Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

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shaazthegreat

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Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

Many people argue that backyard cricket plays a vital role in the development of one's game.
It's usually tremendous fun. But the balls used are not similar to the ones used in real games. When I was 4-9 yrs old, we used hard rubber balls OR plastic balls. Rubber balls bounced a lot, and plastic balls, sometimes where slow in the air, sometimes fine. However it was impossible to get swing or spin with them.

Then it was the tennis ball, which bounced a lot and never seemed to fly with the power you hit it. Also straight batted shots were hard to play.
Then the taped ball. This one was fine. It didn't swing (the whole thing was taped. Half taped balls swing but bounce more) but bounce was perfect.

All these balls were smaller than the usual size of a cricket and lighter.
I have been told it affects the bowling action a lot, especially for fast bowlers. Is this true? If yes then do you have any other methods for safe play?
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

I think backyard cricket is so good because it helps get the player interested in cricket whilst being quick, easy to set up, and you only need 2 players to get a game going. It also teaches kids not to take the game too seriously.

With the balls, I don't think bowling with lighter balls would effect your bowling action too greatly, and anyway, it's not like you are gonna send a bunch of 10 year olds with cricket balls, so there isn't much of an alternative.

In Australia the half taped tennis ball would have to be the favourite for most people.

Me and my neighbour used to make up 11 different players (the best player and captain on both teams were always our real names :laugh:) and we'd have matches against each other. He would always win because he is 2 or 3 years older than me and a very talented allrounder. But yeh, those were fun times and definitely assisted my love for the game.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

Backyard Ckt is really helpful if you ask me for bowling. I don't why people say it isn't. A bowler who is bowling fast with a tennis bowl, will bowl even quicker with a cricket ball and personally, I think that switching to the cricket ball only assists the bowler. (personal experience) I had been playing tennis/taped ball cricket until I was like 13 and when I started playing for a club here, I made some immediate impact and now I'm a front up wicket taker in the Swiss U17's. There's nothing to lose with backyard cricket if you ask me. Oh and whenever I go back to Pakistan for holidays me and my cousins always have a series you could say. I mainly go there in the summers meaning the weather is pretty hot but we're always up for it. It's kind of our backyard cricket ashes. :laugh:
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

I always tended to use a variety of balls, from tennis balls with tape to windballs or incrediballs.

As for helping with bowling, well, I can't seem any major harm as long as you have a decent sized area to play in.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

i think tapeball/tennis ball etc is very helpfull...why do you think Pakistani bowlers are so fast. Mostly all of them start their cricket in the streets with tapeball and with that ball you have to bowl fast to get speed thus when bowling with hardball their speed is so high. I have played with tapeball all my life...then last year when started playing for a club i was bowling really fast. I am almost 16 and probably bowling in upper 70s and lowers 80s mph.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

That's really sharp for a 15yo, are you sure you're that fast??

Fair point with the tape ball thing, you do have to bowl quick for it to be anything like fast with a tennis ball. Though I would debate the point about Pakistani bowlers being the fastest, this is probably not the thread for it.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

i was just giving an example about the Pakistani bowlers because that is the country i know that tapeball is popular for sure...and yea obviosly alot of other country's have fast bowler such as brett lee, shane bond etc etc old west indies bowlers...as for my speed im pretty sure i am in the upper 70s...prob on good days reached the lower 80...like 80 81 mph...one thing to increase your pace is bowl as much as you can for example 5-8 overs everyday + the gym work.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

Fair enough, I don't really know how popular tapeball is here in Scotland.

I'm under the impression that bowling that much would be detrimental and likely to lead to injury. I read an article by a physio specialising in cricket that basically said bowling 4 days out of 7 would be the absolute most and you shouldn't bowl on more than 2 days in a row.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

Can anyone provide a photo or more information about the tapeball and how much it is useful to batsmen and bowlers.
Can it be used for Off season training.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

It's just a tennis ball with duct tape around one side.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

It reverse swings like all buggery. I mean absolutly massive.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

well i dont know about duct tape...but the electric tape is what i have always used. tape the whole ball and it is good for batsmen and bowlers. it really starts to swing once the tape starts tearing. just like a real cricket ball swings when 1 side is shiny and 1 side rough
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

I will also use electric Tape......but u are saying to tape the whole ball and jonesy was saying to tape around one side.
There are two different theories.
Can u provide a photo for example.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

If you tape one side only it reverse swings i.e. towards the duct tape
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

Yeah you can do either, tape the whole thing or just the half (electric tape - that's what i use). If you tape the whole thing you have the advantage of being able to tape it more and more to make it really thick, and consequently hard, less bouncy and heavier.

But taping one side is really good because the tennis ball swings like hell! Just start taping with a line of tape from about half of the ball and finish taping only one side - and now it becomes the shiny side. I have also done that with plastic balls, which swing a lot more, I guess since they are lighter (I play long matches with my brother with a such a ball and a plastic baseball bat or plastic stump). Anyone else does it another way?


On bowling with it, it's true it requires more strength or arm speed to get the ball across to the batsman at high speeds. The akhtar like action (or malinga, tait, etc.) usually develops. But it's very common that the action you get isn't the best for your back. I used to get lots of pace, and lots of injuries came along too.
And bowling with the tennis ball, you end up like malinga because with an action like his the tennis ball doesn't bounce like it usually does.

You don't usually think about lining up your body etc. (the ian pont stuff) while bowling with a tape ball.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

for example in the picture above...it will swing like crazy. some times when the fully taped ball's tape is ripped it swing so much that it almost cuts in the air. Obviously that is a disadvantage for the batsmen. what i am talking about is a fully electric taped ball(very common in S.Asia). well i cant find any pics online but you just tape the whole bowl.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

Thanks Shaaz,Fast bowler(What is ur real name :)) and Jimmy33 for the advice & photo.
I will tape half of the ball and observe the impact this weekend.
I will post the photos/videos as well.
The practice is on this weekend.
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

back yard cricket..is about the best thing for a cricketer..we have like..competitions..on my neighbors driveway..thats wre i learnt most of my bowling..
its a good way to get young kids into cricket
 
Re: Backyard Ckt - Bowling with Tennis/Taped Ball

Had a quality half-carpeted pitch with a massive oval (well seemed massive back in the day). THe art of getting the perfect ball was tough, an older ball without fluff was the way too go. Often a dark shade of green bit tougher to pick up. Red tape was our choice of tape for me and the brother and off we went. Not too much tape, not too little.
 
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