Eyeing the Ball

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Virendersingh.berthwal

Virendersingh.berthwal

Active Member
Eyeing the Ball

Hi David,

One of my teammates is having a unusual problem while batting.
It seems that unknowingly his eyes closes when playing a shot and he has been in trouble in the nets/matches as well.
Can you advice for the same.
PS: There are no specific shots but it happens even when playing against spinners as well.

Virender :laugh:
 
Re: Eyeing the Ball

Virender,

Welcome to the board and congrats on your post.

I'll pass your query onto our specialist batting coach as it will be a nice introduction to the board for him.

In the mean time, I'm sure that David or one of the other members will post some helpful advice.

I do have some information regarding the problem your friend is having but I'll need to check it before I post.
 
Re: Eyeing the Ball

Virendersingh.berthwal said:
Hi David,

One of my teammates is having a unusual problem while batting.
It seems that unknowingly his eyes closes when playing a shot and he has been in trouble in the nets/matches as well.
Can you advice for the same.
PS: There are no specific shots but it happens even when playing against spinners as well.

Virender :laugh:
Click to expand...

Relax the face while playing the shot. The face and neck should do NOTHING but move over the ball and the eyes looking at it.
 
Re: Eyeing the Ball

Almost_Austwick said:
I'll pass your query onto our specialist batting coach as it will be a nice introduction to the board for him.
Click to expand...

Ooo, looking forward to it.
 
Re: Eyeing the Ball

Are you saying that he flinches when the ball comes at him or that he has trouble keeping his eye on the ball?
 
Re: Eyeing the Ball

StanTheMan said:
Are you saying that he flinches when the ball comes at him or that he has trouble keeping his eye on the ball?
Click to expand...

Yes!! He flinches when the ball is coming at him and it happens not regularly but occasionally between his batting display.The concentration,stance,grip,confidence are all fine; but unknowingly his eyes closes during batting in the nets or during matches; even against the spinners as well.It is also unusual for me so I am hoping for an advice from u all.

Virender :)
 
Re: Eyeing the Ball

Virender

You don't say whether your teammate is actually scoring runs with this technique! I still have fond memories of Ian Botham hooking Dennis Lillee to the boundary in 1981 with his eyes closed and that seemed pretty effective. As with all technique issues, if it is working - don't change it!

Assuming the eyes are causing problems in the runs department, the first thing we need to ascertain is whether this issue is being caused by an underlying (perhaps subconscious) fear of getting hurt.

If he thinks that this may be the issue then the way to approach it would be to wear as much protective equipment as possible. Many players at club level eschew sufficient protective equipment as they don't want their team mates laughing at them but I would advocate helmet, arm guard, inner thigh pad or even chest pad if that is going to make a difference to the way they play. Confidence is one of the most important elements for a batsman to have and you should wear any extra equipment that you think might boost confidence levels.

If fear is not the issue then it would seem that your teammate has developed a "habit" of closing his eyes. The way we need to tackle this is to unlearn the habit.

Starting with tennis balls from a few feet away, feed the balls to your teammate whilst at the same time reminding him to open his eyes. Repeat this as many times as necessary for the habit to start to go away without having to talk to him. Slowly build up the practice to cricket balls, then nets. If at any stage the habit re-occurs take it back a level and repeat the steps as many times as necessary. A good technique is for your teammate to talk to himself when batting. Many batsman do this perhaps "watch the ball" or "head still" would be the most common things going through a batsman's mind and there is no reason why "eyes open" can't be added to this.

Darren Talbot
 
Re: Eyeing the Ball

Hi Darren,

Thanks for the information.
I would certainly work with him as adviced and would be certain to see some improvement by end of this week.I will post the update in the forum accordingly.

Virender :)
 
Re: Eyeing the Ball

Virender

I would say that although you may see a small improvment in a week or so, this is going to be a bit of a longer term program.

Changing habits can take a long while so you and your firiend will need to be willing to work at it for a period of time, although I'm cetain you'll see the benefits quite quickly.

Look forward to the updates!
 
Re: Eyeing the Ball

DarrenTalbotCricket said:
Virender

You don't say whether your teammate is actually scoring runs with this technique! I still have fond memories of Ian Botham hooking Dennis Lillee to the boundary in 1981 with his eyes closed and that seemed pretty effective. As with all technique issues, if it is working - don't change it!

Assuming the eyes are causing problems in the runs department, the first thing we need to ascertain is whether this issue is being caused by an underlying (perhaps subconscious) fear of getting hurt.

If he thinks that this may be the issue then the way to approach it would be to wear as much protective equipment as possible. Many players at club level eschew sufficient protective equipment as they don't want their team mates laughing at them but I would advocate helmet, arm guard, inner thigh pad or even chest pad if that is going to make a difference to the way they play. Confidence is one of the most important elements for a batsman to have and you should wear any extra equipment that you think might boost confidence levels.

If fear is not the issue then it would seem that your teammate has developed a "habit" of closing his eyes. The way we need to tackle this is to unlearn the habit.

Starting with tennis balls from a few feet away, feed the balls to your teammate whilst at the same time reminding him to open his eyes. Repeat this as many times as necessary for the habit to start to go away without having to talk to him. Slowly build up the practice to cricket balls, then nets. If at any stage the habit re-occurs take it back a level and repeat the steps as many times as necessary. A good technique is for your teammate to talk to himself when batting. Many batsman do this perhaps "watch the ball" or "head still" would be the most common things going through a batsman's mind and there is no reason why "eyes open" can't be added to this.

Darren Talbot
Click to expand...

Great post there, seems you know your stuff.

Also, had a look sat your site, nice work!


Virender,

Get your friend out there, all the kit you can muster and throw balls at him. Once he learns to trust his protection it'll help him no end.
 
Re: Eyeing the Ball

great post darren i think it must be a bad habit that he formed. i never close my eyes unless its coming straight towards my head.
 
Re: Eyeing the Ball

Rob,

Another tip for him to keep his eyes open are to throw tennis balls at him. Just before you throw the ball, ask him to tell you what it says or what brand is on the tennis ball. There doesnt even have to be anything on the ball but I bet he keeps his eyes open and trys to look for the name! Works every time!

Pro Cricket Coaching.
 
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