Playing the short ball: duck, sway or hook

Setup

1. The batter wears a helmet with a faceguard for every ball of this drill, even with tennis balls, plus full protective kit.
2. Stage 1 uses tennis balls fed from about two-thirds of the way down the net with a racquet or dog stick, so the ball bounces short and rises.
3. A bowling machine, if you use one later, runs at reduced pace, is operated only by a trained adult and feeds one ball at a time, with the batter ready before each ball.
4. One batter in the net; everyone else waits outside it, behind the feeder.

How it runs

1. Stage 1, evade only: six short balls at head height. The batter watches each one and either ducks under it or sways out of its line. No bat swing.
2. Stage 2, choose: the feeder mixes balls at head height and at chest height. Head height means duck or sway; chest height and in front means pull it down; anything wide or awkward means let it go or ride it down.
3. Score 1 point for each correct decision and a bonus point for a pull kept on the ground. Swap after two sets of six.
4. Stage 3, only when Stage 2 is secure: move to a bowling machine at reduced pace, or a soft or incrediball fed harder. Increase the pace in small steps across sessions, not in one go.
5. Hard-ball short-ball work against bowlers comes last, with an experienced coach watching, and the bowlers stick to the short-pitched limit in your competition's playing conditions.

Coaching points

• Watch the ball all the way, out of the hand and off the pitch. You can't get out of the way of a ball you've stopped watching.
• Duck: bend the knees and drop the head down and slightly to the side, eyes still on the ball, until it has passed.
• Sway: keep the feet still, lean the upper body back and out of the line, and keep the bat low and away from the ball.
• Never turn your back or take your eyes off the ball. That is when batters get hit on the back of the helmet or neck.
• Pull or hook only when the ball is in front of you and you are in position early: back foot back and across, head inside the line, roll the wrists to keep it down.
• Being undecided is the danger. Commit to one option as soon as you read the length.

Common mistakes

• Turning the head away or closing the eyes as the ball arrives.
• Leaving the bat up in the air while ducking, so the ball hits it and loops up to a fielder.
• Hooking at balls that are above the head or too quick to control.
• Moving on to faster feeds or a hard ball before the evasion is automatic.