Skills Pay Bills - 0.1

Speed is an asset but also a vulnerability. In this new era of cricket, it almost seems that the quicker you bowl, the quicker you travel to the boundary.

I live by a quote that my uncle once shared with me: "It takes an entire season to prove how accurate you are, but only one ball to prove how fast you are."

I recently shared some old training clips from over 5 years ago on my Instagram profile (click here for the post). In response to the post, someone sent me a direct message expressing surprise that I give importance to 'skills' in my philosophy and coaching.

I thought this article would be a good opportunity to clear up any confusion.

I pride myself on being a coach who constantly pushes the boundaries in terms of speed by helping bowlers identify and extract every little bit of energy from improved technical efficiency, mindset, and athletic attributes.

After all, I’m a speed man.

However, I’m not naive…

I’m very aware that speed alone isn’t the answer.

Speed can help you get your foot through the door, but it doesn’t guarantee survival or success.

In fact, I think that bowlers who possess speed should be more concerned with skills, as the mix of speed with skills can be more devastating if executed correctly.

In my latest post, you can check out an impressive mix of footage from one of my young bowlers who plays county cricket for Surrey (he’s only 10 years old). Click here for the post.

He does a fine job of mixing up his attack with speed, intimidation, skills, and disguise.

In training, we don’t overcomplicate with a ton of different deliveries and aim to master the basics. When executing the variation, we measure the speed of each ball to ensure that the intensity of balls with pace on and pace off is (1) competitive and (2) consistent.

Since working with me, he’s put on over 10mph, his bowling IQ has gone through the roof, and he’s rapidly developing skills and confidence to bolster his ability as a bowler.

The support system he has, led by his father, is simply amazing.

Still, a long way to go, but I’m proud of everything this amazing young lad has achieved so far.

#SkillsPayBills

10 Year Old, Surrey CCC Age Group Fast Bowler, Rayan Chib in Action with Shahbaz Choudhry During a SpeedCamp Session at Taplow Cricket Club.