ODI series: England turn to baseball to ‘smash’ Pakistan

Published November 9, 2015
Several England batsmen are working with a baseball coach to develop their 'power hitting' game. — Reuters
Several England batsmen are working with a baseball coach to develop their 'power hitting' game. — Reuters

England's head coach Trevor Bayliss admitted last week his team wasn't good enough following their 2-0 Test series defeat against Pakistan, saying all three matches could have been won had chances been availed.

The four ODIs, which begin on November 11, now present England with an opportunity to hit back and the team is turning to cricket's American cousin, baseball, in a bid to 'out bat' Pakistan.

Eoin Morgan and several England batsmen are working with Julian Wood, who has spent the past four years developing techniques with Major League baseball team Texas Rangers, in what ECB’s director of elite coaching, Andy Flower, said was a ‘different a take on hitting’.

“Julian has worked with us before, done a really good job,” Flower was quoted as saying by Sky Sports.

“Part of our job is to offer options to players and they make decisions about whether they want to adopt things.”

Flower said Wood, who played 55 List A matches for Hampshire between 1989 and 1993, will help in developing England's 'power game'.

“This is a little exposure to a guy who has played a bit of cricket but also studied baseball hitting, and it's nice to bring in a different take on hitting the ball, with the emphasis on T20 cricket and some of the power game associated with 50-over cricket,” Flower revealed.

England played their only warm-up game before the ODI series against Hong Kong on Sunday with Morgan's side blasting 342/8 in 50 overs before bowling the opposition out for 173.

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