12/06/2020
There’s an old saying, “the way you train is the way you play”. Also, “the standard you walk past is the standard you accept”.
We tend to see fast bowlers over-stepping the line a lot at training. How often do you let your fellow quick know they are doing this? Are you accountable to yourself if somebody says you’re bowling over the line?
Over-stepping the line in training is a bad habit that can carry across into the game. Just have a look at the last Ashes series; no worse feeling than taking a wicket from a no-ball, especially when it is Steve Smith!
Many bowlers including myself have had many troubles adjusting their run-up to avoid bowling a no-ball. The common mistake is to take your run-up back further and further each time. I’ve done this and it causes you to over-reach and over-stride, and it results in you losing your rhythm, confidence, speed, accuracy, and consistency. Basically it’s a disaster.
Then I found out what some elite fast bowlers do. They ask the umpire to stand a bit further back than normal near the point of take-off. The idea is, if you can take-off from the same position, you are less likely to over-step the line, providing you are taking off from the correct spot.
This technique makes use of a “vertical reference point” (e.g., the umpire) to alter “gait regulation” (e.g., how we adjust locomotion) in the run-up. That is, by having some sort of marker to know where you should jump from, you will automatically adjust your run-up so you will jump from this point. This means you will be more consistent with your landing and delivery stride, and you should not bowl any more no-balls.
Do you use a vertical reference point at training for your jump? If not, give it a go and let me know how it works for you. Otherwise, let us know what you do to avoid bowling no-balls
