Cricket training is essential for basically all levels of cricket but how do you train for different positions effectively? It is obvious that consistently playing cricket will help you improve as a player, but will it actually increase performance in speed, reaction time and variation. By performing fitness training, it can help with injury prevention and overall health actually making you a more powerful and valuable player.
To start training you need to know what you are capable of so you can overtime slowly increase the load, reps’ distance etc. Every time you may set yourself a goal that is slightly more than the last so planning is key. Below are some factors that are good to plan and keep track of:
- Amount of weight
- Number of repetitions
- Number of sets
- Distance
- Number of training sessions
- Time
Warmups
Warming up before training and cricket matches increases your power, flexibility, coordination and decreases the risk of injury. It is one of the easiest ways to make a difference in your performance.
Cricket Specific – 10-20 minutes of skill exercises. This includes running between the fielding drills or wickets. It is important to maintain a good rhythm and not let the body cool down again.
General – if you are warming up for general training 5-10 minutes of gentle activity such as walking, or jogging will increase your body temp and heart rate. The next step will be 5-10 minutes of dynamic stretching to loosen all of the muscles.
Bowlers
The main way to train for bowling is simply by bowling. This is to improve the eccentric strength of your muscles which cannot be replicated in the gym. However, the gym can be used to strengthen other muscles further and strengthen the muscles that are not used often in bowling to prevent imbalances on the left and right side of the body.
Fitness work for bowlers:
- Net bowling in 6 ball over’s with 23-minute rest breaks between over’s
- Interval training of different speeds and distances
- Plyometrics (explosive movements)
- Medicine ball throws and catches
- Olympic lifts in the range of 35 lifts with 2-3 minutes rest
- Core stabilising exercises.
- Specific individual exercises to focus on left and rightside imbalances once identified.
Wicketkeepers
The wicketkeeper is a unique position and it requires unique practice. A keeper needs to practice as much as bowlers and betters even though they don’t in club cricket.
Fitness training for wicketkeepers:
- General warm up for 1020 minutes. This is key in reducing the risk of injury.
- Cricket specific conditioning for 1530 minutes. This section works on general skills with core stability training to reduce the risk of injury. Focus on exercises around the legs, knees and ankles.
- Skills practice for 1545 minutes. Once conditioning has finished, you can move on to skill drills. This is done to improve and maintain areas that you feel weaker and this should continue until you are too fatigued to carry on.
- Team practice for at least 30 minutes. If you are training as a team, this is a good way to add in some team practice. Although this is not wicketkeeper specific, it focuses on team skills.
- General cool down for 1030 minutes. This is essential in preventing injuries and gives the team time to go over the training session.
Batsmen
Batting may seem focused around strength, but as a sport cricket uses the aerobic system. so cardio is a great way to improve your fitness.
Fitness training for batsmen:
- Strength training between 38 repetitions with 30-120 seconds rest between sets
- Sprint training over 20 meters with 13 minutes rest between sprints
- Interval training between 1560 meters with 30-60 seconds rest
- High intensity fielding drills
- Practice matches
Spin bowlers
Being fit as a spinner has a number of benefits such as faster injury recovery, better concentration, more power at speed in throwing, running and hitting and fewer muscle injuries.
Fitness training for spin bowlers:
- General metabolic training (running, circuit training or swimming)
- Shoulder strengthening to prevent injuries. This can be done by slowly going through the 6 stages of throwing.
- Polymetric training (explosive movements).
- Mobility and flexibility training.
Final tips
- Recovery – Rest is key for good training and improvements still occur between training sessions. It is personal how much and what type of rest you have, but it is important to get enough.
- Differences – Everyone reacts to training differently depending on age, fitness, genetics and medical history so don’t be caught up about instant results. Make sure you carry on training and time will show improved performance.
- Massages – Everyone experiences knots in their muscles, just from daily wear and tear of their bodies, even if they don’t play cricket! Massaging the soft tissue can work out any knots to restore function and reduce any pain. You can do this by yourself with a massage roller or get a professional to do it for you.
- Cramps – Prevent cramps by drinking 500ml of water every hour, eating bananas for potassium, stretch before and after exercise and drink sports drinks with electrolytes.