Is there another sport with as much waiting as cricket?

Waiting to bat, waiting for the bowler to start their run up, waiting for a bowl, waiting for a declaration...

No wonder cricket is seen as a lazy game even though it's a power sport.

If you want to improve as a player you have to learn to deal with all this waiting around both physically and mentally.

Cricket Mind Games

There is not much that is more satisfying for a seam bowler than steaming in, beating the batsman for pace and seeing the stumps cartwheeling back. If anyone knows how to tease that extra pace out of you it's Ian Pont: Cricket guru and fast bowling coach to Essex CCC and the Netherlands World Cup squad.

It's an increasingly common site across the cricket fields of the world: Games without draws. These games are a totally different way of playing with their own challenges for cricketers, especially captains.

The essential difference between the two forms is that you don't need to bowl the opposition out to win. This means you are looking to defend in the field far more quickly, ideally using the basic field placing structure to cut off as many runs as possible in the V.

It's time for another guest feature and our friend Ian Canaway of Cricketsecrets.com is back with some footwork advice.

Recently I was asked: "Is footwork really that important?"

My answer was emphatic: Good footwork is the basis for achieving excellence in cricket and is the foundation for good batting technique.

• Feeling sore after playing or training is a natural side effect of improving your fitness. It's called DOMS and while you can't and shouldnt stop it, you can reduce the worst of it.
• Vern Gambetta spends some time with the ECB who are also trying to establish a training culture in cricket.
• Interesting viewpoint on the role of the ICC Champions Trophy. Does anyone actually care?

It's a little known fact that most club cricket games are won and lost with spinners.

The reason is that most club batsmen tend to have a decent defence and not many shots while most club seamers tend to not be good enough to fire out the opposition.

That leaves the spinner to step in. You ready for the challenge?

Following this post on underrated club cricketers I got a mail about one type that I missed. Over to Mark:

"Another underrated player is the enthusiastic occasional player.The guy who has very little cricketing skill - can't bowl at all and is really only good at blocking an end up when batting, but he'll chase everything in the field saving countless runs in the process, and is likely to take the occasional useful catch.

It's time for another guest post. As we have been talking about cricket as a power sport, Scott Bird from Straighttothebar.com gives us the low down on a power developing tool: the kettlebell

Getting your first kettlebell

What exactly are they?

They're often referred to as a 'cannonball with a handle', which is a pretty good description. A kettlebell is usually (there are adjustable ones - avoid them) a solid chunk of cast iron, which comprises a spherical weight with a flat bottom and a curved, thick handle on top.

Once described as 'organised loafing', cricket is seen as one of the more genteel of sports. On the surface, it appears that there is little to compare it with the physical demands of power sports like football or rugby.

So why ask if cricket is a power sport or not?

Simply put, if you want to improve your game, you need to know what demands your body is under so you can train in the right way. Train wrong and you are wasting your efforts.

Apart from you (after all, I know how underrated you are) is there anyone in your side who does a great job every week without anyone really noticing?

It could be a timely reminder for the lesser lights of your club, what with many end of year piss ups ceremonies very soon.

Here are a few types the nominations committee may have glossed over. Make sure you don't do the same.