Running between the Wickets

Inzamam-ul-Haq is an extremely good batsman. His average though doesn’t do justice to his talent. He has been run out more times than any other batsman currently playing. Only God knows what his average would have been, if he hadn’t fallen short of the crease on the occasions he did and instead continued on.

In today’s modern game, effective running between the wickets is of utmost important. Scoring rates have risen linearly over the last few decades. This doesn’t only have to do with the mentality of hitting more big shots, but also running at the smallest opportunity presented.

The most important part for being a good runner between the wickets is calling. Often because of large crowds, your ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ call will be inaudible. Thus, it’s necessary that the call is loud and clear.

Judging when and what to call is another tricky proposition, especially for those close singles. For anything in front of him, the non-striker should ideally make the call. In the end though, the batsman running to the danger end should be the one to be entirely sure of making it to be able to go forward with the run. The partner should then trust his instincts, and do the needful.

This is not all there’s to running. Just as a job well begun is only half done, proper calling and setting off isn’t what would ensure a perfect run. Grounding the bat, when reaching the crease, is something that Indians especially are extremely poor at. There have been many run outs, when the batsman has actually made it to the crease, but hasn’t grounded his bat.

In case of a close call, diving at the crease, or extending the bat at maximum stretch, should be adopted to try and save your wicket.