Men’s team director delighted by results of batter-friendly ballhas been hailed as a success by Rob Key, with the England men’s team director keen to make it a permanent fixture throughout the domestic first-class summer.to use the Kookaburra, Key shared his view that using a less bowler-friendly ball than the traditional Dukes had brought out the requisite skills for Test cricket by increasing the volume of spin bowling, rewarding seamers with extra pace and allowing batters to go big when set.
Indeed, while batting averages have been higher in April in recent years, it has been a veritable feast to start the 2024 season, with 44.49 runs per wicket the highest figure in a month since September 1938. Ten scores of 150 or more were made in round two – a record for a single set of championship fixtures starting on the same day. Across the four Kookaburra rounds in the last two years there have been 39.54 runs scored per wicket, compared with 31.79 in 12 Dukes ball rounds in 2023.
The deployment of spin has increased. Slow bowlers sent down 37% of deliveries in the first two rounds, compared with just 17% in the equivalent rounds last year. Key has noted early success for wrist-spinners among them, with Mason Crane, Calvin Harrison, Matt Critchley and Cameron Steel in the wickets. Surrey, the defending champions, have already taken more wickets with spin than the whole of last season .
Key said: “That looked a turgid pitch but are much better equipped for international cricket than if they bowled on English snake pits with a Dukes ball moving all over the place. The best bowlers come from the flattest pitches.
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Source: 7NewsSydney - 🏆 16. / 63 Read more »