The struggles of modern batsmen vs the moving ball

[War]

^I guess the question for India and SL is...did they have any good quick bowlers in the first place to decline from? Nah they get some occasionally...

And Steyn has been well under 150 this series. I'm not sure he even cracked 140kph last night. Roach wasn't real quick this morning either, bowling mostly in the high 130s. Tino Best has consistently been about 5kph quicker than Roach.

Ha well of course SRI had Vaas for years and Malinga. But Vaas retired and Malinga has stopped playing test and their current quick bowling options aren't impressive.

India well yea they actually never had any good quick bowlers to decline from. Zahher has been excellent since 2006, but the back-up to him is awful.

I always get the feeling with Steyn that in recent years in tests, he generally holds his pace back. I see him bowl 150 in IPL and ODI cricket more often.

 

[sami ullah khan]

There are many bowlers who CAN bowl in access of 150KPH but they don't anymore. They want to conserve their energies with amount of cricket they need to play these days.This is the reason we don't see many hostile spells in test or one day cricket anymore.

 

[War]

There are many bowlers who CAN bowl in access of 150KPH but they don't anymore. They want to conserve their energies with amount of cricket they need to play these days.This is the reason we don't see many hostile spells in test or one day cricket anymore.

Yea this is likely to be the problem with the modern speedsters.

 

[cricket_icon]

I think a major factor which has led to modern batsmen having so much trouble with the moving ball is the lack of quality fast bowlers over the first half of the last decade, a time when most of these new batsmen were learning their trade. Even today, most countries lack a true out and out fast bowler and someone who is exceptional at swing. England have Anderson but lack anyone with real pace (Finn is a slight exception). SA have Steyn, who was once quick but has matured in a good medium/fast bowler. Pakistan has a young Junaid Khan but he requires a lot of work. The likes of Gul and Morkel can be exceptional one day and abysmal the next. Broad can be grouped in the same category.

Pitches also have a part to play, for too flat and docile, providing batsmen with easy runs, so when these batsmen finally come up against conditions/bowlers who have an extra bit of pace or the ability to swing the ball, they fall short. The likes of Sehwag, the entire Pakistani batting line up, every NZ batsman and quite a few of the Aussies have all looked liked schoolboys in recent years when the conditions have favoured swing bowling.

 

[puddleduck]

I definitely think the lack of good bowling wickets plays a part. Whenever there is some nip players just don't seem to have a clue.

 

[War]

I think a major factor which has led to modern batsmen having so much trouble with the moving ball is the lack of quality fast bowlers over the first half of the last decade, a time when most of these new batsmen were learning their trade. Even today, most countries lack a true out and out fast bowler and someone who is exceptional at swing. England have Anderson but lack anyone with real pace (Finn is a slight exception). SA have Steyn, who was once quick but has matured in a good medium/fast bowler. Pakistan has a young Junaid Khan but he requires a lot of work. The likes of Gul and Morkel can be exceptional one day and abysmal the next. Broad can be grouped in the same category.

Pitches also have a part to play, for too flat and docile, providing batsmen with easy runs, so when these batsmen finally come up against conditions/bowlers who have an extra bit of pace or the ability to swing the ball, they fall short. The likes of Sehwag, the entire Pakistani batting line up, every NZ batsman and quite a few of the Aussies have all looked liked schoolboys in recent years when the conditions have favoured swing bowling.

Ye this is pretty the issue.

 

[War]

Following Pakistan 49 all out, NZ 46 all out in tests in S Africa, the windies & AUS 70 & 74 all out in recent odi's, AUS 47 all out in sa 2011, along with certain high profile indian batsmen being exposed vs pace in last 2 years - i think modern batting versus the moving ball/high quality pace bowling is at an all-time low in the post war era.

In my understanding of cricket history i don't recall a period when so many world batting line-ups, had so much batsmen who look technically & mentally inept when having to face such testing conditions/quick bowlers.

Currently on S Africa & England i'd say having batting line-up who i would back to stand up with some degree of respectably if such a difficult batting scenario.

After much of the 2000s era was dominated with flat tracks & joke attacks, in which batsmen cashed in & had bloated 50 + averages, finally the balance between bat & ball i returning to something close to its 1970-1999 level & we are beginning to separate the men from the boys.