Top Batting Tips to Master your Tennis Ball Cricket Bat Skills

Cricket is a very glorified sport. It is now becoming a batting centric game as each day, whether in a local match or in a professional match, it gives the opportunity to batters to become a hero! But has it ever happened to you that you are playing a friendly match with your friends or colleagues and you are struggling to time the ball? We at ZAP understand your need to excel in tennis ball cricket and hence today in this blog, we share the tips that can help you shine and be a match

Understanding the Nature Tennis Ball 

Tennis Ball Cricket is not like a seasoned ball cricket. A lot of factors are taken into account and a lot of factors are eliminated. The nature of both the balls are different and hence the playing style also needs to be moulded accordingly. A tennis ball doesn’t swing or spin like a leather ball. It is lighter and doesn’t travel the distance like a latter does. For better understanding, here is a comprehensive guide on the difference between the two balls.

Change in Stance and Grip 

Tennis Ball Cricket is a different ball game, playing with the same old conventional grip or stance can be less fruitful. Hence, if you want to excel in this domain, you need to adjust as per the requirements of the sport. You can try using a long handle grip as that will increase your arc and that in turn will help you elevate the ball better. Modern day power hitters like Abhisek Sharma, Shashank Sharma, etc. use long handle grip and that has helped them significantly in smashing the ball at a better strike

Credit: Times Now

As far as stance is concerned, you can try a semi open stance as that helps you dominate more on the leg side. Usually, a side on stance is used in cricket to counter swing and to play technical shots down the ground, on off side. Since that is not needed in tennis ball cricket, you can stand semi open and extend the arc at your maximum capacity! Thus, if you want better stability, easier shot access, more power and reduced mistimed shots, you can mould your stance and grip for better results. 

Watch the Ball Closely 

Watching the ball closely and playing the ball carefully are the key for explosive batting. If you aren’t watching the ball well, picking the right length would become harder and that eventually will make your task tough. And similarly, if you are not playing closer to the body, chances of mistiming increase significantly. While these sound basic, they are the foundation of consistent and effective shot making. Hence, focus on these two basic points if you want to excel your batting in box cricket!

Use Timing Over Power 

What’s the point of having the Best Tennis Ball Cricket Bat if you can’t smash the longest six. After all, the game is majorly flexing about the number of sixes hit, or hitting the ball at a great distance. But honestly, a lot of undue attention is paid to power hitting. The reality is, timing is more important and hence more emphasis should be given to that. Thus, when you focus on timing the ball, you tend to hit longer sixes and your batting looks more elegant as nine out of ten times you are hitting from the sweet spot of the bat. This is a very basic element of batting and even players at International level tend to miss it sometimes. But, it’s better to keep reminding yourself of the same thing, and see how sound and reliable a batter you become for your team! 

Improvise Shots 

As mentioned before, a tennis ball doesn’t swing or spin like a regular leather ball. Thus, you have a greater liberty to improvise your game. Don’t stick to convenient strokes like lofted over long on, or step out, instead, try to improvise and use the untapped areas of the ground like over fine leg or over covers. This way you can play with the bowler’s mind and get an edge over the game.

To improvise you can also use the depth of the crease. A bowler would target to bowl you fuller length so that you face difficulty in freeing your arms. Now, if you use the depth of the crease, you can easily pick the ball from there and smash it wherever you want. Apart from that, you can also laterally move and chip shots in different areas of the ground. For instance, if a bowler is targeting the stump line, you can take a step back and chip it over covers! 

Understand the Pitch and Conditions 

One of the basic fundamentals of any sport is to understand the conditions and moulding technique accordingly. And just like that, understanding the pitch and conditions is equally important to gain a tactical edge. Hence, if you are playing on a turf, or on a mat, or in a box, your adjustment is clinical. Try and understand the change in bounce, the speed, dimensions of the ground, etc if you want to improve as a player. Another factor that shall be carefully analysed is wind direction. Always play with the wind and not against the wind, and you would be able to clear the fence easily!

Target Gaps

Tennis Ball Cricket is intense and one has to be on toes throughout the game. While you are on the go, you forget to focus on small essentials and that’s when the game starts to drop. One such small detail that is often overlooked is targeting gaps and not the fielders. Now, this is a very deep statement and one has to understand its true essence if you want to adapt properly. 

What actually happens is players start to look at the fielders and a lot of their shots go in the hands of the fielder. You don’t have to do that! Focus on targeting gaps rather. The more you’ll see and target gaps, the easier it’ll be for you to dodge the fielders and hence, you’ll improve your strike rate even faster!

Rotation of Strike is also Important 

If you think you can win the matches only by smashing fours and sixes then you are under a great misconception. It’s time to step out of the delusion and to focus on rotation of strike as well. A bowler comes under tremendous pressure when you steal a single from right under his nose. The fielders, too, panic when they see you are running quickly between the wickets. Hence, the importance of singles and doubles should never be undermined! 

Choose the Right Bat 

Through the length and breadth of the country, we’ll find plenty of people who are truly passionate about cricket and devote considerable time on the field. They love the sport to the core, but do not have resources to go from Gully to Pro level. These players participate in tennis ball matches every now and then. They are not fanatic about technique, all they aim is to clear the fence and smash the ball as hard as they can. However, just like a professional cricketer, for them, too, it’s important to pick the best hard tennis ball cricket bat, so that they can smash sixes out of the park with ease. It is advised to use a lightweight bat for better swing. The best tennis ball cricket bat can help is ZAP Glaze Tennis Scoop Bat!

Body Alignment 

Like leather ball cricket, the lighter tennis ball demands quicker reaction and better control, making proper alignment even more essential for clean and effective stroke play. The more stable your head is, the better the alignment is. And the better the alignment is, the better the strokes are. Thus, the bottom line is, you should have a stable base and an intact head position to excel because proper alignment helps the body to move as a single unit, allowing better bat swing. 

Quick Reaction of hands 

Good bat swing and higher backlift are two basic requirements of clearing the fence. Hence, if you want to improve your range hitting and to dominate the tennis ball cricket, work on these two aspects. Interestingly, there are plenty of drills that you can add in your daily routine and which can help you immensely. For instance, drop ball sixes, heavy ball training, heavy bat training, strengthening of forearm etc. 

Along with that, you can work on quick reactions of your hands. The more stable you are and the quicker your hand moves, the easier it is for a player to hit a six. If you look at Priyansh Arya’s batting in IPL, you’ll see he is so efficient because of the quicker hand movement and minimal footwork, and thus, he has been a huge success for his team Punjab Kings!

It is advised to pick the best lightweight cricket bat for hard ball tennis, as they can help you in quicker reactions and good bat swing.

Good Judgement of Variations 

Tennis Cricket is all about hitting sixes and hence in order to prevent that, a bowler would try and use a lot of variations. Variations like slower one, knuckle ball, etc, are very common and effective. Thus, for you to become a better batsman, try and pick these variations early and mould your technique accordingly. This way you can outsmart your opponents with ease!

Conclusion 

In conclusion, mastering tennis ball cricket is a blend of technique and adaptability. If you are facing difficulties, you can follow the above mentioned points and your game will upscale significantly. Moreover, you can also do basic drills to enhance your technique. With constant effort, you can master the batting in a Hard Tennis Ball Game and ultimately become a dependable batter on whom the team can rely the most!

Also check: Attack link: How to choose the best Tennis Bats?

FAQs
Q: Does weight matter in bat selection?

Yes, weight matters in bat selection.

Q: Which are the best Tennis Ball Cricket Bats?

Here is a list of Top 5 Tennis Cricket Bats in India

Q: Which is the Best lightweight tennis cricket bat for hard ball tennis?

The best lightweight tennis cricket bat is ZAP Glaze Tennis Scoop Bat.

Q: Which grip works best for hitting in tennis ball cricket?

Long handle grip is very effective in hitting sixes. It can help in tennis ball cricket as well

Q: How can rotate strike better in box cricket?

Focus on running between the wickets as well, not only on range hitting.

Q: What are the most effective shots in Tennis Ball Cricket?

Lofted shot is the most effective shot in tennis ball cricket.