“Use your rear-view mirror.” It used to be a rule, less so now. Reverse parking also relied on the rear-view mirror, though not as much either.
In cricket, bat-down-tapping was gospel until Graham Gooch opted for a bat-up-first-set. True, Gooch bagged a pair on Test debut, stooping over his flat-back Gray Nic’s—likely one of the reasons he went to the bat-up-first setup, which, by the way, helped Gooch become one of the finest openers of his generation. (If you wanted to read more.)
Now, in 2026, bat-up-first would account for 98% of the batting workforce—male, female, and juniors. I see it all the time in the pathways, and I’m fine with it.
But occasionally, I see one awful habit that must be avoided at all costs.
A batter checking where their bat is while the bowling is approaching is an absolute NO. It will ruin any chance of a free swing and solid contact. However bad your bat-swing is on the way down is not as bad as watching it before it starts.
The bat-up-first model is already contrived; please don’t accentuate it by checking the precise angles and loft of the bat when your focus should be on the incoming bowler. A significant part of the art of batting is understanding where your bat is on the way down, and how the face angle matches up at contact to your target line. Gooch would call this batsmanship—should it be batspersonship? Hopefully you get the drift.
Avoid this very bad habit at all costs.
Nick
