Where have all the fundamental basics of the game gone missing?

                  

In the present day scenario, amidst all the hustle and bustle of the T 20, ODI’s and the test matches somehow I get a feeling that majority of the players have either forgotten the basic techniques of cricket or they have not been taught these basic nuances of the game.. Whether it be the training and fitness drills or running between the wickets where the batsmen hold the bat in the wrong hand while turning for a run. The youngsters at the  school and the college level are taught by their coaches how to ground the bat, which side to turn while looking at the partner and holding the bat in the appropriate hand while running between the wickets.

We get to see an experienced player like a Gambhir or even Sehwag trying to plonk the bat in the crease instead of actually making an effort to drag and stretch the bat in the crease as far as possible. Now a days the batsmen are getting run out by just a matter of an inch or so. These basic techniques can surely make the difference between the batsmen getting run out and crossing the crease. There are numerous instances of batsmen just ball watching instead of looking at his partner for a response, the result being a slight hesitation and one of the two  having to pay a price with his wicket. We often as spectators just look at the fielding effort of the fielder in trying to run out  the batsman. No doubt the throw has to be accurate or right close to the other fielder waiting to remove the bails. In the ODI’s and the T 20 or for that matter even in a test, these silly run outs can make a world of a difference to the eventual outcome of the contest. I sometimes get a feeling that the players do not have a proper net session before the match. Most of the times even during the test match we see players just having a throw down from the coach or the other staff. Basics like making an eye contact with the partner or calling loudly and clearly are also not being followed even by the experienced players.

Now a days playing volleyball or football before a match has become a trend or even a part of the so called fitness regime. There are numerous instances of the players getting themselves injured on the foot or even a broken finger while playing football and volleyball. I can completely understand the players trying to warm up for a cricket match but I am afraid all these throw down and football business just makes me go bonkers in the head. We often wonder the reasons for players getting frequently injured especially the pacers. I might add that there is way too much cricket being played but keeping this aspect in mind I also think that the pace bowlers do not practice sprinting for 15- 20 minutes. The fast bowlers also have forgotten the good old method of a proper warm up before  the match or just before a new spell after a long period.  All we see is that the pacers just do a bit of stretching and come on to bowl . The international level of sports demands the professional players to be super fit in all conditions to perform at the highest level.

During fielding many a times we see that the bowler is not standing behind the stumps to inflict a run out but instead is standing in the way of the path of the ball and the stumps  as if showing a bit too eager and a hurried approach towards inflicting a run out. Even in the slip cordon we see the fielders grabbing at the ball instead of keeping the hands loose to complete the catch. In a recent test match against England in Nagpur, Virender Sehwag who has stood in the first slip for a long time in tests  was not even properly bending down and staying low so as to give himself the best possible chance to take a sharp catch and instead was standing upright and the result being that he let go a couple of chances because of his late reaction towards a sharpish catch low down. All these basic techniques of batting, bowling and fielding should be avoided at least at the international level. For this to happen the coaches at the junior levels should be inculcating these basic methods to every player and it is the duty of these players to execute these things at the international level where the level of competitiveness is of the highest order.