The Roar
The Roar

Advertisement

Batting is all about timing

Cameron Bancroft of Western Australia. (AAP Image/Richard Wainwright)
Roar Pro
16th November, 2017
1

Rhythm, tempo and expression. Characteristics that are as essential to the success of a batsman as they are to a harmonic melody.

The art of batting is something unique to cricket, a constant that has remained despite the evolution of the game with big bats, forward presses and power hitting.

The game has its own internal beat; the counting of bars through overs, upping the tempo to attack, and keeping rhythm by rotating the strike.

A game so technical at times, and so carefree and effortless at others, there’s another piece of artistry to batting that only the best can master.

Underestimated and often forgotten, it is timing.

Without timing, even the best drift out of sync with the orchestra. With timing, potential transforms into greatness. The essence is the art of making runs at the right time.

Reputations are forged on timing. Virat Kohli is the best chaser in the game, with 19 of his 32 ODI hundreds coming in second innings chases at an average of 65.29, while Steve Smith takes the game away from the opposition from the outset, averaging 75.48 in the first innings of Test matches.

This is a mark of great players.

Advertisement

And for the hopefuls vying for the remaining spots at the Gabba on November 23rd, only one has stood out above the crowd by displaying similar qualities.

Out of the relative wilderness has emerged Cameron Bancroft, the talented young batsmen and make-shift wicketkeeper from the West who has timed his run into the Ashes side as well as he has been timing his cover drive.

Captain Steve Smith and Chairman of Selectors Trevor Hohns have constantly stated that they primarily want big runs from the number six and wicketkeeper.

Never mind the adage that catches win matches and the safeguard of a seam-bowling all-rounder in a side of quick bowlers always on edge of physical breakdown, it’s all about runs, runs and more runs!

[latest_videos_strip category=”cricket” name=”Cricket”]

Bancroft has delivered, with scores of 76* and 86 against New South Wales and Australia’s Ashes line-up, followed by an unbeaten 228 against South Australia.

He’s currently the best performing batsman in the country, so he can replace Renshaw at the top if needed, or fill the vacant spot at six.

Advertisement

While he has suddenly put the gloves on, considering Matt Wade’s current form, even Bancroft’s inexperience with the gloves would be an improvement.

Bancroft has his own rhythm at the crease. He doesn’t have the power of Cartwright or Maxwell, the experience of Peter Nevill, or the hype of Travis Head. He’s just gone quietly about making runs, and exactly when they were needed.

Not when his state needed them though. Despite his mountain of runs, WA lost to NSW, while the game against the Redbacks remains in the balance, but that doesn’t take away the perfection of Bancroft’s purple patch.

The Sheffield Shield certainly isn’t what it used to be, and certainly isn’t the strongest first-class system in the world anymore. The manipulation of the competition with mid-game player substitutions and experiments such as day/night matches and Dukes balls have seen to that.

Victoria’s general manager of cricket, Shaun Graf, has said state cricket is now all about “having Australian representatives for all the various teams.”

The genuine competition for Australia’s strongest state is gone, being replaced by a series of matches to allow individuals to push forward their own credentials.

What’s more important? Winning a match for your state, or scoring runs in a losing side which may catapult you into the Test team. I know which one I would prefer. Cricket is such an individual, greedy game.

Advertisement

Able to fill the two, potentially three spots available in the Australian XI, Bancroft shows the underappreciated art of batting holds true.

If you find yourself scoring runs at the right time (sorry, let me qualify that statement, if you’re scoring runs and you’re not old – sorry Ed Cowan, this unfortunately excludes you despite your unrivalled 959 runs at 73.76 last season), suddenly you can go from out of the frame to the centre of the Gabba.

At this point, it must be acknowledged that the same cannot be said for bowlers. If it were, Chad Sayers would have played for Australia long ago.

This is not a new philosophy from the selectors. We saw it last year following the destruction on the Apple Isle last summer at the hands of the South Africans, Australia suddenly needed a new opener and No. 5.

The next week, Renshaw made a hundred, and Handscomb a double.

Had Handscomb scored his 202 earlier in the season that would have been great, but scoring it the week a spot was up for grabs; priceless.

Don’t just score runs, score them when they’re needed. Better still, score runs so that you are needed.

Advertisement

For Bancroft, by scoring his runs this week, he has made his reliable tempo and organisation essential to keeping the beat of the Australian line-up together in Brisbane, wherever he is picked to bat.

close