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Which cricket shot is really hard to play?

Kamranaazam

Kamranaazam

Local Club Regular
Joined
Sep 6, 2010
Runs
1,478
1.Reverse Sweep
2.Pull
3.Hook
4.straight drive
5.The Leg Glance
6.square cut
7.Sweep
8.Reverse sweep
9.Slog
10.slog sweep
11.Switch hit
12.dilscoop
 
Mastering the pull shot against the real quickies is not possible unless its purely instinctive. Making it an instinctive reaction is very difficult. In this sense it has to be the hardest shot to play.
 
Playing the hook shot is a lot harder than the pull tbh. :inzi
 
You can't play a hook to spinners, they won't get the ball head high.

Well, most spinners. :afridi
 
I can play all those shots apart from the edge down to third man and a proper square cut. No matter how much I practice, I just can't play them. I'm left handed so it should be easier to play those lol
 
Personally though I find the aerial off-drive into the 2nd tier the most difficult shot to play :afridi
 
The on-drive. The most beautiful and the most difficult to master.

The straight drive is a close second. I drool endlessly watching Sachin driving it straight and disguised as a mere push.

Pull shot is infact one of the easiest to play. Don't let the frailties of subcontinent players fool you to believe otherwise. It comes naturally once you grow up playing on bouncier pitches.
 
Poison said:
Pull/hook same difference :afridi
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A Pull is a cross-batted shot played to a ball bouncing around waist height by swinging the bat in a horizontal arc in front of the body, pulling it around to the leg side towards mid-wicket or square leg. The term Hook shot is used when the shot is played against a ball bouncing at or above chest high to the batsman, the batsman thus "hooking" the ball around behind square leg, either along the ground or in the air. Pull and hook shots can be played off front or back foot, with back foot being more typical.
 
Btw, why has 'slog' made the list in the OP? You don't actually have to hit the ball to play that shot, in fact it's advised you don't. :shahzaib
 
Aditya Khanna said:
Pull shot is infact one of the easiest to play. Don't let the frailties of subcontinent players fool you to believe otherwise. It comes naturally once you grow up playing on bouncier pitches.
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Instinct, like I said. And it's not easy to play lol, by comparison an on drive requires much much less reflexes.
 
On drive but pull shot scares me the most - playing with my eyes half closed against pacy bowlers.
 
Umar Akmal makes the paddle look so much harder than it actually is.
 
Poison said:
Instinct, like I said. And it's not easy to play lol, by comparison an on drive requires much much less reflexes.
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Every cricket shot is instinctive at some level.

And yes, it is easy to play. Playing a pull means negotiating a SHORT ball which essentially translates into a ball that wouldn't move alarmingly through the air. Infact, it'll be a straight trajectory. The batsman only needs to roll the wrist and keep it down. It's tough for subcontinental players because they aren't used to it. Not an inherently difficult stroke.

An on-drive demands impeccable balance and precision and factoring any late movement a full pitched delivery is likely to have.
 
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Moyo's late cut is practically impossible to play. Dunno how he does it :moyo
 
for me the slog sweep is the hardest....

and i dont play the sweep much


rest is fine :D
 
Aditya Khanna said:
One of my favourites. Can't play it unless blessed with quicksilver footwork and unbeatable timing. VVS and nowadays Clarke do it the best.
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I personally think S.Ganguly use to play the best 'inside-out' shot. His footwork was excellent and the results on most instances was a six.
 
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A controlled pull shot (or hook which requires better technique) against a genuine quickie will be the difficult shot for people who are slow to react and with poor reflexes..

While we tend to glorify the on drive and straight drive, a batsman who is adept at handling a heavy bat can do it with ease.. the thumb rule to play a good straight drive is not to move across early. We started glorifying these shots because the Indian commentators stared praising this shots whenever sachin or dravid plays it..

if reverse sweep and Switch hits are considered as proper shots then they are the most difficult shots to play in a controlled manner.

Square cut and cover drives are some of the most natural shots for anyone.. I don't understand how square cut can be a difficult shot to any one. Only an incomplete player who don't have back foot play will find square cut difficult.


Another shot which is very difficult to play is a square drive to the balls without any width on offer (not a normal square drive).. like what anwar used to play.. or a back foot punch through covers like what sachin plays.. I have not seen anyone else play these two shots well.
 
I usually play the pool/hook shots with my eyes closed, doesnt really bother me thou

I find the inside out cover drive the hardest to play. Feet get tangled and I often hit the the back of my legs :D

It has got me bowled many times, but it remains one of my favourite shots.
 
The thing with a sweep - reverse or normal is there is certainly an element of pre-determined about them. The very best batsman are the ones who can adapt and change shot if the ball isn't there to play the shot.

On that and as I was tallking about 92 on another thread I've just remembered a story about Miandad. It was Mustaq's first tour. To keep him in his place and also for Miandad to show everyone what a genius he was everytime Mushy bowled him a googly in the nets he'd shout out googly as soon as the ball left the bowler's hand and reverse sweep it.

Legend!
 
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Switch hit and then get into the stance of playing a reverse sweep to deceive the bowler but end up playing a Dil Scoop against ,,,,,,,, Shaun Tait.
 
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farazaidi said:
I usually play the pool/hook shots with my eyes closed, doesnt really bother me thou

I find the inside out cover drive the hardest to play. Feet get tangled and I often hit the the back of my legs :D

It has got me bowled many times, but it remains one of my favourite shots.
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Inside out lofted cover drive is a beautiful shot to watch. I too have the same experience of hitting the inside part of my left leg just above the ankle a couple of times and I also struggle to get the elevation to beat the field.. but mastering this shot can help a great deal in playing out leg spinners and left arm orthodox spinners.
 
I have to say the drive on the up is the most difficult for me. playing a cover drive or a straight drive to a ball thats lifting while on front foot. very difficult shot to play.
 
I can't play the leg glance or the hook. I'm good on the off side but I struggle on the leg side a lot.
 
razzaq_03 said:
I can't play the leg glance or the hook. I'm good on the off side but I struggle on the leg side a lot.
Click to expand...

Try to go back and across a bit early. that can improve your leg side game a bit.. try to move back and across for short of length balls and not to the full pitched balls, pitching on the line of the stumps.. also opening up your stance a bit can help.
 
For me anything pitched up on or around off stump is almost impossible to play for any shot these days. :(. I just miss the ball its so fast when pitched up.
 
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Hook/Pull shot off Fast bowlers, I almost everytime miss it
 
hashbb said:
Hook/Pull shot off Fast bowlers, I almost everytime miss it
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Those are two shots you don't wanna miss - otherwise you will be spitting out teeth and ribs for weeks.

Best to duck or swerve if that is the case. Don't even attempt the shot.
 
pull and hook shots are easiest to play. on and straight drive are the most difficult shot to implement........slog seep is also very tough shot to play..........
 
cric_crazy said:
pull and hook shots are easiest to play. on and straight drive are the most difficult shot to implement........slog seep is also very tough shot to play..........
Click to expand...

hope you never faced chin music or a perfume ball in your life..

Honestly slog sweep is one of the easiest shots to play (and also the easiest way to get out to a spinner)
 
For me square cut or any shots on the off side are easier to play then shots on the leg side including hook or pull
 
I find a conventional sweep a bit hard to play properly. You have to judge the length early and get to the pitch of it. If it's too short, it'll just hit you on the helmet, if it's too full, it'll just skid under your bat and offer an easy LBW or bowled.

The hook shot is also hard, depending on the speed of the bowler.
 
Reverse sweep seems to be the hardest, always an LBW candidate if that goes wrong.
 
ajithrocks said:
hope you never faced chin music or a perfume ball in your life..

Honestly slog sweep is one of the easiest shots to play (and also the easiest way to get out to a spinner)
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lol...I have faced all kinds of music really.....U don't need any technique or any thing at all to play the short pitch ball, you just need good reflexes and must have the ability to judge the length of the ball........and most importantly u have to face it like a man stand tall and never be scared....the moment u get scared by a hit then not only yr match but career will be over......on the other hand u have to have a lot of time to play the slog sweep shot to the spinner which I really do not seem to have against any spinner..........I know that most of the ppl find it very easy to play the slog sweep but I generally suck against the spinners so thats why its harder for me to play the big wild slog shot to the spinners.........
 
In my experience, all of them.

For those who can play, I thought the on drive was supposed to be one of the trickiest?
 
tell you what Eoin Morgan plays the reverse sweep brilliantly.

amazing ODI player
 
What do people think of the stand and deliver approach?

Only those blessed with the quickest of eye can pull it off and frankly, it'd frustrate the most if I were the bowler at the receiving end. I am thinking of Sehwag and lately, Tamim Iqbal.
 
sweep and leg glance, very difficult for me

anything on the off side is easy for me :yk
 
mot dif shot in cricket is 10000% dilscoop:) any one who can bat is able to hook, pull, drive ect... try to play a dilscOOOp..
 
It's different with everyone, some are good at Drives but terrible against short ball but some are opposite...I can pretty easily play cut and pull but I am terrible at drives, always hit it in the air or edge it.
 
pull on a fast paced bowler like shoaib is hard.......that's why i admire Ponting and Gilly for their success in these two shots
 
RehanG said:
mot dif shot in cricket is 10000% dilscoop:) any one who can bat is able to hook, pull, drive ect... try to play a dilscOOOp..
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The Dilscoop is probably the hardest shot to play and one that could only have been invented in the age of batting helmets. In days gone by you would have been lucky to still be around to tell the tale about when you tried the DilScoop against Thommo and missed.......................
 
From my personal experience it has gotta be on-drive. Have tried it so many times but just can't seem to get it right. I have hardly seen international players mastering this shot or playing it regularly.
 
Poison said:
Mastering the pull shot against the real quickies is not possible unless its purely instinctive. Making it an instinctive reaction is very difficult. In this sense it has to be the hardest shot to play.
Click to expand...

Got to agree with this. You either have it or you don't. In that way, it seems to be the hardest and is rarely played well.

The lofted inside-out drive over cover is also quite difficuly. It's amazing how easy players like Hussey make that look.
 
Square cut against an off spinner on a turning wicket when the ball is not too short. It is one of the difficult shots to execute. For me all the drives in front of square on both sides are easy.
 
this one

85228.jpg
 
The block shot is the hardest to play - :afridi

.....on a serious note, hands down the switch-hit ala KP
 
Definitely the Pull shot for me, especially against quick bowlers when the ball is coming into your body.It is an instinctive shot and a sign of an attacking player. The best puller for me has to be Ricky Ponting.
 
For me its gotta to be the hook/pull just not instinctive enough and to the spinners i cant sweep. Fav whilst batting is straight drive past the bowler gets them really angry :))
 
Down2Earth said:
I can play all those shots apart from the edge down to third man and a proper square cut. No matter how much I practice, I just can't play them. I'm left handed so it should be easier to play those lol
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we should get you to bat up the order for Pak. But wait! you can't edge the ball to 3rd man or slips. you have to master that one 1st before you get a chance for Pak. Look at Imran Farhat.
 
Lol i love cutting and pulling and running the ball down to 3rd man but maybe that's because i've been brought up on minty quick and bouncy wickets, really it depends where you've played your cricket. We have really good wickets here so its always fun against the quicks cuz the ball runs onto the bat.
 
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