GEORGE Bailey has credited a technical change in his batting as one of the key reasons behind his Sheffield Shield run spree this summer.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
![George Bailey George Bailey](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/storypad-rbK3JeWvD2qHbreu4BP7te/0b38b9f6-04ae-4c8f-b7f3-d5a20eec4ed5.jpg/r0_4_1944_1097_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
But he’s happy to admit he wasn’t confident the new approach would work against the red ball.
The 33-year-old former South Launceston batsman from Longford has revealed that a batting stance that is more side-on had played a part in his big personal summer so far.
The Tasmanian skipper sits in second place on Shield run-scoring table at the Big Bash League break, with 543 runs at 60.33, with two hundreds and two fifties.
‘‘I’ve gone with a bit of a different technique this year, based on what I was doing in the IPL in terms of playing side-on a bit more, and I took that to England (County Cricket) and tried to incorporate that into the Twenty20 and one-day stuff there,’’ Bailey told Fairfax Media.
‘‘I wasn’t sure it would hold up against the red ball which moves around a bit more, but we had some one-day games in England where the ball did quite a bit, and thought if it held up there, hopefully it will hold up (in first class cricket).
‘‘I had a crack at it in the Shield and it seems to be working.
‘‘I’ve always been a bit of a tinkerer, so we will see how long I stick with it, but I’m reasonably happy with it.
‘‘It is always nice to get a couple of hundreds, because as batsmen we are pretty greedy.
‘‘The other thing I have really enjoyed is getting a good run at red ball cricket as I have played five (Shield games) in a row, and I can’t remember the last time that happened.’’
Despite the good form of Bailey, Ben Dunk (top of the run-scoring list with 595 runs at 66.11) and paceman Jackson Bird (second on the wicket-taking list with 22 at 24) the Tigers sit bottom of the Shield table.
‘‘It is just hard work for us at the moment,’’ Bailey said.
‘‘We have a bit of a mix with experienced guys who haven’t been performing, who we have been challenging to get out of their comfort zone, and younger guys who haven’t played much cricket and we have been balancing that need to be patient with them.’’
Bailey will enter his Hurricanes duties in a good state of mind, and is looking forward to taking a back seat from a leadership point of view with Tim Paine to captain the franchise this summer.
‘‘I get more excited about the Big Bash each year, and there is this great feeling around Hobart around these games,’’ Bailey said.
‘‘We made a couple of good key signings (like Kumar Sangakkara and Shaun Tait) and I think if we can start well we will be right up there.
‘‘I’m really excited to be able to play with Kumar and he’s a real gentleman from all reports and a legend of the game, so it will be great to just hang out with him and see how he prepares cricket-wise.’’
Hobart opens its BBL campaign against the Sydney Sixers at the SCG on Sunday, December 20.