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What makes a bowler fast?
Here are some key findings based on my 2018 honours research project.
20 elite and sub-elite fast bowlers participated in 3d motion technique analysis and a series of physical capacity assessments.
Performance was assessed based on ball speed.
Here are some key findings based on my 2018 honours research project.
20 elite and sub-elite fast bowlers participated in 3d motion technique analysis and a series of physical capacity assessments.
Performance was assessed based on ball speed.
Lower body strength was assessed via the isometric mid-thigh pull. Absolute peak force had a significant moderate correlation with ball speed.
Participants completed a 30m sprint test with split times measured @ 10m & 30m segments. The 10-30m split was used to assess 'top speed' (yes I know this isn't truly top speed and this is a noted limitation). 10-30m split had a large correlation with ball speed.
Back foot contact time was derived from visual observation during the 3d motion analysis. This temporal parameter had a large correlation with ball speed.
Run up speed has been associated with ball speed in many previous studies. We replicated these results. Run up speed was derived from the pelvis CoM at back foot contact and had a large correlation with ball speed.
Pelvis CoM deceleration between back foot contact and front foot contact also had a large correlation with ball speed. This finding indicates that faster bowlers abruptly stop their linear momentum upon front foot contact.
This deceleration is caused by rapid and high magnitudes of horizontal braking forces that are applied through the lower limbs during front foot contact. Athletes who applied their peak horizontal braking forces earlier bowled faster in our study.
We found those athletes who were able to decelerate more during the front foot contact phase also displayed higher magnitudes of lower body maximal strength. Perhaps indicating relationships between physical capacity and technical parameters.
Many coaches now advocate for sprint training in the development of fast bowlers - myself included. However, we failed to observe a relationship between any of our sprint testing parameters and run-up speed.
This may indicate that developing linear momentum is unlikely to be the limiting factor for fast bowlers aiming to increase ball speed. Rather, greater linear momentum requires increased strength and stability to receive and summate forces through the kinetic chain at FFC.
Any increase in run-up speed must be matched by improved physical capacity to handle the abrupt, high-magnitude of ground reaction forces.
Based on these findings, I continue to advocate for improving sprint performance in fast bowlers, but understand that lower body strength is also critical for increasing ball speed.
Additionally, stiffness qualities that allow for reduced BFC durations appear to help fast bowlers retain their linear run-up momentum and optimise the transfer of kinetic energy.
Correlation magnitudes are based on guidelines set out by Hopkins et al. 2009.
