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Bowling tactics in First-Class Matches

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  • #16
    Originally posted by cde View Post

    I’ve been paying a bit more attention to how I’m using the field when bowling on 2 bars. I principally use two slightly different settings, the first is a more ‘standard’ setting, two slips, third man, point, cover, long off, mid off, deepish mid wicket and deep backward square. The second is the Field I use in LO matches.

    I get more wickets with the ‘standard’ field than the LO field and keep the run rate under reasonable control, they seldom seem to get away from me. With the LO field I can dry the runs up quite substantially and I do take wickets but it takes much longer. The difference between the runs-to-wicket ratio isn’t huge but how I use them is. I only use the LO field to put the brakes on a batsmen who is smashing us about the field, and I often get aggressive batsmen out this way.
    I'm generally quite curious about the field modifications you use in First Class...

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    • #17
      I’ll try and post some soon, if you’re interested.

      Comment


      • #18
        Originally posted by cde View Post
        I’ll try and post some soon, if you’re interested.
        Yes please!

        Comment


        • #19
          WARNING
          LONG WINDED POSTS AHEAD


          frustratedofnewport is to blame. He asked for them.

          Despite being in many ways quite objectionable and the dullest batsman to have played the game Geoffrey Boycott does know a thing or two about cricket and his opinion about setting a field is characteristically correct - “Don’t set fielders for bad bowling”.

          Set your field for what you are trying to achieve otherwise it makes it much harder to achieve what you want. If you have a bowler who keeps offering the batsman long-hops to pull for 4 or half volleys to drive you will not achieve anything by placing fielders in the hope to stop them, a bad ball will always get put away.

          When setting a field you are looking to place a fielder to either catch the ball, stop runs being scored (both singles and boundaries), deter batsmen from attempting a shot because there is someone in the way or encourage a shot that would be unwise. The game seems to portray this aspect of the game pretty well and field placements effect run rates, how batsmen try to score and how they get out.. These can be small gains but cricket is a game of small gains.

          Comment


          • #20
            Since, in Britain at least, always start with the seamers so will I.

            The first is my standard setting for new batsmen. I save it under (fast/med)-off-4 and (fast/med)-mid-4 so it is used automatically.

            The close catching positions are self explanatory, three slips, fully and short point on the off side and silly leg.

            The shortish mid-off and the man at cover are catching positions as well as deterrents. Plenty of batsmen either sky one to cover or clip one into the the arms of mid-off but they also stops batsmen dropping the ball into the off side for an easy single.

            The the man at backwards square is mostly there for the easy clip off the legs for a single. Sometimes a batsman will mistime a pull but since the ball is mostly pitching middle and off or off stump only poor balls get (quite rightly) pulled for 4.

            I use this setting until the batsman reaches double figures.

            I have a slight variation for when bowling full in overcast conditions where the man at backwards square moves to leg slip. Especially if you are bowling middle and off rather than outside off stump batsmen can often edge to leg slip or simply clip a ball of their legs straight to them.

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            • #21
              After the batsman is into double figures (unless through boundaries) I move to to 3 bar aggression and this field setting. I save it as (fast/med)-mid-3 and (fast/med)-off-3.

              Using the previous field setting third slip moves out to third man to save the easy runs, gully steps a little square to make a kind of 2/3 gully 1/3 point position. This needs to be a good fielder.

              Mid off steps back a little and a man comes into the leg side at a halfway point between mid-wicket and med-leg. If while bowling this field you move the camera behind the batsman you can see where the fielder is placed. He should be visible half way between the man at silly leg and the umpire. This stops the batsman pushing into the leg side - especially with left-arm-over bowling -for an easy two and catches mistimed pulls and drives to mid-wicket.

              This setting seems to stop some of the easy runs while most of the catching positions remain positive. I also find it effective in the first innings on a pitch with absolutely nothing for the seamers and for new batsmen in the third innings when trying to both take wickets and keep the run rate down.

              There is a variation for when the ball is swinging but the batsman is getting settled where, just as in the previous field setting I bring the backward square leg to leg-slip.

              Comment


              • #22
                Once the batsman has passed 20 he is pretty settled. There will still be chances but they are putting more balls away. What I try to do is stop them getting easy runs so that they have to go for a boundary and therefore give the opportunity to take their wicket.

                I use two slightly different fields depending on if I’m bowling outside off or middle and off.

                If middle and off:

                I retain the two slips and third man but the man at gully/point has moved to a standard position at point to deter the batsman cutting square while still stopping him go for a quick single.
                The man in the covers moves back to head off more boundaries..

                The leg side is a more spread too, a mid-on for the drives and a deep mid wicket for the big pulls. A man at mid-on seems to pick up quite a lot of wickets, especially against batsmen who are leg side/back foot dominant and try to pull the ball more.

                There are more players is run-saving positions but nothing hurts more than edged delivery to an empty space so two slips remain. This seems to slow the run rate but still get wickets at a reasonable rate.

                If outside off:

                From 1st slip to deep cover remain the same but mid-off moves a little wider and instead of a mid-off there is a long-off. This closes some of the gaps in the batsman’s eyeliner on the off side and encourages him to try and clear the wide mid-off fielder, opening catching opportunities.

                Comment


                • #23
                  If the batsman is past 50 I keep with the previous field setting for the first over of a new bowler’s spell then change to my most defensive setting.

                  Essentially the last field setting with out a first slip. If a set Batman edges one it seems to got to the wicket keeper or second slip so I use the extra man to field a mid off. I usually swap between this and my limited overs field where there is still a silly leg who gets a surprising amount of chances.

                  Really the best chance of taking a wicket is by mixing the attack up a bit, I often try more aggressive fields without changing aggression but going around the wicket or a LO field on high aggression. Once a batsman is settled just moving a few fields can slow them but rarely get a wicket.

                  Comment


                  • #24
                    then have a few setting I use for very specific situations. The first sees almost everyone behind the batsman. I use this in those situations where the ball is swinging around corners. I want the batsman to see all that space in front of him and try to drive into it. I can leak some cheap runs if they can just drop and go but usually this lead to wickets eventually.

                    Comment


                    • #25
                      I then use this for short stuff from a fast bowler on an uneven pitch, all those catchers waiting for the pull…

                      Comment


                      • #26
                        Originally posted by cde View Post
                        WARNING
                        LONG WINDED POSTS AHEAD


                        frustratedofnewport is to blame. He asked for them.

                        Despite being in many ways quite objectionable and the dullest batsman to have played the game Geoffrey Boycott does know a thing or two about cricket and his opinion about setting a field is characteristically correct - “Don’t set fielders for bad bowling”.

                        Set your field for what you are trying to achieve otherwise it makes it much harder to achieve what you want. If you have a bowler who keeps offering the batsman long-hops to pull for 4 or half volleys to drive you will not achieve anything by placing fielders in the hope to stop them, a bad ball will always get put away.

                        When setting a field you are looking to place a fielder to either catch the ball, stop runs being scored (both singles and boundaries), deter batsmen from attempting a shot because there is someone in the way or encourage a shot that would be unwise. The game seems to portray this aspect of the game pretty well and field placements effect run rates, how batsmen try to score and how they get out.. These can be small gains but cricket is a game of small gains.
                        Very interesting. Do you have any fields for spinners?

                        Comment


                        • #27
                          I do, it might take a while but I’ll post some.

                          Comment


                          • #28
                            Sometimes things just don't want to work. Just played a county match in a mix of light cloudy and heavy cloudy / rainy conditions. I started by putting up 273, Northamptonshire responded with 231. I ended the 3rd day at 239 and declared at the final over to give myself the full 4th day to bowl them out in case of any rain delay, with them needing 270ish runs to win. Conditions were forecast to be pretty terrible so I expected to be able to get it done easily enough. Boy was I wrong!

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                            With visibility fluctuating between 2-3 bars it was the worst day of the match. The cloudy conditions should've suited my seamers and the turned pitch should've suited my spinners. Nothing worked. Full aggression, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1... middle stump, outside middle, leg side, round the wicket. Their openers just kept hitting everything I threw their way and they ended 211-0 to tie the match. It's not like they went fully defensive and got lucky to survive either... that 57.6% strike rate was from a Very Def batsman with the 62.8 from an Avg. They were going for shots.

                            My bowlers that went 5-30 and 4-52 in the first innings when conditions were better for batting couldn't do a thing on the final day when conditions should've been even better for bowling.

                            Frustrating match

                            Comment


                            • #29
                              Sorry it is taking a while but I find that spinners require more thought (and blabbering on) than the seamers.

                              While the principle areas of attack you change with a seamer are line and length, with going around the wicket (for a right arm bowler to a right arm batsman) a measure of last resort, I find the main areas of change with a spinner are line and over/around the wicket with changing length an area of last resort. I find that just as in real life a spinner pitching it up will get driven all day long while if it’s short the cut and pull are always on.

                              When changing from over to around the wicket you change the areas of the field open to the batsman, which almost doubles up the fields, you then also to allow for bowling to left handers, which is a whole other set of fields.

                              I don’t change the field so much when I change the line I am bowing since this mostly changes with the state of the pitch and if I am chasing wickets. If using an off-spinner for, for example, over the wicket on a pitch that is barely turning then bowing middle and off is a fairly attacking line while moving outside off is defensive and while it can keep the run rate down it is much harder to take a wicket because LBW is out of the equation. If the pitch is turning, however, bowing outside off is an attacking line to take since you are now threatening the stumps and LBW is back in play. If anything it is more attacking than the middle and off line because the batsman has to decide whether to play it or not while the ball pitching. With a ball pitching middle and off you might threaten the leg stump but the batsman will always have to play the ball. If you move around the wicket bowling middle and off becomes the more attacking option because the straight one could be edged and the turning ball come back to attack the stumps.

                              And yes, I know this is only a game but it does still hold up.

                              Comment


                              • #30
                                Originally posted by cde View Post
                                Sorry it is taking a while but I find that spinners require more thought (and blabbering on) than the seamers.

                                While the principle areas of attack you change with a seamer are line and length, with going around the wicket (for a right arm bowler to a right arm batsman) a measure of last resort, I find the main areas of change with a spinner are line and over/around the wicket with changing length an area of last resort. I find that just as in real life a spinner pitching it up will get driven all day long while if it’s short the cut and pull are always on.

                                When changing from over to around the wicket you change the areas of the field open to the batsman, which almost doubles up the fields, you then also to allow for bowling to left handers, which is a whole other set of fields.

                                I don’t change the field so much when I change the line I am bowing since this mostly changes with the state of the pitch and if I am chasing wickets. If using an off-spinner for, for example, over the wicket on a pitch that is barely turning then bowing middle and off is a fairly attacking line while moving outside off is defensive and while it can keep the run rate down it is much harder to take a wicket because LBW is out of the equation. If the pitch is turning, however, bowing outside off is an attacking line to take since you are now threatening the stumps and LBW is back in play. If anything it is more attacking than the middle and off line because the batsman has to decide whether to play it or not while the ball pitching. With a ball pitching middle and off you might threaten the leg stump but the batsman will always have to play the ball. If you move around the wicket bowling middle and off becomes the more attacking option because the straight one could be edged and the turning ball come back to attack the stumps.

                                And yes, I know this is only a game but it does still hold up.
                                Thanks for thinking about it. It really is just interesting knowing other players ideas. The one thing I tend to avoid is bowling predominantly outside leg, unless I’m leaking runs at over 5 and over and just want to defend

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