So what am I doing wrong?

[mailman]

For the life of me I cannot buy a win playing test matches, one dayers or t20's!

Im lucky to score over 300 in a test match and even luckier if I can keep the opposition below 500! Even when Ive got my guys batting cautiously Id be lucky to get any kind of partnership going with my top 5 batters!

Same with bowling, regardless of what I do I just can't get a break through or worse, I might have the opposition 5 or 6 down for 150 YET they still end up scoring over 400 as there is always one partnership that absolutely murders me! Yet strangely Ive NEVER had a partnership that just tears the opposition apart or grinds them in to the ground!

For the one dayers its even worse! Id be lucky to score over 100 runs in the first thirty overs and more often than not am lucky to get close to 200 in 50! You watch even the worst international team in real life and they still keep the score board ticking over while in this game it might be the 48th over and Ill have 6 wickets in hand BUT my batters will still only score 2 or 3 runs OR they might hit a boundary off the first ball and then follow up with 5 dot balls!

So...please...someone...some hints and tips would be most welcome.

Regards

Mailman

[GrahamB]

In 20/20, I've had more success by starting both batsmen on 7 bars and keeping them there until the last four or so overs. Then if enough wickets remain, I put them on 8 bars.
Bowl at standard length outside off-stump to the most defensive field possible using three bars aggression.

When I start experiencing more success in the ODs and FC matches, I'll share my tactics then.

[Alrounder80]

For the life of me I cannot buy a win playing test matches, one dayers or t20's!

Im lucky to score over 300 in a test match and even luckier if I can keep the opposition below 500! Even when Ive got my guys batting cautiously Id be lucky to get any kind of partnership going with my top 5 batters!

Same with bowling, regardless of what I do I just can't get a break through or worse, I might have the opposition 5 or 6 down for 150 YET they still end up scoring over 400 as there is always one partnership that absolutely murders me! Yet strangely Ive NEVER had a partnership that just tears the opposition apart or grinds them in to the ground!

For the one dayers its even worse! Id be lucky to score over 100 runs in the first thirty overs and more often than not am lucky to get close to 200 in 50! You watch even the worst international team in real life and they still keep the score board ticking over while in this game it might be the 48th over and Ill have 6 wickets in hand BUT my batters will still only score 2 or 3 runs OR they might hit a boundary off the first ball and then follow up with 5 dot balls!

So...please...someone...some hints and tips would be most welcome.

Regards

Mailman

FC and Tests: I start batsmen off at 2 bars and move onto 3 when the settled bar is about half filled. Only when I need quick runs do I increase onto further aggression bars. In Tests, I might start off openers at 1 bar for 3/4 overs and move onto 2 and so on.

Bowling wise, you should ideally have 4 bowlers doing most of the bowling. Any extra all-rounders are a bonus. I always start off with 4 bars and bowling to the opposite side of the batsmen's strength. So if, for example, a batsman has a strong/slight legside preference, I'll set at four bars and bowl outside off stump. Once batsmen get to 25+ runs, I'll reduce the bar to 3. Once they cross about 60, I'll go down to 2 bars and experiment by going around the wicket and potentially also changing up the length according to what length the batsmen prefers, etc. If you're struggling to get the tail out, use any decent part-timer you have in your team for a few overs. I also recommend always having a decent spinner in the side. They tend to be pretty economical (for me, at least) and can get through lots of overs which allows the fast bowlers to rest. You may also use spinners against batsmen who prefer pace and vice versa.

Compared to the longer format, T20s and ODs are much harder.

OD: I start of openers at 4 bars for few overs before moving them onto 5 until the power plays are introduced. Usually 6 bars for the PPs and 7 from maybe 42 over onwards and full aggression for the last 3 overs. You can adjust the aggression depending on the run rate and how settled the batsmen are. One thing I tend to do is identify the weak bowlers in the opposition. You can do this by checking their current season stats (as well as career stats). If they are poor; the bowler is either out of form, or not that good. So once you've done this, attack that bowler(s) (say one more aggression bar than the other bowlers). Opposingly, if you come across an absolutely brilliant bowler, you may think about playing at a lower aggression against that bowler. Just be proactive. And rather than skipping the whole over (by pressing 'play over'), click the 'next ball' option each time, which is right beside 'play over'. The highlight options can be whatever you prefer, but by clicking 'next ball' every time, you're able to react to what's happening much more effectively.

T20s: GrahamB's batting tactics are essentially what I use. Openers, I might allow 3 or 4 balls faced at 6 bars.

I haven't talked about the bowling in OD and T20s because I use specific custom fields which help a lot in tying down batsmen in the middle overs. The fields would be quite hard to describe to any degree of accuracy!

EDIT: These are tactics that I use, they may well not be the best or most effective.

[GrahamB]

FC and Tests: I start batsmen off at 2 bars and move onto 3 when they are the settled bar is about half filled. Only when I need quick runs do I increase onto further aggression bars. In Tests, I might start off openers at 1 bar for 3/4 overs and move onto 2 and so on.

Bowling wise, you should ideally have 4 bowlers doing most of the bowling. Any extra all-rounders are a bonus. I always start off with 4 bars and bowling to the opposite side of the batsmen's strength. So if, for example, a batsman has a strong/slight legside preference, I'll set at four bars and bowl outside off stump. Once batsmen get to 25+ runs, I'll reduce the bar to 3. Once they cross about 60, I'll go down to 2 bars and experiment by going around the wicket and potentially also changing up the length according to what length the batsmen prefers, etc. If you're struggling to get the tail out, use any decent part-timer you have in your team for a few overs. I also recommend always having a decent spinner in the side. They tend to be pretty economical (for me, at least) and can get through lots of overs which allows the fast bowlers to rest. You may also use spinners against batsmen who prefer pace and vice versa.

Compared to the longer format, T20s and ODs are much harder.

OD: I start of openers at 4 bars for few overs before moving them onto 5 until the power plays are introduced. Usually 6 bars for the PPs and 7 from maybe 42 over onwards and for the last 3. You can adjust the aggression depending on the run rate and how settled the batsmen are. One thing I tend to do is identify the weak bowlers in the opposition. You can do this by checking their current season stats (as well as career stats). If they are poor; the bowler is either out of form, or not that good. So once you've done this, attack that bowler(s) (say one more aggression bar than the other bowlers). Opposingly, if you come across an absolutely brilliant bowler, you may think about playing at a lower aggression against that bowler. Just be proactive. And rather than skipping the whole over (by pressing 'play over'), click the 'next ball' option each time, which is right beside 'play over'. The highlight options can be whatever you prefer, but by clicking 'next ball' every time, you're able to react to what's happening much more effectively.

These are essentially very similar tactics to what I use as well.

[Dick Van Dykes Disco Dog]

Chris/Sureshot

Would it be possible to create a sticky solely for tactics as this is quite a common discussion.

Unfortunately there are loads of separate threads all with advice - albeit not as good as this one.

Just might make it easier for new players to spot when they first enter the forum.

[Chris Child]

Something that gets missed. It's often a good idea to bowl around the wicket to left handers. Increases your chance of an LBW as the ball is more likely to pitch outside off stump.

[Alrounder80]

Something that gets missed. It's often a good idea to bowl around the wicket to left handers. Increases your chance of an LBW as the ball is more likely to pitch outside off stump.

Yeah, I always do this. Irl though, right arm pace bowlers bowling over the wicket to left-handers is generally much much more effective. The angle across is very tricky and the occasional ball that nips back in can catch batsmen off guard. You have to know exactly where your off stump is, as a batsman, to succeed. Around the wicket on the other hand, is so much easier. Rarely will right arm pacers be able to swing it away from that angle, so the batsmen have less to worry about. Professional batsmen are also (generally) very good with balls on leg stump. Around the wicket, the ball will naturally be drifting onto the pads.

In future versions, I think it's worth considering making over the wicket to left handers becomes much more effective and around the wicket much less effective.

[mailman]

Thanks for the reply guys, its much appreciated and gives me food for thought.

A second follow up question for you all is now in order. When it comes to training whats the best options to go with? Usually pretty much everyone in my team will be hovering on 1 star or less after getting man humped in a test series so do I just go with batting practice or should I select technique practice?

Regards

Mailman

[GrahamB]

Thanks for the reply guys, its much appreciated and gives me food for thought.

A second follow up question for you all is now in order. When it comes to training whats the best options to go with? Usually pretty much everyone in my team will be hovering on 1 star or less after getting man humped in a test series so do I just go with batting practice or should I select technique practice?

Regards

Mailman

I only use technique training for players 24 years old or younger, and only when their form is three stars or higher.

[Mongrel]

Yeah, I always do this. Irl though, right arm pace bowlers bowling over the wicket to left-handers is generally much much more effective. The angle across is very tricky and the occasional ball that nips back in can catch batsmen off guard. You have to know exactly where your off stump is, as a batsman, to succeed. Around the wicket on the other hand, is so much easier. Rarely will right arm pacers be able to swing it away from that angle, so the batsmen have less to worry about. Professional batsmen are also (generally) very good with balls on leg stump. Around the wicket, the ball will naturally be drifting onto the pads.

In future versions, I think it's worth considering making over the wicket to left handers becomes much more effective and around the wicket much less effective.

I agree with this. I think there's actually far too many LBW and bowled dismissals as it is, as the expense of catches in the slips and, especially, by the wicketkeeper.

Realistically, it has been this way since ICC2002 which is a shame. Maybe that indicates I've just had terrible luck with that over the past 12 years...

[Chris Child]

Yeah, I always do this. Irl though, right arm pace bowlers bowling over the wicket to left-handers is generally much much more effective. The angle across is very tricky and the occasional ball that nips back in can catch batsmen off guard. You have to know exactly where your off stump is, as a batsman, to succeed. Around the wicket on the other hand, is so much easier. Rarely will right arm pacers be able to swing it away from that angle, so the batsmen have less to worry about. Professional batsmen are also (generally) very good with balls on leg stump. Around the wicket, the ball will naturally be drifting onto the pads.

In future versions, I think it's worth considering making over the wicket to left handers becomes much more effective and around the wicket much less effective.

I thought that might spark some debate...

[mailman]

Right lads...after all the advice I had a good old play around last night and can finally say Im making some progress!

I can actually bowl teams out for less than 400 runs! I guess just like in real life bowling to a batters weakness is actually paying dividends in my games now! So yay!

My batters have also started to improve and Ive finally had a couple centuries from my top order batsmen although the issue I now have is the snail like scoring rate! Its taking me damn near 3 days to get close to 400 runs in a test match!

So...any secrets? I start my openers on 1 bar and as their comfort level rises I start to increase their bars by one but any time I start getting over three bars is when I start to lose wickets like its a going out of fashion!

Regards

Mailman

[Dick Van Dykes Disco Dog]

Right lads...after all the advice I had a good old play around last night and can finally say Im making some progress!

I can actually bowl teams out for less than 400 runs! I guess just like in real life bowling to a batters weakness is actually paying dividends in my games now! So yay!

My batters have also started to improve and Ive finally had a couple centuries from my top order batsmen although the issue I now have is the snail like scoring rate! Its taking me damn near 3 days to get close to 400 runs in a test match!

So...any secrets? I start my openers on 1 bar and as their comfort level rises I start to increase their bars by one but any time I start getting over three bars is when I start to lose wickets like its a going out of fashion!

Regards

Mailman

Hi mate

Do you play on easy or normal?
I'd always recommend starting on easy just to build up an understanding plus you'll get good idea of what works and more importantly what doesn't

When batting I increase the aggression based on how much the settle bit increases - can be measured by the letters S-E-T-T-L-E-D

- I increase from 1 to 2 once the bar hits THE "S"
- once it is between the two T's I increase to 3 bars
- once the bar goes beyond "D" I increase to 4 bars
- then once fully settled to 5
- if they manage to score another 15-20 runs then I increase to 6 but only if there is more than an hour of that session to go
- end of session (but not the day) I decrease back to 5 then increase again to 6 once fully settled.

Have managed to score 400+ in a day quite often using the above

[Alrounder80]

Hi mate

Do you play on easy or normal?
I'd always recommend starting on easy just to build up an understanding plus you'll get good idea of what works and more importantly what doesn't

When batting I increase the aggression based on how much the settle bit increases - can be measured by the letters S-E-T-T-L-E-D

- I increase from 1 to 2 once the bar hits THE "S"
- once it is between the two T's I increase to 3 bars
- once the bar goes beyond "D" I increase to 4 bars
- then once fully settled to 5
- if they manage to score another 15-20 runs then I increase to 6 but only if there is more than an hour of that session to go
- end of session (but not the day) I decrease back to 5 then increase again to 6 once fully settled.

Have managed to score 400+ in a day quite often using the above

Interesting. I've always thought going above 3 bars meant unnecessary risk of batsmen losing their wicket. Do you think that's not really the case if they're fully settled?

[KGKOOLKAT777]

I usually find my team stacked with all-rounders and towards the end of the session, part timers seem to come on so I have a very aggressive all-rounder who bats about 10 for me and occasionally I will promote him and put him on full aggression and on a fair few occasions he will get a quick 30 at least! The only problem is with one batsman high and one low run -outs seem to occur a lot.