"Deal with pressure", "adjust to the game's pace", "make the first innings count", all sound like prize contenders for, as I like to call them, Outstanding Missives from the Department of the Bleeding Obvious.
"Stay leg-side of the ball" sounds interestingly different but it's also interestingly useless, in that it is so over-theorised that I have a hard time believing any cricketer would take it seriously. But bully for Mickey's wards if they did so. So let us give him this one.
Then there is "plan against spin". Imagine that, going to India, and you need to be told to "plan against spin". Brilliant, innit?
"Handle reverse swing" comes next. Yes, indeed, one must handle reverse swing, given that most potent quick bowling attacks in the world employ it. Very good, coach, very good. Now, what next? "Use your bouncer". Not the big man outside the pub but the short-pitched delivery. Do quicks really need to be told this is a good strategy to stop batsmen getting onto the front foot? And to be told to "bowl reverse swing"? Which quick out there in the world doesn't think that that is a worthwhile addition to his armory?
But more interesting is "Role definition: You have to be able to take 20 wickets, so you need to allow certain bowlers freedom to attack" This is truly devious stuff. And of course, teams touring India must "play with field settings". Like most captains do, sometimes to the detriment of over-rates.
Perhaps I'm being too catty but I think this is very silly stuff, and I remain unconvinced. South Africa's drawn series result the last time they were in India came about largely because of a spectacular collapse they induced in the Indian batting line-up on the first day of the second test. Perhaps it was because they played with field settings and allowed certain bowlers the freedom to attack. But then they lost on a turner, a result which Arthur described as a "hijacking". Perhaps they forgot to plan against spin.
In any case, I'm going to announce my ten tips for success in Australia. If any team likes these, could I please be appointed coach? Come to think of it, isn't South Africa touring Australia? Why won't they have me instead?
1. Watch out for the Australian media.
2. Be prepared for the Australian captain to sledge you in the press.
3. Adjust to the extra bounce at the WACA.
4. Hold your catches (the Australians will hold theirs).
5. Keep your cool when getting sledged.
6. Don't go on the defensive too quickly.
7. Don't put your emotionally fragile players on the boundaries.
8. Wear sunscreen at all times.
9. Maintain line and length; the Australians' aggressive batting could play into your hands.
10. Make the fourth-innings count.
Or, you could just take Mickey's list, change "plan against spin" to "plan against pace", and change "stay leg-side of the ball" to "play horizontal bat shots" and you would have a perfectly good list for Australia.
Posted by: David Barry at December 11, 2008 4:26 AM
I think you're being harsh on coaches. There was an article written by (I think) Marcus Trescothick about Duncan Fletcher's coaching. Trescothick talked about the details of Fletcher's advice on playing spin - lots of talk about angles and where to put your feet, etc., not obvious stuff even to a Test-class batsman.
Bob Woolmer's book on coaching is huge and detailed, both on psychology and on mechanics.
Coaching's not just what coaches say to the media.
Posted by: Yogesh at December 11, 2008 4:38 AM
Cracking !! Crackling too.. Wouldn't Chappelli and Warne be mighty pleased with that ?
Posted by: Arjun at December 11, 2008 5:13 AM
Yes, all of those tips are "bleeding obvious". At least they are if you only read the subheadings.
Please read the whole article before you decide to 'respond' to it. Yes, he mentions "Play against Spin" which is obvious, but he also goes on to mention strategies that SA used in the match, and how they prepared in the nets. I believe that's something your ten tips for success in Australia will not be able to cover.
Posted by: AJAX at December 11, 2008 5:56 AM
If you really want to coach South Africa you should prove your worth by writing a thesis on the Heimlich maneuver.
I've always said the best coach is one drawn by horses. Yes, Horses can draw, given the right crayons. I actually think Sarah Jessica Parker has her own art gallery.
Posted by: waterbuffalo at December 11, 2008 8:38 PM
Michael, you forgot-'Don't forget to sledge Andrew Symonds' because he can't take it and runs to his captain for help, which he cannot do if he is batting.
Posted by: Jonathan at December 12, 2008 12:42 AM
#1,2 - Interesting. In the last 10 years or so, the NZ, SA and England teams have been on the front foot in this regard. The Australians using the press seems more recent to me, but maybe I'm forgetting something.
Posted by: Akshay at December 14, 2008 12:36 PM
Excellent MAte! I love when coaches are smacked round the park like in this article! They are one of the most useless creatures in game of cricket same as HR's in any company.
Posted by: Ajin at December 15, 2008 3:11 PM
I think that was a bit too harsh. While the headings might sound a bit obvious, I think the details aren't. Like the one about "Adjust to the game's pace", he goes on to explain how the pace of the innings in India is different and in most cases quite opposite to that in England. And "Stay leg side of the ball" is another way of saying one can do the odd flash outside the off-stump, its a lot less risky in the sub-continent. Overall I thought Mickey Arthur's was a pretty good write up.
Posted by: rp at December 15, 2008 7:10 PM
Excellent Samir's tit for Mickey's tat....!
Posted by: rp at December 15, 2008 7:11 PM
Excellent Samir's tit for Mickey's tat....!
Posted by: PM at December 17, 2008 4:01 PM
Another one based on my many years in Australia:
-watch for a cricketer/coach of a state or country XI to accuse one of your bowlers of a sus action
Samir Chopra lives in Brooklyn and teaches Computer Science and Philosophy at the City University of New York; his academic interests include the philosophical foundations of artificial intelligence and the politics of technology. In his third undergraduate year, he captained Mathematics in the departmental cricket competition (and lost to Chemistry in the first round). Samir played C-grade cricket in Sydney and makes guest appearances for his old club when possible (and desirable). Samir runs the blog Eye on Cricket and the cricket page at The Faster Times.
Paul Ford is a co-founder of the New Zealand cricket supporters' cult, the Beige Brigade. He was once described by a current New Zealand cricketer as "looking spastic" even mucking about with an Excalibur and a tennis ball in the backyard. Paul bowls right-armed Nathan Astlesque "nudes", his batting would make Ewen Chatfield look elegant, and he is a committed fielder. He sometimes grows a beard to hide his double chin and inhabits a periphery of cricket that Cricinfo is proud to be glimpsing through this blog.
Stephen Gelb grew up in Cape Town, a short walk from the beautiful Newlands ground. Always a better student of the game than player, his passion for cricket survived eight years as a student in Canada, where he learned to love baseball too. He lives in Johannesburg doing economic research at The EDGE Institute and teaching at Wits University.
Mike Holmans, a database consultant by profession, has spent thirty summers (and a few winters) going to the cricket. Brought up in one and working in the other, his dearest wish is for a season to end with Yorkshire winning the county championship by beating runners-up Middlesex by one wicket with five minutes to go. If it’s also a summer when England win the Ashes, so much the better.
Born in Colombo, educated at Oxford and now living in Brisbane - Michael Jeh (Fox) is a cricket lover with a global perspective on the game. An Oxford Blue who played first-class cricket, he is a Playing Member of the MCC and still plays grade cricket. His views on cricket might best be described as those of a "modern traditionalist". Michael now works closely with elite athletes in his job as a manager at Griffith University in Queensland.
Saad Shafqat takes special pride that his cricket-watching life began during the three-month interval between Javed Miandad's debut Test in Lahore and Imran Khan's 12-wicket haul at Sydney. Although a practicing neurologist based in Karachi, cricket has never been far from his activities. He has co-authored Javed Miandad’s autobiography Cutting Edge and has been a contributor to Cricinfo since 2005. His regular column Reverse Swing appears fortnightly in Dawn, Pakistan’s leading English daily.
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