One of the world's pre-eminent batting coaches has simple advice for Hamish Marshall as he attempts to extricate himself from a dreadful run of form - get into the nets.
As for Craig McMillan, he needs a coach to modify his technique.
Billy Ibadulla, the man credited with much of
Glenn Turner's success as a batsman and who played a huge role in Brendon McCullum's development as a batsman, told the Herald on Sunday that throw-downs were inadequate practice for one-day internationals.
Marshall is in a battle to hold his place in the squad for the visit of Sri Lanka in the new year, after terrible tours of Zimbabwe and South Africa and meagre returns in the recently completed Chappell-Hadlee Trophy. In last week's State Championship match he failed in both innings.
The chances are, with no domestic one-day cricket played before the squad is picked for the first ODI in Queenstown on New Year's Eve, John Bracewell will be reluctant to make sweeping changes.
That could mean a reprieve for the likes of Marshall.
Ibadulla said Marshall was facing a common burden.
"In style and technique, Marshall is a compact batsman," Ibadulla said. "Sometimes such batsmen find limited-overs cricket a bit demanding," he said, referring to the need to keep the scoreboard ticking over with quick singles.
"There is no reason why Marshall should not try to learn new batting strokes to give him more options to score runs in this form of cricket."
However, to do this, Ibadulla said the Northern Districts batsman, who made such an impact last season, was going to have to learn how to use the nets to his advantage.
"[Throw-downs] do not prepare him properly for match play in terms of footwork, eye-training, muscle conditioning and, above all, use of the brain to decide what to do with different kinds of deliveries."
Ibadulla is a keen observer of the Black Caps and has sage advice for Nathan Astle and Craig McMillan, also struggling for runs.
McMillan, he said, has been in dire need of coaching to overhaul his technique.
"No doubt he has received advice from coaches and former international cricketers but the problems remain. I first saw them when he played for a young New Zealand side against a Pakistan youth team.
"For most of his strokes, particularly the defensive ones, McMillan controls his bat mainly with his wrists and hands; arms above his wrists do not play much part. All this means the foundation of his technique is faulty... when a batsman uses only his hands and wrists to move the bat to play a ball, he tends not to put his feet in the right place."
Ibadulla is less concerned with Astle's lack of runs, though suggests he could modify his batting to become less reliant on the slash through the offside for his runs, particularly against quick bowlers on bouncy pitches.
"In South Africa he was out more than once when trying to play a stroke that is something between a square cut and a back-foot drive."
All three batsmen will be desperate for runs in round three of the State Championship, starting tomorrow.
- HERALD ON SUNDAY
One of the world's pre-eminent batting coaches has simple advice for Hamish Marshall as he attempts to extricate himself from a dreadful run of form - get into the nets.
As for Craig McMillan, he needs a coach to modify his technique.
Billy Ibadulla, the man credited with much of
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