With the way batters are dispatching bowlers all over the park in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, it would be considered very brave of someone to aspire becoming a bowler.
The IPL fixture at the Eden Gardens involving the Kolkata Knight Riders and the Punjab Kings on March 26th, highlighted the lack of balance between the bat and the ball.
Bowlers from both the sides were helpless and stood no chance when willow wielders like Phill Salt, Sunil Narine, Jonny Bairstow and Shashank Singh were on a rampage.
A brutal hundred from Bairstow combined with Shashank Singh’s whirlwind knock helped Punjab chase down the highest score in the history of IPL in just 18.4 overs.
The assault forced Ravi Ashwin, considered as one of the modern-day greats vent out his feelings on X, and wrote
“Save the bowlers” someone plsss
#KKRvsPBKS #IPL2024”, making the audience think about the challenges bowlers face in cricket.
Power hitting in the IPL has been over the roof
IPL 2024 has already seen more than 700 sixes so far in the last 42 games and the count still goes on. The last game between KKR and PBKS itself was a record breaker with 42 sixes, making it a t20 fixture with the most number of sixes.
Sunrisers Hyderabad is the team with the most number of sixes in the tournament so far with over 70 sixes already. Indeed, power hitting has been the talk of the town in IPL 2024.
Power hitting has been helping batters target beyond the boundaries. With Strength and conditioning playing a crucial role in enhancing power hitting among the batters, guys like Travis Head, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhishek Sharma, K.L. Rahul are tonking sixes at will.
By focusing on exercises that build muscle strength, explosive power, and overall fitness, these players are able to generate more force when striking the ball. Improved strength in the legs, core, and upper body is allowing these batters to maintain balance and stability while executing powerful shots.
In The Sportz Planet’s exclusive interview with Dr. Siddharth Unnithan, he said “hitting a six is not only about big power. Earlier it was considered about power. If you see the most hefty and strongest people like M.S.Dhoni or Yuvraj Singh, they all had huge power, and that’s how they could hit the six, that’s what we considered. But then now we are seeing that even normal people can hit sixes.
So sports science has found out that it is all about momentum. And momentum is all about velocity and mass. So it is all about bringing the best.”
He later added “if you have a good bat lift and a good downswing, for example like a person like Sehwag, who had a very good bat lift and a down swing. That’s what made him hit the ball sweetly. That’s what is converting a lot of success. That’s a major sports science aspect you can say; the momentum and the downswing. More than the power.”
While Dr. Khyati Vakharia said, “A lot of sports have shifted from heavy muscular built to lean muscle. That’s the body you build when you train for maximum strength vs training for hypertrophy and submaximal. There is a whole training shift. So athletes have become more powerful and even look leaner.”
Power Hitting – described in a nutshell
Power Hitting is all about science, embodying a symphony of physics and biomechanics. It’s not merely about brute force, it’s a finesse born of scientific principles.
The transfer of energy from the bowler’s delivery to the batsman’s swing involves the laws of motion and leverage. The sweet spot on the bat, its angle upon impact, and the velocity of the swing all determine the force with which the ball will be propelled.
Biomechanical analysis delves into the optimal stance, grip, and body position to maximize power while maintaining balance and precision. Understanding the aerodynamics of the ball aids in timing shots and directing them with accuracy.
In this fusion of science and sport, power hitters master the art of harnessing kinetic energy to send the ball soaring across the boundary.
With cricket revolutionizing every season, there’s no doubt that it’s the science that is proving to be the real game changer in the sport.
The Sportz Planet Desk,
Atharva Shetye.
