Building lasting partnerships

Last weekend was a very enjoyable one for me. Not only was I able to go down to London to watch Manchester United win the Community Shield at Wembley, but more importantly, I was able to play a part in an import win for Kimberley away at Papplewick.

What made Saturday’s victory particularly enjoyable was the fact that we had to really work for it. Without the crucial partnerships between firstly Sam Ogrizovic (69) and Sam Johnson (46), then our opening bowlers Atif Sheikh and Elliot Bowles, who ensured Papplewick were strangled in their chase right from the start, Alex King’s match winning bowling performance would not have been possible.

Sunday’s trip to Wembley was not only about the football, but also about catching up with my Best Man and one of my Ushers as we prepare for my wedding in just over a weeks time. Therefore, it seems appropriate that this week I talk about the importance of good partnerships!

With Usher Pete and Best Man Will at Wembley

 

Cricket, while obviously a team game, is essentially a game that depends on partnerships between two people. Firstly, you have the batsmen. Successful partnerships are built upon an understanding of how your team mate thinks and plays. You must not only know your own game well, but also theirs. For instance, there are players in our team who I know will be quicker between the wickets than others, or who might call runs in a different way to others. To avoid errors running between the wickets, this understanding is vital. In addition to this though, it is important that you both work to the same game plan. That plan may change and evolve as the score progresses, but you both must have a clear expectation of what your partner and yourself are expected to do. Effective batting partnerships can break bowlers and can also force bowling captains to feel that they are perhaps doing worse than they are.

For bowlers too, partnerships can often force a team back into a game. Often people refer to ‘bowling in partnerships’ when two bowlers keep things tight and as a result force a mistake from the batsman. This was very much the case as Alex and I bowled on Saturday (with Kingy getting all of the glory of course!). Keeping the score down and forcing batsman to take a risk they don’t want to, can create wickets. Yet bowlers must also look to develop partnerships in different ways. You might get a clue or a hint of what a batsman is trying to do to you, so why not pass that on to your teammate? You might work together to restrict a batsman from playing his favourite shot, or hitting in a particular area. Bowlers need to communicate just as much as batsmen inbetween overs. Without that communication, you might end up missing vital clues or working to a different strategy.

Finally, there is the partnership between fielders and the bowler. On Saturday, Dominic Brown was superb for me fielding at point. His hard work and good anticipation prevented a number of singles which helped build that pressure on the batsman. Then at the end, young Elliot Bowles took a superb catch at long off, and the beauty was, I knew he would because I trusted him in that position. I suppose that is the key to a good partnership, you need to know the strengths and weaknesses of your teammate and place the trust in them to do the job. That is what I intend to do over the next few weeks both on and off the field!