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Skill Focus - Square Drive
There are few things better than watching a dreamy square drive as it races along the outfield before hitting the ad boards with a comforting 'thud'. However, it can be all too simple to get hung up about playing it, so lets take it back a little and work from the basics.
The Basics
What Can go Wrong
Correcting the Problems
There are few things better than watching a dreamy square drive as it races along the outfield before hitting the ad boards with a comforting 'thud'. However, it can be all too simple to get hung up about playing it, so lets take it back a little and work from the basics.
The Basics
- The square drive will normally be played off a ball that is very full in length and about 15-20 cm outside the off stump.
- Initially it will look as though you can cover drive the ball until you realize the ball is going to pitch very full where you can re-adjust to play the ball through the square point position.
- This shot has a real feel to it and the full face must be slightly open. The hands cannot follow the ball as in other strokes off the front foot.
What Can go Wrong
- Batsmen can over step with their front foot movement. The result will be that they make a Yorker length out of the delivery, and limit their options to play the ball through the cover point area.
- The square drive is not the first option because unless you are picking the ball up very quickly it will seem as though it is a cover drive, be relaxed and do not panic when you have to re-adjust to jam the ball out and play a square drive.
- If you lean back too far it can open the face of the bat too much and only offer an edge to the slips, keep your balance on your front foot and be able to adjust your weight slightly back towards the middle of your legs.
- If the batsman plants his left foot too far across to the off-side at the point of delivery, he may not be able to get inside the line to be able to place the ball square of the wicket.
Correcting the Problems
- It takes practice to familiarize yourself with the feel of this shot. The batsman should ideally either have someone through balls in the hitting area or set the bowling machine to the correct length and then repeat the shot continuously.
