‘Ensure you’re two hits away from a 200 strike rate’ – Heinrich Klaasen’s unique approach to batting | Cricket News
When Heinrich Klaasen is sitting in the Sunrisers Hyderabad dugout there’s a phase when he exudes a particularly relaxed air. That’s when openers Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head are batting together, when most viewers are at the edge of their seats. But it’s the period when the South African picks up clues on how to go about when his turn comes. “If they keep pumping, you can go from ball one,” he says. However, when Klaasen is in the middle, he tends to drift away from it and rely on a blueprint he has prepared while working with former South Africa all-rounder Albie Morkel. That blueprint is all about giving himself 10 deliveries or so, not to get the hang of conditions, but to find his tempo – the key ingredient in his batting – then the bat-swing and the hip position. “Those two (Head and Abhishek) go at 16 an over and then you are walking at 3 and struggling. I’m 6 off 4 and feel pressure. Then I go to that blue print,” …
