29 June 2007

Walking in ! Why?

So the keeper is eager to make a noise and impose himself. What does he shout? "Walking in !" But we're already doing it and I bet even Paul Nixon doesn't make that call - if it's instinctive at our level the pros must do it in their sleep.

But why do we do it ? We're all taught at age 6 that it's to make sure we're 'on our toes'. Well fine but if you're walkin in and say you've just put your weight on your right foot just before taking your left foot off the ground and the ball is hit to your right you can't move towards it until your left foot has completed its movement forward. You've lost time.

So we want to be on our toes and alert; why not just start in the place you're going to walk in to and then just put your wait forward - the fielder's trigger movement?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'll try to resist the urge to shout it on tour.

Its a good point though as the most likely person to field the ball (the wicket keeper) is expected to spring from a crouch position rather than walking in.

Ed said...

hmm, never really considered that before, but it does make sense to have both feet on the ground when the ball is played....a la Jonty rhodes or Paul Collingwood.

So the walking in is maybe to give you some forward momentum in case the batsmen drop it and run, but the main thing is to be in the ready position like a goalkeeper as the ball is played.

Perhaps we need to ask a qualified cricket coach - I'll find one!!