Following on from Part One in How To Play Cricket , one of the key concepts is to focus the cricketer’s brain, their attention on a new goal, with positive intention.
To train the cricketer’s focus of attention on what they want to make happen when they play.
In learning how to play cricket it is central to pay attention to the positive opportunity that each ball bowled, brings.
In doing this, it is establishing positive goal orientation for each ball.
Intention and Goals
The intention is the thought behind a movement, this needs to be positive. The thought shapes the goal, so when working with young players we want to establish wiring that is setting up positive outcomes.
I am going to hit this short ball for four
I am going to bowl a yorker to hit the stumps
I am going to defend this ball
So it is essential that players learn to pay attention, to direct their focus on the right thing at the right time.
As batters we focus on the ball and hitting it, not on, not getting out.
The brain follows this literally and even if the batter doesn’t get out, it makes it very difficult to score runs.
In getting the beginning cricketer to pay attention and to set goals with positive intent we are beginning to shape the players mental game with excellent wiring.
Kids will play and the more fun they can have whilst they are doing it the better, this allows them to make positive connections and to create wiring in the brain that is all associated with the joy of the game and learning to play it.
The goal is to get the beginner and all players to have fun and to learn as effortlessly as possible.
Examples of Positive Intention and Attention
Ex. The batter hits the ball and there is an opportunity for a run out.
Goal for Fielder: Gather ball, throw at the stumps, focus on the stumps.
Ex. The batter is waiting to face the next ball, the bowler is running in to bowl the ball.
Goal for Batter: Watch ball, judge line and length of the ball, decide what stroke to play, hit the ball.
Ex. The batter hits the ball in the air, there is a chance of a catch.
Goal for Fielder: Focus on the ball, catch the ball.
Ex. There is a new batter in, bowl straight to hit the stumps before they have got their eye in.
Goal for Bowler: Look at the stumps, bowl at the stumps, hit the stumps.
How To Play Cricket: Success and Failure for the young cricketer ?
Success and Failure in learning how to play cricket are two sides of the same coin.
To learn, the brain chooses a goal, to achieve that goal we are either on track or off track, neither is good or bad, it is how the brain learns, so learning is trial and error.
When we learn to walk we stand up, fall over, stand up, fall over, as this continues we learn to balance and take our first steps.
And we continue to fall over, but the gaps between the falls get longer as we become more proficient in balancing and walking.
No parent in their right mind criticizes their baby for falling over when learning to walk, we need to remember this because ‘trial and error’ is the foundation of all learning.
They don’t say ‘you are failure’ ….. ‘you are no good’ , because the child stumbled, we intuitively know that that this is part of the learning process.
It is no different in learning cricket.
Yet when the child gets older there is the tendency to start framing what they do as being successful or failing.
There is only learning, so long as we remember this and pay attention to positively re-inforcing the learning, we will be on the right track.
We are generous with our encouragement whilst the cricket player is building new skills, mental, physical and technical.This creates good wiring and keeps the beginner in a good part of the brain for learning.
back to How To Play Cricket from How To Play Cricket: Part Two
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About Richard Pybus
I'm Richard Pybus, I've coached Pakistan, Bangladesh, Middlesex, Titans and the Cape Cobras in South Africa and the goal of this site is to help you to play winning cricket.