Why do some people pick up cricket skills better and faster than others?

Talent? Maybe.

Grit? Possibly.

Knowing yourself? Absolutely.

Don't panic, I'm not suggesting you disappear for 7 years on a journey of discovery to confront your guilt and become a Ninjitsu master like Batman. Learning how you learn is simply a matter of trying things until you find the methods that click with you most quickly. Everyone is different, so keep trying; you'll find several that work.

Are drills the answer to cricket skills?

Drilling is the most common way people want to learn cricket skills. It certainly works. If you repeat something enough times, you will learn. That's exactly how you taught yourself to walk and talk as a baby.

Drilling is, by nature, dull and repetitive. You have to do it far more than you think you need to for it to carry over into mastery in a game. That's when a healthy dose of
persistence, long-term passion and focus come into play. You might be the type of person who has those traits. You might be the type of person who can develop them over time. That's good because if you want drilling to work, you will need them.

If you don't have the attention to burn, perhaps you can drill less and try other ways.

Even if you do, there are often times when drilling alone is not enough. Let's have a look at some other ways to develop.

Improve by critical thinking

Drills are great, but they can be mindless: Your coach sets up the drill, you hit or bowl some balls and you go home. Wait for the magic to happen (even with a good review process). For some, the magic needs a little more fairy dust. With critical thinking you can sprinkle that dust on your game.

Set some time aside, especially but not exclusively if you have a problem to solve, and think critically about your approach to your development as a cricketer:

• Ask questions. Be confident enough to ask "why", both to yourself and others. Often the answer will surprise you and cause a change.
• Look at yourself. You are a mine of experience, spend some time thinking how you solved problems in the past for some self-taught insights into your current problems.
• Take a fresh angle. If you are a bowler, think about things from the viewpoint of a batter (and vice versa).
• Experiment. Most importantly, be open to trying new things in practice. With a mind primed for new methods, you might find something that you never thought you could do hiding in your skill set.

Use the information fire hose

You'll be surprised how much you can develop simply through drilling and reflecting internally. But maybe that's not something you enjoy. Lucky for you there is a metaphorical fire hose of ideas that you can spray right into your brain.

You still need to evaluate the information, and decide to try it or reject it, but there is no shortage of ways to consume it, based on what your brain likes best:

• Read. There are hundreds of articles on PitchVision Academy alone.
• Listen. Try well over 130 hours of audio content in the PitchVision Academy Cricket Show to get you started.
• Watch. Online video coaching aplenty right here.

It doesn't end there.

If you consume widely with a critical mind - fiction, TV, films, music and radio - you find yourself coming up with strange connections between totally different areas. One might just give you the creative boost you want in your game. Even if it doesn't you get a heck of a lot of enjoyment out of all that amazing culture.

The common element is that the most successful players learns the fastest.

They don't do all these things. They do know what things work for them, and do them more. They do them with passion, they push themselves and they stick with them over the long haul. You would think that is tough, but it's really much easier than you think because they have found a method that resonates with their way.

Once you do the same, you will improve as fast as you possibly can.