The transition from indoor - with the ball coming on to the bat, being able to hit on the up - to outdoor surfaces with slower decks, seam and variable bounce is a tricky one for any batter.

Here is an indoor drill (elements can also be used outdoors) to help batsmen build skill and a precise mental approach.

It really works.

Have you noticed that some batters set up differently?

Bent knees and a slightly wider base are notable in Kevin Pietersen, Graeme Smith and Gary Ballance. They move completely differently. Their movements don't relate to those coaching words and terms that I have often been exposed to in during my 22 year coaching career.

How do you coach players like this when they struggle with technical issues?

Andrew Strauss reminded today of a brilliant bowling machine drill which we were introduced to by Shiv Chanderpaul.

Last week we looked at how to score big without boundaries, now we are going to switch it and look at some boundary options.

I love it when a spin bowler comes along with something different.

And not just for the reasons you think.

One of the spinners at Millfield School has gained so much confidence from his winters practice sessions that he felt it was time to bowl his "doosra" against batters in the nets for the first time.

The young lad has been working on developing his own version of the ball in his technical sessions, and also down the corridors of his house. He has been delivering tennis balls into an upturned bucket in order to master the release position and now is letting the delivery go in nets.

We coaches are generally very good at developing one part of batting:'shot execution'. That is the mechanics of each shot. But this is the last phase in a series of three.

Before you can play a shot you need to pick up the visual cues and decide on the shot. These are the missing phases for many of us.

So how do we go about developing the first two phases?

During my ECB Level 3 batting modules, I always ask the fellow coaches to throw up any ideas or drills that they have to add value to the module.

Last week Sussex Sharks Cricketer, Chris Nash, demonstrated a great drill that was intended to challenge decision making. The drill achieved its aim and opened up other vital elements of batting.

The basic drill

Get a batter padded up and ready to receive a ball. As a coach you stand 7 metres away from the crease.

Armed with a ball, the coach walks in 2 paces before delivering a fast-paced underarm delivery into either:

One of the biggest challenges I have faced this week is to cater for everyone's individual needs within a group of 20 children in Sardinia as part of a coaching camp.

It's never been easier to get video footage of players with cameras everywhere from phones to specialist equipment. But very few coaches understand the optimal angles of filming to get the best from video analysis.

I'm going to let you into the secrets of the way that we analyse the fast bowlers using a digital zoom camera.

You can then use the principles to adjust the distance from the point of release depending on the camera type that you are using at the time (phone, iPad or digitial camera).

Jonny Wilkinson's kicking coach, Dave Alred talked to me recently about the experience that has shifted the way that he goes about his coaching.