Cricket - 99.94 Tips to Improve Your Game - Ken Davis and Neil Buszard - NEW

Cricket

99.94 Tips to Imrpove Your Game

by Ken Davis and Neil Buszard

NEW, 168 pages plus DVD

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About Cricket

The great Sir Donald Bradman’s test-match batting average of 99.94 is an achievement matching that of any other sporting great.

Cricket: 99.94 Tips to Improve Your Average reveals the secrets that made certain players great and provides advice from two of the game’s most respected coaches.

The authors have both played and coached at the highest level domestically, and their considerable knowledge provides a unique insight into improving all areas of the game.

Chapters on batting, bowling, fielding, captaincy and coaching will bring about an improvement in both technique and performance in players at any level.

As you would expect from two of the world’s most respected authorities on the game, the chapter on coaching provides upto- the-minute advice on getting the best out of both players as individuals and as team members.

The authors provide a unique insight into the special qualities that made certain cricketers achieve greatness, and they pass on the secrets of their success.

About Ken Davis

Dr. Ken Davis has played and coached cricket at a high level, coached both men’s and women’s teams and provided support to players as a sport psychologist. In 1972 he completed a master’s degree in physical education in Perth, Western Australia, where his thesis on cinematographic analysis of fast bowling in cricket became the catalyst for over 30 years of research into this explosive and often potentially harmful motion. In 1989 he completed a PhD in sport psychology from Florida State University. He has worked with several elite athletes and teams in the role of sport psychologist, most notably with the Geelong and Richmond football teams in the Australian Football League. Since 2000 Ken has worked at Cricket Victoria in a variety of roles, including coaching the successful Victorian Spirit women’s team as well as leading the Australian women’s youth team on tours of New Zealand and Sri Lanka.

About Neil Buszard

Neil Buszard played over 300 games of Premier cricket and had a division of the Victorian Premier Cricket competition named in his honour during the 2006-07 season. He was also a very successful baseball player, representing Australia as a third baseman and also winning the coveted Helms Award as the best player in Australia. Graduates of Buszard’s innovative and balanced training programme have become elite cricketers, and many have made their mark in other fields as well, including cricket administration. Neil has great people skills as well as cricket skills: His unbridled enthusiasm for the game, coupled with his energetic and thoughtful approach to performance enhancement, has long placed him at the forefront of coaching in Australia.

Reviews of the Book

"Practical, accessible, and easy to follow! Reading this book means you'll need a bulletproof excuse for why you managed to run out your skipper yet again. It also contains a Bradman reference—what's not to like?"

Ed Davis -- All Out Cricket Magazine

"Setting goals early provides a focus for young players, but achieving the goals takes dedication, ability, and a well-developed technique. The tips in this book provide the foundation for the continued development of every young cricketer."

Arnie Sidebottom -- Former Yorkshire and England Fast Bowler

About Cricket

A cricket match is played between two teams (or sides) of eleven players each on a field of variable size and shape. The ground is grassy and is prepared by groundsmen whose jobs include fertilising, mowing, rolling and levelling the surface. Field diameters of 137–150 metres (150–160 yd) are usual. The perimeter of the field is known as the boundary and this is sometimes painted and sometimes marked by a rope that encircles the outer edge of the field. The Laws of Cricket do not specify the size or shape of the field but it is often oval – one of cricket's most famous venues is called The Oval.

The objective of each team is to score more runs than the other team and to completely dismiss the other team. In one form of cricket, winning the game is achieved by scoring the most runs, even if the opposition has not been completely dismissed. In another form, it is necessary to score the most runs and dismiss the opposition in order to win the match, which would otherwise be drawn.

Before play commences, the two team captains toss a coin to decide which team shall bat or bowl first. The captain who wins the toss makes his decision on the basis of tactical considerations which may include the current and expected field and weather conditions.

The key action takes place in a specially prepared area of the field (generally in the centre) that is called the pitch. At either end of the pitch, 22 yards (20 m) apart, are placed the wickets. These serve as a target for the bowling (aka fielding) side and are defended by the batting side which seeks to accumulate runs. A run is scored when the batsman has run the length of the pitch after hitting the ball with his bat, although as explained below there are many ways of scoring runs. If the batsmen are not attempting to score any more runs, the ball is dead and is returned to the bowler to be bowled again.

The bowling side seeks to dismiss the batsmen by various means until the batting side is all out, whereupon the side that was bowling takes its turn to bat and the side that was batting must take the field.

In professional matches, there are 15 people on the field while a match is in play. Two of these are the umpires who regulate all on-field activity. Two are the batsmen, one of whom is the striker as he is facing the bowling; the other is called the non-striker. The roles of the batsmen are interchangeable as runs are scored and overs are completed. The fielding side has all 11 players on the field together. One of them is the bowler, another is the wicketkeeper and the other nine are called fielders. The wicketkeeper (or keeper) is nearly always a specialist but any of the fielders can be called upon to bowl.

Cricket

99.94 Tips to Imrpove Your Game