Post by Wicked Cricket on Aug 23, 2019 13:18:31 GMT
HOW DO YOU SOLVE A PROBLEM LIKE HARRY?
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www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-VRyQprlu8
Cricket can be such a cruel sport. As England’s batting collapses on the second day at Headingley and Captain Joe Root goes for yet another duck, there is no-where to hide when in the full media glare; where success is vociferously applauded and failure utterly derided and ridiculed.
The public have no time or are even interested in showing sympathy or understanding towards a professional sports person whose form has disappeared into the bowels of Hell. For Joe Root life must be like a perpetual nightmare right now and down on the South Coast, Sussex batsman Harry Finch is surely feeling a modicum of what Root is presently experiencing.
The phrase, “He can’t buy a run” sums up Harry to a tee. Not only has he fallen off the rails, but disappeared down an abyss. Yet, in 2018 he showed great promise, so much so that the Club asked him to extend his contract until the end of 2020. His average for 2018 looks good on paper. In the Championship, he starred in 14 matches, played 24 innings, scored 722 runs with a highest of 103 and ended up with a respectable average of 30.08, the fourth best in the Sussex batting line-up alongside the third highest number of runs after Ben Brown (912) and Phil Salt (739).
Towards the end of 2018 he attracted a few niggly injuries including a broken finger and then during the Winter was unable to go overseas to pursue further batting experience due to an ankle operation. Yet, his 2019 troubles were not on the horizon when during a friendly against Hampshire in late March, Finch struck a century and was then interviewed by Club Media Officer, Sam Keir. Harry comes across as a confident cricketer and someone looking forward to the impending season.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8kRGzQwiPI
But what a nightmare it has been since.
After a below par RLC tournament where Finch played 7 innings, scoring 164 runs at an average of 23.43, the Championship has become a bete noir, his nightmare on Eaton Road. If you are of a squeamish nature, please turn away now from Harry’s present average.
8 matches: 14 innings: 161 runs scored: Highest Score: 48: average 12.38. He presently lies 17th in the Sussex CCC averages out of 20 cricketers.
So, what has gone wrong and how do you solve a problem like Harry? For back in July he captained the 2nd XI side against Glamorgan at Horsham and hit an unbeaten century to save the match and secure a draw. Why do some cricketers find leaping the hurdle from 2nd XI to 1st XI so difficult, whilst others successfully embrace the step? Harry Finch is 24 years-old, the same age as Jofra Archer. They both came through the Club ranks at the same time. One has gone meteoric, the other retro-eoric. Is it simply about talent or is it more about the mental state of a player?
This was summed up in the T20 game against Essex on Thursday evening. What does a Coach like Gillespie do with a player who has lost form? Logic suggests that if the Championship doesn’t fit then try T20. A different format, a different way of playing, a different mentality. Harry Finch is given a chance to prove himself and what does he do when facing his first ball? Attempts to reverse sweep, fails to connect with the ball, and is given out LBW. What person in their right mind would ever do such a thing to their first ball? This was pure self-destruction, surely?
Finch has shown he has a batting ability, his past stats prove this, and as Sussex supporters we want to see him succeed and develop as a player, but what can Harry do to meet his Sally, or in this case, work alongside a top batting coach to help him improve his technique and above all his presently shot mental state. Yet, there is no Michael Yardy to offer Finch help. He is now coaching New South Wales. Should Ben Brown or Luke Wright step in and offer advice? And what of Gillespie who come late September will depart the South Coast to Coach his beloved Adelaide Strikers for the next Big Bash and won't be seen again at Hove until March, 2020.
Supporters need to show sympathy for Harry Finch. He is a local lad, born and bred, who hails from the same town (Hastings) as Yardy. When youngsters face a crisis of confidence, they should be supported and let’s be honest, given the lack of Academy success in recent years, we need people like him to pull through.
I wish Finch every success in achieving this goal. Perhaps, return to the 2nd XI or play for a local Brighton side and rebuild from there away from the media glare?
________________________________________________________________________
www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-VRyQprlu8
Cricket can be such a cruel sport. As England’s batting collapses on the second day at Headingley and Captain Joe Root goes for yet another duck, there is no-where to hide when in the full media glare; where success is vociferously applauded and failure utterly derided and ridiculed.
The public have no time or are even interested in showing sympathy or understanding towards a professional sports person whose form has disappeared into the bowels of Hell. For Joe Root life must be like a perpetual nightmare right now and down on the South Coast, Sussex batsman Harry Finch is surely feeling a modicum of what Root is presently experiencing.
The phrase, “He can’t buy a run” sums up Harry to a tee. Not only has he fallen off the rails, but disappeared down an abyss. Yet, in 2018 he showed great promise, so much so that the Club asked him to extend his contract until the end of 2020. His average for 2018 looks good on paper. In the Championship, he starred in 14 matches, played 24 innings, scored 722 runs with a highest of 103 and ended up with a respectable average of 30.08, the fourth best in the Sussex batting line-up alongside the third highest number of runs after Ben Brown (912) and Phil Salt (739).
Towards the end of 2018 he attracted a few niggly injuries including a broken finger and then during the Winter was unable to go overseas to pursue further batting experience due to an ankle operation. Yet, his 2019 troubles were not on the horizon when during a friendly against Hampshire in late March, Finch struck a century and was then interviewed by Club Media Officer, Sam Keir. Harry comes across as a confident cricketer and someone looking forward to the impending season.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8kRGzQwiPI
But what a nightmare it has been since.
After a below par RLC tournament where Finch played 7 innings, scoring 164 runs at an average of 23.43, the Championship has become a bete noir, his nightmare on Eaton Road. If you are of a squeamish nature, please turn away now from Harry’s present average.
8 matches: 14 innings: 161 runs scored: Highest Score: 48: average 12.38. He presently lies 17th in the Sussex CCC averages out of 20 cricketers.
So, what has gone wrong and how do you solve a problem like Harry? For back in July he captained the 2nd XI side against Glamorgan at Horsham and hit an unbeaten century to save the match and secure a draw. Why do some cricketers find leaping the hurdle from 2nd XI to 1st XI so difficult, whilst others successfully embrace the step? Harry Finch is 24 years-old, the same age as Jofra Archer. They both came through the Club ranks at the same time. One has gone meteoric, the other retro-eoric. Is it simply about talent or is it more about the mental state of a player?
This was summed up in the T20 game against Essex on Thursday evening. What does a Coach like Gillespie do with a player who has lost form? Logic suggests that if the Championship doesn’t fit then try T20. A different format, a different way of playing, a different mentality. Harry Finch is given a chance to prove himself and what does he do when facing his first ball? Attempts to reverse sweep, fails to connect with the ball, and is given out LBW. What person in their right mind would ever do such a thing to their first ball? This was pure self-destruction, surely?
Finch has shown he has a batting ability, his past stats prove this, and as Sussex supporters we want to see him succeed and develop as a player, but what can Harry do to meet his Sally, or in this case, work alongside a top batting coach to help him improve his technique and above all his presently shot mental state. Yet, there is no Michael Yardy to offer Finch help. He is now coaching New South Wales. Should Ben Brown or Luke Wright step in and offer advice? And what of Gillespie who come late September will depart the South Coast to Coach his beloved Adelaide Strikers for the next Big Bash and won't be seen again at Hove until March, 2020.
Supporters need to show sympathy for Harry Finch. He is a local lad, born and bred, who hails from the same town (Hastings) as Yardy. When youngsters face a crisis of confidence, they should be supported and let’s be honest, given the lack of Academy success in recent years, we need people like him to pull through.
I wish Finch every success in achieving this goal. Perhaps, return to the 2nd XI or play for a local Brighton side and rebuild from there away from the media glare?
