What do Jake Fraser-McGurk, Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma have in common? All three opening bowlers have a strike rate of over 200 in the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). That's 12 runs over. And they have healthy averages of 41, 53, and 36, respectively. This means they contribute a fair amount of appearances as well as cameos.
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) openers Sunil Narine and Phil Salt have strike rates of 183 and 182 respectively, which are slightly lower than the other three. But their approach and impact are similar. They also have healthy averages of 38 and 40, respectively.
The no-nonsense attitude of these batsmen has completely changed expectations of what is possible in T20 cricket. Scores above 240 for 20 overs and 12 overs and 90 and above for 6 overs and 15 overs are what you would expect on a good batting wicket.
It is no longer unusual for players to swing their bats like a baseball player from the first pitch of an inning. The classic elbow-up style is disappearing, except for bowler-friendly pitches that test batting technique.
In practice sessions, power hitters are gearing up for sixes, not limits. And they're building the muscle memory to keep hitting the ball for long periods of time.
classic and modern
Classical batsmen also changed their styles as the season progressed, following the exploits of Head and Fraser McGuirk.
Virat Kohli, for example, had a strike rate below 150 in the first half of the season. A lack of boldness in Royal Challengers Bangalore's (RCB) top order sank the team. Kohli then changed his tune and pulled the pace bowler and slog-sweep spinner for six seconds. His strike rate rose to 155 this season and RCB's fortunes changed.
More hitters will be under pressure to up the ante. Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) captain KL Rahul has a strike rate below 140 despite his ability to hit big shots. The new normal for top-order batsmen is to keep aiming for shots instead of clinging to the wicket.
Not everyone uses the same techniques. Changes in attitude are just as important as batting style.
Evolution of Narine
Sunil Narine's batting first attracted attention in 2017, when then KKR captain Gautam Gambhir promoted him as a pinch-hitting opener. Although the enigmatic spinner had some success with the bat, his average was low as bowlers targeted his vulnerability to body-line bowling. He disappeared from the top order after Gambhir's stint.
Gambhir's return as a mentor for KKR this year saw Narine's role as an opener revived. The new avatar is more consistent.
Narine is clearly practicing hitting the bouncer, which makes him weaker. An uncluttered mind, limited stroke options and experience in predicting the bowler's actions means the 36-year-old West Indian's swish of the bat often connects.
Narine is not afraid of losing wickets as anything he contributes with the bat is a bonus. His main role is as a bowler. But it also shows what regular hitters can gain by letting go of their fear of getting out.
An equally aggressive approach from Narine's batting partner Phil Salt contributed to Narine's success. This is because both batters have a little more choice as to which ball to hit. Salt was disposed of by Delhi Capitals (DC) and only got a chance in IPL 2024 as a replacement when Jason Roy quit from KKR. He has grabbed it with both hands and will be England's formidable opener alongside Jos Buttler in the upcoming T20 World Cup.
travis head clarity
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) opener Travis Head's first move was to clear his front foot. This allows his raised bat to create a clear arc, hitting anything above his body to the leg side, and driving the ball away to the offside boundary.
Head is the most well-rounded power hitter among the five IPL 2024 Most Valuable Players. After all, this is a continuation of what he has been doing for Australia over the past few years.
Like Narine and Salt, Head and his SRH opening partner Abhishek Sharma complement each other. Head is fluent against pace but a bit weak against spin, whereas Sharma is the opposite. The uncapped Indian batsman hit the spinners six times by flying off the wicket, but the introduction of spinners to contain heads proved to be a double-edged sword.
Fraser McGuirk's baseball stance
Unlike the four opening pitchers mentioned above, DC's Jake Fraser-McGuirk is a one-man show, plying his trade as a power hitter with multiple opening pitchers. He joined the team as a substitute after Mitchell Marsh was sidelined with an injury and had the opportunity to come to bat on first down in Game 6 in DC.
The batting sensation in Australia's Big Bash League scored 65 runs off 18 balls against SRH two games later, and became the talk of the town even though the team lost. He further enhanced his credentials with a winning knock of 84 off 27 balls against Mumbai Indians (Michigan) and 50 off 20 balls against the opener-qualified Rajasthan Royals. The other teams participating in the T20 World Cup in June will be relieved that Australia has left him out of the squad.
Fraser McGuirk's distinguishing feature was his bat-raised baseball stance, clearly indicating his intentions. This may become the default stance for powerplay his openers in T20 cricket.
Sumit Chakravarty is a writer based in Bangalore.
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