ECB Coaches Association links Hitting the Seam 39 | Page 13

Min on spin
For me, with where the game’s at currently,
I’d love to see coaches work on helping their
players to beat the spinning edge.
It’s becoming a fashion to just beat the
non-spinning edge, to get your wickets that
way, but I think we shouldn’t forget the value
of beating the bat the other way.
Then look at the pace your spinners are
bowling – is it quick enough? It’s critical for
spinners who want to get to the next level to
have enough pace, that’s the most common
problem I see with spinners trying to go from
club to county level.
Teaching those skills does require technical
know-how as a coach, so I wouldn’t
encourage anyone to lead a player down a
path until they are sure it’s the right one. No
information is better than misinformation!
If you feel you’re lacking, check out ECB
Coach Education and Coaches Association
resources, see what courses are available and
what guidance they can point you to online.
The ECB CA is great at helping to upskill
coaches, but they can’t do it unless they
know you need, or are looking for, the help.
When I started playing county cricket there were
only a handful of guys from Asian backgrounds
around, now each county has got three or four. So
there has been a gradual improvement over the
past few years. Now we’re starting to see people
like myself, Cookie Patel, Mark Ramprakash and
others push on into senior coaching roles. Where
I see the South Asian strategy being particularly
helpful is in community projects. I see here in Kent
that when we do work in areas like Lewisham and
Woolwich, which are very diverse, we don’t yet
have the workforce to reflect that.
The most important thing for me, and what is
essential for a coach, is passion for it. If you lose
your passion for it, there’s no point in continuing.
How can you encourage people to play cricket if
you’re not interested in it yourself? Then look at
what you’re good at – are you particularly good at
helping players with their batting? Their fielding?
That can set you apart as a coach, but doesn’t
stop you improving to become an all-round
coach. You’ll still have that area of expertise – spin
bowlers at Kent still come to me for advice – but
feel comfortable in helping with other areas of a
player’s game too.
“The game has obviously evolved
since I played, but the way I coach is
determined solely by each individual in
front of me.”
Hitting the Seam Issue 38
13