There has been a lot of talk in recent years about the constant injuries faced by so many of Australia’s talented young fast bowlers.
Guys like Hazlewood, Pattinson and Cummins seem to have had to overcome one injury after another and it gets people talking about what could be behind all these injuries.
In some ways, it’s something that has always been there. Go back through the history of Test cricket and fast bowlers having to overcome major injuries is a regular theme.
But has it become more prevalent in more recent times? And if so, what can that be attributed to?
There are some who attribute it to the amount of cricket being played. But in many cases, these players are breaking down long before they represent Australia in all three forms of the game and play large amounts of cricket.
In Cummins’ case, you certainly couldn’t attribute his injuries to playing too much cricket.
On the flip side, there are other voices – generally voices of former fast bowlers – who have suggested that the best way to have a strong body to cope with bowling is to bowl more, not less.
If this is the case, then resting players and trying to limit their workload to protect them can actually be counter productive. In the long run the best way to strengthen their body is actually to bowl more, and more regularly.
This brings me to regulations regarding young bowlers that were brought in many years ago by Cricket Australia. Bowlers at various different ages have different restrictions in place as to how many overs they can bowl in a spell and in a day, the only exception being spin bowlers.
I’ve played senior cricket against teams largely populated by youngsters and the captain has to monitor so much with who can bowl what, and if they bowled in an under age match that morning.
Some are only allowed bowl a handful of overs in the afternoon before they reach their daily limit.
No such restrictions existed when I was that age. While I admit to never being of express pace or coming within a bull’s roar of first-class cricket, I could rip it down with decent pace in those days.
I could also bowl 12 over spells and 25 overs in an afternoon, and did so on many occasions. If I’d been playing morning and afternoon games simultaneously, then I’d have done that in the afternoon having bowled plenty in the morning as well.
These days, bowlers aren’t allowed to bowl that many overs. The reasoning is to reduce the amount of wear and tear on young, growing bodies.
Some teenage boys have really big growth spurts and struggle athletically for a while as their muscles aren’t strong enough to match their frame yet, and they need to really work on strengthening up. That happens, but the majority of teenage boys don’t have such extreme growth spurts to cause major problems in this area, and those that do can be monitored.
This, I believe, could be detrimental to physically preparing fast bowlers for the demands of first-class cricket.
Take Pat Cummins as an example. He made his first class debut as a 17 year old. As such, when playing in grade cricket, I believe he still would have been restricted as to how many overs he could bowl in a spell and in a day.
He played three Sheffield Shield matches in that 2010/11 season, culminating in the final. In the first match he bowled 24 overs in Tasmania’s first and only innings. In the second match against Western Australia he bowled 33 overs in the first and 14 in the second.
And in the final against Tasmania he bowled 48 overs in Tasmania’s first innings, adding another 17 in the second.
Over the previous couple of years, he wouldn’t have been able to get close to that amount of bowling as he was limited by Cricket Australia’s regulations aimed at protecting young fast bowlers.
Is it any wonder he suddenly starts struggling with injuries? Going from restrictions limiting his bowling as he’s developing to suddenly bowling large amounts of overs?
Is it possible that more bowling, rather than less, when he was 15, 16, 17, might have prepared him better for the rigours of first class cricket than the current tactic of wrapping him in cotton wool?
Jayvee
Guest
I can assure you the unprecedented occurrence of fast bowling injuries is a direct result of this being the first generation of fast bowlers who have come through the " bowling restriction" era. The only way to build "bowling muscles" to withstand the vigors of fast bowling is by bowling. It builds the bowlers fitness in the right areas. It keeps them flexible where their body needs to be flexible for their particular action. It even builds bone density. The fact is most bowling coaches know this. But a few stubborn "experts" who refuse to admit they were wrong when introducing these ridiculous restrictions ( plus the Bracken inspired threat of law suits) have the powers that be scared to admit their error. We are in a situation where bowlers are coming into first class cricket and have never bowled more than 12 overs in an innings! Or 8 in a spell. Ludicrous. Not only are they susceptible to injury, but they haven't learned to bowl yet!
Gav
Guest
Yep to all of that. Me thinks the hatchet was never buried after WSC CA's shame Australian cricketers (and fans) loss.
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
I agree. D K is a totally underused resource in Australia. He went through injuries where he was told he'd never bowl again and came back better than ever. He basically worked all this stuff out for himself how to get the body in it's best condition and keep it that way, along with the more technical aspects of fast bowling also. For some reason he seems to have never really been utilized by Cricket Australia, so he's gone where he's been appreciated and been teaching people all over the world the art of fast bowling, specifically on the sub-continent.
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
It was similar with Watson actually. He used to be really huge and muscular on the back of way too much weights work, and as part of trying to get his body to last better they finally got him on a regime to reduce his muscle mass a bit. Fast bowlers don't need to bulk up. Look at guys like Brett Lee and Dale Steyn. Hardly huge and muscular, but very quick. It seems to be well known that bulking up in the gym isn't the way to build and sustain pace, but rather lots of running, lots of sprinting and lots of bowling.
Gav
Guest
Our bowlers need to train more of what the sports science world occasionally refers to as "specific fitness".......that means bowling more or more bowling related exercises. What a revelation! We used to have a cricketer by the name of D K Lillee who had some experience in that area, if memory serves he also became a well credentialed coach in later years......hmmm I wonder if cricket Australia should give him a call
JGK
Roar Guru
Cummins problem is less the amount of bowling he had to do but more about the weight training regime that CA put him on. He didn't really start to get injured until he had put about 5kg on. Idiots.
Jo M
Guest
There is an increasing scale for the bowlers as they get older. The problem is that once they hit 19 the restrictions are taken off and captains of course want bowlers to bowl whenever and for however long the captain wants. When they haven't bowled 25 overs in a day before, their bodies aren't used to it, especially those that play private school cricket.
Chris of Vic
Roar Pro
I too have had thoughts on this subject andI wonder if it has anything to do with a lack of physical activity in general. It is well documented in the health literature that all of us, kids especially are becoming more sedentary. Young guys today just haven't hardened their bodies to the same extent as previous generations by the time they reach 1st class cricket. For example: Harold Larwood (bodyline) was a mine pit worker, he had worked physically hard from the age of fourteen, so by the time he reached 1st class cricket muscle, bone and sinew were hardened to withstand the rigours of bowling. Then, as Doozle suggests above, natural selection had probably already culled a few through the rigours of hard living. Perhaps we should be getting all our young talent doing more physical work (not just gym) to help 'work harden' them. How this would be managed would be the challenge:)
doozel
Guest
You are right on the money, I have thought this for a number of years but with a twist. I believe that the likes of Cummins and other quick bowlers in years gone by would never have made it to first class level. Natural selection would have played its course in grade or junior cricket. Bowling a cricket ball quickly is very tough on the body and only some people can do it, even fewer can do it over a sustained period. Must of these guys if they did bowl lots of overs when younger would have got injured and slowed down to a level their body could handle. Becoming just another medium pacer. Many of the players are built like a F1 car but are then asked to do the Le Man 24hr in first class cricket. The fact is their body will never be able to handle the rigours of test match bowling.
RobRoy
Guest
Hello Chris - pace bowling gives the body a real pounding but not sure that putting a growing body through more punishment rather than less would prevent injuries later in their career unless it is properly controlled. Surely it is a gradual thing - increasing the load at a measured pace. I agree with you on what you say that jumping from the protection as laid down by CA for young bowlers straight into unlimited amounts of bowling is detrimental to the long-term well-being of that bowler. Surely during the CA protection stage there should be a sliding, increasing scale as the bowler gets older as to the amount they can bowl so that when they are released into the mainstream the jump is minimal rather than a quantum leap.