Vitori's batting potential has gone completely unnoticed...

[bavuma_rabada]

I'm not sure the problem really has as much to do with players or selection. Archaic minded coaches/selectors like Butcher, Grant, Bundu, Whatmore are/were never going to get this right. They belong to a different era and have no clue about these things.

Zim has had in the past Wishart, Streak, Blignaut, Craig Evans, Barney Rogers, Covetry, Greg Strydon (yes ), etc.

Among African players both Matambanadzos could hit a long ball. Chigumbura, Hami, Cephas & Nkala being the other. Lately we've see Vitori as well, but Shingi can hit a long ball too remember. Maruma is another players who deals in 4s&6s. He came good the last couple of times we watched him though. Matsi is the other, and Zmbabwe misused him and failed to cash in on him in T20s. In the Stanbic T20 years ago I watched Sauramba thump a few guys and hit huge sixes. I watched pretty much every match in that tournament.

Raza like Matsi also showed the ability to hit a long ball yet both are small.

So across generations, ages, races and sizes, Zimbabwe has players suited to T20. Tradition, training etc hasn't stifled ther generation schoolc, club, franchise or national level. The problem is coaches&selectors!!! Taylor, Vusi, Williams, Craig, Chibhabha, Waller etc are not T20 players. May get one brisk innings but it's not their game. Pick Cephas, pick Sauramba!

This T20 XI would be competitive if given time to develop. It's a top 7 of players who can come in and hit the ball straight away, and a top 6 of allrounders - Zhuwao, Raza, Hami, Chigumbura(c), Kaia, Jongwe(vc), Sauramba(wk), Vitori, Cremer, Chatara, Wellington

I always hear people talk about the Byrons, Welch, Currans etc but in my opinion, by far the biggest loss for Zimbabwe was Nathan Waller. In this lineup above where I have Kaia, that's where Nathan Waller should be playing. This boy didn't care FC, List A or Twenty20, he just hit the ball.

Out of interest have a look at the Most Sixes and Highest Strike Rates from the Pro50 seeing as there's no Twenty20 tourney. I just did after writing this, and it more or less mirrors what I wrote above. Kaia is the odd one out, but he hit lots of fours&ran plenty of singles. And who would dare say Mahela Jayawardene is no T20 great.

[bavuma_rabada]

Forgot Solom Mire in there. He has potential to work with so he's another one who can make that side seeing as Coventry was brought in.

[sloandog]

Currans

Sam Curran is a greater loss than Nathan Waller, arguably our greatest loss since Graeme Hick. Waller was/is a good player yes but wow he was inconsistent with the bat. Matskinyeri wasn't/isn't a T2O player, never was never will be, and Maruma is just plain shit so he wouldn't get in any side anyway.

Cephus is one i would agree with, I reckon he could potentially be dangerous up front, in T20 cricket only