As a batsman there are many things which go through your head. You are out in the middle with 11 players from the opposition trying to get you out. What should your strategy be? Should you attack the ball? Should you first play yourself in before you start hitting your shots? Is there a target you have in mind? Do you have a personal target? Should you make use of the powerplays? is your aim to play through till the end?… and on and on and on. If you want to be successful in this sport, you better use your head wisely, or else you will have a few flurries of performances but nothing substantial to show in the long run.

The questions are never ending when it comes to your approach to batting. I open the batting so I have had days when my target was to play through till the end and then there have been days when I had no choice but to attack the ball from the get go. There is a reason they say that Cricket is a funny game; the advantage you have can flip on its head within minutes and before you know it, a game which was a ‘certain win’ turns out to become a ‘loss’. So, its best to have a plan to follow instead of going with the flow.

We got an insight on how the Indians approached their batting in the 4th one day international against England at Lord’s. Even though the match ended in a tie due to rain, the Indian batsmen scored a competitive 280 runs in 50 overs by batting first. This is what Dhoni said about how they approached that target:

“We didn’t have a target in mind. We wanted to try and rotate the strike. Not to play shots which were risky and get closer to the 40-over mark. In the last 10 overs, we were able to get 110 runs which really made a difference.”

There you have it. One of the reasons I like Mahendra Singh Dhoni as a captain is because of his openness. Knowing that this is one approach to batting can help you follow a similar approach when you play. The best way to learn is to learn from the best.

Source: We saw the ugly side of cricket: Dhoni