Cricket My Way. Ian Botham

over a long period. But I have seen plenty of well-coached young players stroke a nice copybook cover drive straight to a fielder, simply because they have concentrated so hard on getting the foot right to the pitch of the ball, they can’t hit it very hard, and in any case they can only hit it in one place.

       England v India, Third Test at The Oval, July 1982; my only Test double hundred. The left shoulder led my front foot into the perfect cover drive. My weight is going forward and the head is still. I’m pleased with this one!

       England v West Indies, Third Test at Kensington Oval, Barbados, March 1981. A rare luxury of playing spin. The front leg has gone towards midoff, although I have played the ball into the covers. The gap between bat and pad is not normally advisable.

      The really hard hits come from a little bit of room being created in which a full wide arc of a good back-lift can be fully used. The left shoulder for the right-hander, should be the leading influence, not the foot. Anyone who queries that golden rule should just realize that you can put the front foot where you like, but the shoulder need not follow. But if the first leading movement is with that shoulder, the foot must follow unless you fall over.

       In forward play, always try to lead with the shoulder, and then the top hand will stay in control of the stroke much more easily.

      The other key to a successful off drive is to ensure that you have a full and high follow through. Too many players forget about this, and as a result start decelerating the bat in the hitting area.

      Golf provides yet another valid comparison here because the longest hitters are those whose extension ‘through the ball’ is the greatest.

      Batsmen should never ignore the importance of finishing the stroke off properly, which means concentrating hard after contact has been made. That way it will be easier to place your shot, and of course to hit it harder.

      Selection of the right ball to hit confuses a lot of batsmen, and this is why it is advisable to take a few minutes at the start of an innings to assess the conditions. Of particular importance is the pace and bounce of the pitch. On a quicker pitch, the off drive can be played to a shorter delivery than normal, and conversely on a slow, low pitch, the ball must be that much further up.

       England v Pakistan, First Test at Old Trafford, June 1987. I have gone for the big one, with the top hand totally in control. It kept the blade open until impact, which increased my margin of error had the ball moved away at the last moment.

      The wider the ball, the more difficult it is to control the stroke. And naturally, the wider the ball, the fuller in length it needs to be to cover it properly.

      The pace of the bowler also matters a lot, as well as what he is trying to do. Off spinners and inswing bowlers do not give you the same amount of room as the slow left arm bowler or the away swinger.

      If the ball is moving or turning, then a batsman needs to take extra care with an off drive, because the swing or spin usually takes effect in the last few feet of delivery.

      When I try to off drive an inswinger, I concentrate on getting my front leg a bit further over, so that I will not be ‘gated’; but when I fancy a dip at an away swinger, I create a bit of room and let the top hand lead me into a full-blooded hit. The reason for this is that if I happen to get an edge, it flies harder and further, and more often than not I get away with it.