The Cricket Mentoring Podcast

Hey Legends! Welcome to Monday Mentoring! Every Monday we will be sharing a question from our Cricket Mentoring Community with you. This week: Question: I’ll be playing 20 and 40 overs this year, for you personally how does your mindset/ intent change based on the length of cricket your playing?

G’day legends. Welcome back or welcome to the Cricket Mentoring Podcast. It’s been a while since we published an episode so it’s great to be back. Thank you for listening! The idea of this podcast is to share the unique stories of cricketers, coaches and performance experts, with the aim of giving you; serious & committed cricketers, coaches or parents, some techniques, strategies and inspiration so you can become a better and more confident cricketer and live a better life. This episode is with one of Australia’s best batters over the past 20 years. Shaun Marsh, or SOS as he’s known in the cricketing world made his first-class debut way back in the 2000/2001 season and as he approaches his 38th birthday, was named the domestic cricketer of the year for the second year in a row which shows he’s still got plenty of high-quality cricket ahead of him. Only a couple of days ago, SOS passed Justin Langer as the highest ever run scorer in List A cricket as he scored his 19th List A century in WA’s victory over South Australia at the WACA. SOS has represented Australia 126 times across all formats and has scored over 5,000 international runs with 13 centuries. At his best, there aren’t many better players in the world! SOS has been a great mate of mine for a long time so it was nice to finally sit down and hear more about his story and how he goes about his batting. In this episode SOS shared: His reflections of the most recent Big Bash Hie earliest memories of playing cricket How he trained and what his teenage years looked like What he remembers of his Test debut where he scored a century on debut Scoring 140 against the incredible South African bowling attack of Steyn, Morkel & Philander His memories of the first ever IPL where he won player of the tournament And how he transformed his life on and off field This episode, recorded in February 2021, is the first part of a longer conversation that is available for the members of the Cricket Mentoring Community. If you’re keen to hear the whole conversation with SOS where we dive into his mindset, routines, preparation, how he transitions between formats and a whole lot more, then you can join the Cricket Mentoring Community today. To join head to www.cricketmentoring.com/community and utilise our 7-day free trial and start learning from some of the games best minds including back-to-back big bash winning coach, Greg Shipperd, current Victorian head coach, Chris Rogers, Sydney Sixers Jordan Silk and many others. In the C M C you also get access to me as this is where i’m spending my time helping serious and committed cricketers from around the world learn and develop themselves, their skills and their mindsets. No matter where in the world you live or where you’re at in your game right now, if you want to score more runs or take more wickets and feel more confident on the cricket field then the Cricket Mentoring Community will help you. I hope to see you as a member soon! To follow Shaun, you can find him on Instagram at @shaunmarsh9 Don’t be afraid to send him a DM letting him know you listened to the podcast and enjoyed it.

In this episode, Tom Scollay presented at a Keynote event as a break out speaker discussing peak performance in sport. This is a snippet from the end of the session when they audience broke into a Question and Answer section with Tom. You will hear Tom answer questions relating to mindset in sport and how to manage yourself. We hope you get some awesome information out of this one.

Today’s guest is a professional cricketer, a mentor of ours and the head of female cricket at Cricket Mentoring and someone who has become a friend over the past few years. Bhavi Devchand is currently contracted with Victoria and is training and rubbing shoulders on a daily basis with some of the world’s best cricketers including Elysse Perry and Australian captain Meg Lanning. While she’s living her dream, it certainly has been an easy run and she’s had her fair share of setbacks and disappointment. As one of our mentors, I probably should have shared Bhavi’s story a long time ago but had I done so, we wouldn’t have got the last 15 months of her story, which as she says, has been some of the best and worst times in her life. The setbacks she faced, forced her to step out of her comfort zone, which has resulted in some of her biggest growth as a person, which she shares with us throughout this podcast. This is an awesome story of challenging yourself and getting out of your comfort zone as well as going back to why you started pursuing cricket...cause you love it. I have no doubt this episode will give aspiring cricketers hope that anything is possible and hopefully it inspires a young boy or girl somewhere in the world, to chase their dreams despite the obstacles that you face. Lets get into it.

I now know what makes Steve Smith, Virat Kohli and Kane Williamson so special. They understand themselves and know what they need to do in order to prepare themselves in all 6 pillars, so that they have the best chance of succeeding, every time they step onto the field. For me, it wasn’t a lack of skill. It was a lack of understanding. It was a fluke if everything aligned both internally and externally, and hence why I was inconsistent. Through my personal experience and leanings, I now believe that there are 6 pillars to success, that are true for almost every athlete. They are: Technical Tactical Mental Emotional Physical Lifestyle

G'day legend. Welcome back the Cricket Mentoring Podcast. This episode is the audio from an extremely interesting zoom call we had with the first 30 people who had bought the Cricket Mentoring online program "Josh Philippe - Behind the Grill". These lucky 30 customers got the opportunity to be invited into a zoom call with Sydney Sixers player Josh Philippe and ask him questions for an hour to gain a deeper insight into his game and mindset. With lots of value in this episode, we hope you enjoy it.

G’day legends. Welcome back or welcome to the Cricket Mentoring Podcast. This episode was recorded at the end of April 2020 when we were at the height of the coronavirus in Australia. It’s not being published in early June 2020 and fortunately, things have become much more positive in Australia and around the world. Today’s guest is a friend of mine and someone I’ve watched go from an average cricketer to scoring a huge hundred on his first-class debut. Charlie Wakim grew up in Sydney and loved his cricket but in his own words, matured as a person and a player a bit later and it wasn’t until he was 25 that he became a professional cricketer when he was awarded a contract with Tasmania. After some tough times, Charlie finally got a lucky break when George Bailey got injured during a Big Bash match and boy did he take his chance by scoring 160 on debut. I absolutely love sharing the unique and individual stories of cricketers at different stages of their career on this podcast and after what some would say was a long journey to becoming a professional cricketer, Charlie is coming into the prime of his career. This is another incredible story of tenacity and never giving up and I’m sure it will give hope to a lot of young cricketers around the world, especially if you’re not necessarily the best player in your team or state right now.

This is Part B in our conversation with South Australian and Adelaide Strikers opening batsman Jake Weatherald. If you haven’t listened to Part A yet then I highly recommend you go back and listen to that out before listening to this episode. There was such great value in the first part of the conversation that you’re missing out if you haven’t listened to it. We pick up this part of the conversation with Jake discussing his game in great detail and how he has been developing it. I hope you enjoy the second part of this awesome conversation with Jake Weatherald. I loved the part of this conversation where we discussed tinkering with his game and how he’s continually trying to get better. What I took out of that part was: You’re going to be challenged all the time and people are going to try and get you out in different ways so you’ve got to be willing to slightly change your game regularly so that you can continue to be successful in the future. Tinkering doesn’t have to be about changing something. It could be just keeping things the same over and over. If something is working it might be that you continue to work hard at the same thing! Roger Federer makes technical changes all the time and just goes for it. "I just trust myself to react and do what I want to do." The best players make changes so that they are better in the future. I really enjoyed hearing about how he prepares himself mentally. As he said it’s about making sure your subconscious is making the decisions rather than your conscious. It was interesting to hear how he said when he’s mentally preparing for a team he knows they will challenge him with their voice, short balls and by bowling the top of the off-stump and he needs to make sure he’s allowing his subconscious to make more of the decisions which are done with keywords to allow his game plan and technique come together. I also loved hearing his ambitions for the future and how he aspires to play 100 games for Australia in all 3 formats and that if he doesn’t have that mindset then he’s no chance of doing it, a real lesson for any aspiring cricketers listening. I hope you enjoy this episode!

Welcome back or welcome to the Cricket Mentoring Podcast. If you’re listening to this during the coronavirus then I hope this podcast finds you well and gives you some lessons or inspiration to live your best life. I absolutely love sharing the unique and individual stories of cricketers at different stages of their career on this podcast. Today’s guest is someone who has already done some great things in the game but at 25 years of age has his best cricket still ahead of him and some huge ambition to go with it. As an opening batsman for South Australian and the Adelaide Strikers, Jake Weatherald is a 3 format player who is one of the most exciting batters in Australia. In this first part of our conversation, we discuss Jake’s early days of playing cricket and how it wasn’t all smooth sailing for him. When watching Jake on TV, he comes across as one of the most elegant and free-flowing batters in the game but as you’ll hear there is a lot of thought and planning and enormous amounts of hard work that goes into his game which was a result of being a lazy but quite skilled teenager. So without giving away anything more, this is a story that I’m sure will inspire a lot of young cricketers out there so let's get into it.

G’day legends. Welcome back or welcome to the Cricket Mentoring podcast. Unless you’re a keen follower of women’s cricket in England, you probably wouldn’t heard of today’s guest - yet! Naomi Dattani is an all-rounder and the captain of the Middlesex women’s team and has recently spent time in Perth playing club cricket and developing her game in Australian conditions. I first came across Naomi in November last year when she reached out for some mentoring and really enjoyed helping her develop her game and mindset during her three months in Perth. While she’s not a household name YET, I have no doubt that she will be in the future, she has a very inspiring story that I wanted to share with our community. As one of only a couple female Asian cricketers who played in the women’s Kia Super League, Naomi is creating a pathway and inspiring a HUGE number of female cricketers in London and around the UK. During the recently completed and hugely successful womens’ T20 world-cup , the ICC stated that they want to have 1 million new females playing cricket around the world in the next year. The Asian community in the UK is an untapped market for female cricket and hopefully sharing Naomi's story will inspire some young girls not just in the UK but around the world to either give cricket a go or to really pursue their dream of playing cricket at the highest level just like Naomi has done. This was a great conversation with a lovely person so I hope you enjoy it!

Nicole Bolton has without doubt been Western Australia’s finest female cricketer in the past decade but as you’ll hear in this episode it’s been a roller-coaster ride for her that’s included the highs of scoring a century on international debut while the lows have forced her to take multiple breaks from the game at different stages of her career. She has openly spoken in the past about the mental health issues she’s had to deal with and overcome and she was incredibly honest about her struggles in this conversation. This is a very insightful conversation from an exceptional cricketer and very raw conversation with a lovely human being. Please be aware there are parts of this conversation that could act as a trigger for people with mental health issues. If you are struggling with depression, anxiety or any mental health issues then please remember that you aren’t alone. Speak to someone and seek help. Now lets get into this episode.

Today’s guest has developed into one of the most exciting T20 batters in the country with his performances for the Melbourne Renegades in the past two Big Bash tournaments. Sam Harper is the Victorian and Melbourne Renegades wicket-keeper batsman and we caught up during my time in Melbourne recently to discuss his journey from the backyard with his dad and brother to playing professionally. Harper was a big reason the Renegades won the Big Bash in 2019 with his dynamic batting at the top of the order regularly getting them off to a flyer. It hasn’t all been easy going though and at the time of this interview, Sam was waiting to be cleared to play again from concussion. I love hearing the story of players at the beginning of their careers who often haven’t shared their journey so I hope you enjoy this episode and take something valuable from Sam’s journey.

Today’s guest was one of the best batters in Australian domestic cricket and county cricket over the past 10 years. Michael scored almost 25,000 runs in professional cricket for 3 different states and Gloucestershire County Cricket Club in the UK. When he retired he was the leading run-scorer in Big Bash history and one of the most dominant and consistent batters in T20 domestic cricket in Australia and the UK. However he wasn’t always an excellent or even good T20 batter and when he was younger, his game certainly wasn’t set up for that. Through some thoughtful planning around understanding his strengths and accessing the risks involved with certain shots, he evolved himself and his game into someone who dominated all 3 formats of the game. Despite his phenomenal numbers in the back half of his career Klinger managed just the 3 international matches for Australia and he shares the reason why he thinks that was the case. In this episode we spoke about how he managed his game between Australia and the UK and the different challenges that he faced. Having transitioned from playing to professional coaching last year, it was fascinating to hear how Klinger now views the game as a coach and what he looks for technically in batters as a result of what he found out about his own game late in his career. There’s so much value in this episode, so lets get into it!

Kate Cross is an international cricketer currently in Australia as part of the England squad for the world cup. You’ll hear throughout this episode how open and honest she was about her life and career in cricket. While she’s had a career to be proud of, she’s also had her fair share of challenges and hardships which culminated in her being too scared to see her teammates during a training camp. It led to her stepping away from the game for a break and to work through her mental health battles which have since been well documented. She says that she now understands that managing her mental health is an ongoing process but since then she’s been able to work her way back into the England team and is enjoying her cricket again. Crossy shared so many wonderful stories from learning to play cricket in the backyard with her brother to the difficulties that come with being a professional sportsperson and how it can cause you to stop enjoying the game you love. This is an incredibly powerful episode and I thank Crossy for being so open and honest with us.

Today’s guest is one of the most successful coaches in the world and as I coach myself I was thrilled to pick the brains of one of the best. Greg Shipperd had an excellent career as a player scoring almost 7,000 first-class runs at an average over 42 with a highest-score of 200* but I think it’s fair to say, he’s made even more of an impact on the game as a coach. Shipperd started his coaching in Tasmania where he mentored young guns Ricky Ponting and Shane Watson before he shifted to coach Victoria in one of their most successful eras. In all he coached the Vics to 4 Sheffield Shield titles, one National One-Day Cup and four T20 titles. He was also the inaugural coach of the Delhi Daredevils in the Indian Premier League for 4 seasons and most recently just become a big bash winning coach as his Sydney Sixers side just won BBL09. This is a really insightful conversation with someone I really admire and hope to learn more from as my coaching career progresses. I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did.

Cameron Bancroft is famous for the right and wrong reasons. He made a name for himself as a determined opening batsman from Western Australia and was at the start of a promising Test career when his life changed forever. All cricket fans know about the ball-tampering events that occurred at Newlands in South Africa in which Bancroft was in the centre of the action. In the months afterwards his reputation and with a 9-month ban from professional cricket, his cricket both hit rock bottom. However, that time allowed him to focus on other things in his life and give him a better perspective of cricket and also what his values are. He has since returned to playing with some success and worked his way back into the Australian Test side for the Ashes. At just 27 years of age, he has a long time left in the game but due to his actions at Newlands, he hopes it can be a lesson for others and he can be a better leader in the future due to what happened. In this episode we discussed: How as a 10-year-old Justin Langer gave him something special Cameron's obsession with getting better How words from teammate Coulter-Nile helped turn his career around How he learned to love leaving the ball in a recent second XI match How he has worked hard to forgive himself and be true to himself How he sees success and failure in the same light Plus a whole lot more Cameron is a deep thinker about the game and life which comes across in this episode. This is a fascinating chat which could have carried on for many hours. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did recording it. Make sure you follow Bancroft on Instagram: @cbancroft4

Welcome to the Cricket Mentoring podcast. I’m Tom Scollay or Scolls as I get called and this podcast has been designed for cricketers and cricket lovers who want to learn and improve themselves. In this podcast we interview past, current and future cricket stars to find out more about their journey and what makes them successful while also sharing some audio from ourselves at Cricket Mentoring. Our goal is to help you become your best, on and off the field so I hope you enjoy this podcast and get something valuable out of it.

Welcome to the Cricket Mentoring podcast. I’m Tom Scollay or Scolls as I get called and this podcast has been designed for cricketers and cricket lovers who want to learn and improve themselves. In this podcast we interview past, current and future cricket stars to find out more about their journey and what makes them successful while also sharing some audio from ourselves at Cricket Mentoring. Our goal is to help you become your best, on and off the field so I hope you enjoy this podcast and get something valuable out of it.

After returning back to Perth from a very impressive Bigh Biash campaign, we sat down with Adelaide Strikers batsman Jonathan Wells to discuss how he got to where he is now, and what's next for him. In this episode we discuss: How he prepared for the BBL while being out of the professional system How he had to work as a labourer while training to keep his cricket dream alive How he came back from losing his professional contract on 4 separate occasions How he moved from Tasmania to Perth on the promise he’d get opportunities if he did well What the keys are to turning starts into big scores How he got a call from the Australian chairman of selectors Why Ricky Ponting is a 'cricket nuffy' and what he was like behind closed doors What makes Rashid Khan, Tim Paine and other great players special Plus a whole lot more This is a great insight into someone who's had an up and down career and at 31 is now at the peak of his game. Make sure to follow him on Instagram @jwells_9

Today’s episode was recorded back in August this year while I was in the UK and is with a really inspiring guy. Shahbaz Choudry is the founder of Pace Journal – a community for fast bowlers around the world. I first came across the Instagram account at the start of this year and was extremely impressed with what I saw. Having spent a huge amount of time creating content for the Cricket Mentoring Instagram account over the past few years, I know how much time and effort goes into it and when I saw Pace Journal I knew that whoever was behind it was extremely passionate about fast-bowling and helping people understand the secrets of fast-bowling. Their Instagram account is followed by a huge number of cricketers all over the world and Shahbaz has built an amazing community by interviewing professional cricketers and coaches to share tips and ideas with anyone who wants to learn about fast-bowling. When I was speaking to Shahbaz and listening to his story and why he founded ‘Pace Journal’ there were so many similarities to my own story and why I founded Cricket Mentoring. His bio on his personal Instagram says ‘on a mission to help fast bowlers all over the world’ and through his amazing content he is certainly doing that. I really enjoyed listening to his story and learning more about the man behind this brilliant brand and I have no doubt you will get a lot of value from his story as well. Shahbaz Instagram handles: Pace Journal @pacejournal & @mrpacejournal Link to Fast Bowlers anthem: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gB3ZKMMvPCA I hope you enjoy this episode!

G’day legends. Welcome to this special episode of The Cricket Mentoring Podcast. One of the reasons I say it’s special is because of our guest, Melanie Jones who I’ll go more into in just a second. The second reason this episode is special is because we are recording it in India. The Karnataka Institute of Cricket in Bangalore is a strange place for two Aussies to record a podcast but there’s no better setting to discuss the journey of one of Australian crickets true stars. Mel and I are in Bangalore for different reasons - I’m running a Cricket Mentoring Tour for young cricketers from Australia and the UK to experience India and train and play in sub-continent conditions, while Mel is here to commentate on an IPL match in a couple of nights but I didn’t want to miss to opportunity to hear the story of this legend… Melanie or Mel Jones is a former Australian cricketer who, in recent years has turned herself into one of the best cricket commentators going around as she travels the world commentating on the major tournaments including the Big Bash, IPL and will soon be in the UK commentating on the World Cup. Mel was an elite player. She played 5 Test matches and 61 One Day Internationals and is a member of the prestigious club of cricketers who have scored a century on Test debut – with 131 against England in the 1998 Ashes series. Having played all her representative cricket when women’s cricket wasn’t professional, Mel has been a huge advocate for the women’s game and is incredibly happy to see the best cricketers in Australia and around the world become professionals in recent years. Since retiring, Mel has done various things but in recent years has built her reputation in commentary boxes around the world. She not only brings a great deal of experience from playing at the highest level to the commentary box, but through her hard work and love of the game she also brings a real depth of knowledge about each and every player. It was awesome to sit down with Mel and hear how a girl from the country has forged a very successful life in cricket both on and off the field. In this episode we discussed: How she began playing cricket at her grandparents place with her older male cousins and how the circumstances in those games, shaped the player she was in international cricket How Peter Handscomb & Sam Harper’s fathers played a pivotal role in her cricket career How she was never a ‘pro’ and had to manage working bits and pieces job with playing international and domestic cricket How she was ‘stuffing her face with a prawn cocktail’ at the back of the room when her name was first read out as being a member of the Australian squad How she took a big leap to leave her steady career to pursue a career as a freelance cricket commentator and how it’s paying off in spades Plus a whole lot more. When in India anything can happen, and on cue, the power went out half way through our interview… but as all true professionals do, Mel carried on as if nothing had happened. No doubt you will pick up our mutual love for this beautiful country throughout the conversation. Mel is cricketing royalty and it was a pleasure to spend a morning with her at KIOC. Her energy and passion for the game is obvious which I’m sure you’ll hear it in her voice so lets get into this epsiode…

Welcome to this episode of The Cricket Mentoring Podcast. This episode is with someone who has a very interesting insight on the game of cricket. Gideon Haigh is without a doubt one of the most intelligent humans that I’ve ever spoken to and I was fascinated listening to his insight and views on the game. As one of the chief cricket writers for The Australian newspaper, Gideon watches international and domestic matches closely and combined with his background in things outside of cricket is regarded as one of the best cricket pundits in the country. He is also frequently talking about the game on TV and is currently giving his expert views on channel 7 during the Test series between Australia and India. At 52 years old he is also still playing for his beloved South Yarra cricket club in the Victorian Grade Competition and therefore truly understands the game and struggles that come with it as a player. As someone who has read and followed Gideon’s insights for a while I was very excited to chat to him and hear his views on the game. In this episode we discussed: How he got into playing cricket and how he’s reinvented himself throughout his career Why he travels over an hour twice a week to play at his cricket club Why club cricket is important to the development of players How some young players in the Australian system are burning out due to their workload How technology has changed the game over the past 10 years The qualities needed to perform at the highest level What traits the best leaders he’s seen posses What his advice is for any youngster wanting to pursue a career as a cricket journalist Plus a whole lot more. This was truly a fascinating chat with someone who looks at the game differently to most others. I’m sure you’ll be enthralled, just as I was by Gideon’s articulate answers and depth of knowledge of Australian cricket.

Welcome to this episode of The Cricket Mentoring Podcast with WA batsman, Josh Phillipe. Josh broke onto the scene in stunning fashion a little over a year ago when he scored 88 in the first session of a tour match against the England Test team that featured the likes of Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad. Since then he has made his First-class & List A debuts for Western Australia, Scored a Sheffield Shield Century and made his Big Bash debut for the Perth Scorchers and last week it was announced that he is joining the Sydney Sixers for this year's Big Bash. Josh also scored a better than a run a ball 57 for the Prime Ministers XI against a South Africa side that featured Dale Steyn & Kagiso Rabada in a man of the match performance in October this year. At just 21 years of age, Josh is one of the brightest prospects in Australian cricket and has recently come on board as a Cricket Mentoring ambassador which we’re really excited to be partnered with Josh to help him on his journey. In this episode we discussed: How he got into cricket after both his mum and dad represented WA How he was selected as a wicket-keeping more than a batter in his junior and when his batting took over from his keeping How having a season in England helped him not only become the batter he is today but also find his love for the game again How he batted number 9 in a WA trial match and was spewing when Mitch Marsh and Marcus Stoinis got a second hit ahead of him How he wishes England had bowled their overs a bit quicker in the tour match so he could have scored a 100 How he spent the winter in Brisbane at the National Performance Centre working with former Aussie opener Chris Rogers How being told a week before the first Big Bash game that he was playing hindered his performance Plus a whole lot more. We have no doubt Josh Phillippe will become a household name around the world in the future and are excited to bring you his journey thus far in today’s episode. So lets get into this episode…

Mark started Opening Up in 2014 after his cricket club was hit with tragedy with the passing of his good mate, Alex, who took his own life. Since then, Mark has been on a campaign to raise awareness for mental health issues and suicide prevention and travels around the world teaching people how every single person can improve their ‘mental fitness’, which is something that aligns with our message as coaches and mentors to our athletes. As the name suggests, Mark and his now team of speakers, travel around the UK and more recently Australia and New Zealand encouraging and supporting cricketers to Open Up and talk to someone if they are struggling with their mental health. Opening Up has won the support of many of England’s best cricketers who love the message it shares. In this episode we discussed: How the best teams and people in sport communicate well and why it’s important to do that on a number of levels How mental health exists on a continuum with good mental health on one end and bad mental health on the other What people can do to improve their mental conditioning to improve their performance How to notice a decline of your own mental health or someone else around you How to be a good listener to someone who has confided in you How Mark suffered his own mental health issues and how he’s worked to overcome them What gratitude is and how you can practice it and how it rewires your brain to look for the positive in things… Plus a whole lot more. This is a different chat to many of the others we’ve published previously but there are so many great things that you can learn from it and implement into your life and help with others around you. Mark is a very clever guy who is changing peoples lives around the world so I’m thrilled to have sat down with him and heard more about his story. So lets get into this episode…

Welcome to this episode of The Cricket Mentoring Podcast. Most of you would never have heard of this episodes guest but I have no doubt you will see and hear about him in the future. a 19 year-old Ryan Hackney currently has a rookie contract for NSW and was in Perth last week for a 2nd XI match against WA at the WACA. Earlier this year Ryan opened the batting for the Australian under 19 team in their series against Pakistan. This was after he was left out of the Australia Under 19 world cup squad that went to New Zealand inn January this year. In this episode we discussed: How he found batting at the WACA for the first time and how he had to adjust his method from playing in Sydney How he spent an hour shadow batting after hitting 2 balls with his new batting coach What it’s like to train with guys like Steve Smith, David Warner, Moises Henriques and the rest of the NSW squad How he realised he didn’t need to be something that he’s not before scoring a hundred for the Aussie under 19s earlier this year How he never really thought about becoming a professional cricketer until it happened How he has improved his mental game by learning to switch off Plus a whole lot more. This podcast is designed to give you an insight into the journey of people at different stages of their careers and Ryan gives us an excellent insight into one of the countries best young players. He is a very hard working young man with a big ambition and we have no doubt he is going to have a very successful career ahead of him. So lets get into this episode.

Welcome to this episode of The Cricket Mentoring Podcast. After a 3 month break I’m pumped to be back and hopefully bigger and better than ever before. I really want to make this podcast as interesting and valuable for you as it can be! This episode, which was recorded a few months ago while I was in the UK, is with one of the England cricket teams sports psychologists, Mike Rotheram. Mike, who is a cricketer himself, started working with the England men’s team and England Lions and is now working closely with the England women. With 9 years of studying under his belt, Mike is extremely qualified to teach the mental skills required to perform at the highest level. In this episode we discussed: How he became a sports psychologist after not being good enough to make it as a player How he did a PHD in the Yips and what causes the yips What a sports psychologist does What the traits are of elite athletes How he coaches players who over analyse or overthink things How the coaches set up sessions to test and train their players under pressure The difference between people who are driven by consequences and those that are driven by rewards and how to work out who needs what. Plus a whole lot more. This is an awesome insight into how some of the world’s best players train and work on their mental skills. If you’re interested in getting the most out of yourself and trying the techniques that aren’t really talked about on a regular basis then this is a great episode that you will get a lot of value from, so lets get into it.

If you’re a cricket lover then you would definitely know of Steven Finn. Finn burst onto the international stage as 20 year old in 2010 and quickly became the face of English cricket with lots of on field success and a very likeable character to go with it. Since then he’s had his share of ups and downs. With 126 appearances for England across all formats, Finny has certainly had a successful career but had it not been for injury or a loss of form at certain times, he could have played a lot more. With raw pace and steepling bounce, Finny is one of the world’s best and most scariest bowlers when he’s at his best. As a former teammate who admired how Finny went about his business during my time at Middlesex, it was great to sit down with him and hear his story and the journey of how he got to where he is today. In this episode we discussed: • How he got into cricket and who his mentors were when he was growing up • How he managed being at school while playing professionally for Middlesex • How he made his way into the England test side for the first time and what it was like playing with guys he had always admired and looked up to • How he has dealt with injuries & disappointment over the course of his career • How he handles the pressure of a big match • What he’s seen in the world’s best players that separates them from the rest Plus a whole lot more. This is a great insight into someone who has been in the spotlight in international cricket for a long time and is now fighting to find a way back to the highest level.

Welcome to this episode of The Cricket Mentoring Podcast. Ben Brown or Browny as he goes by, has played first-class cricket for 11 years and is regarded as one of the best wicket-keepers in England. Having played 117 first-class matches, Browny has a huge amount of experience and at the age of just 29, he still has a very long career ahead of him. In 2017 he took over the captaincy of Sussex County Cricket Club midway through the season and this year, 2018 was officially made the club captain With a first-class average of a touch under 40 and an average of over 47 this season, Browny is the ultimate all-rounder and if it wasn’t for the dominance of Jonny Bairstow & Jos Buttler, he would seriously be up there for the next in line keeper for England. I really enjoyed doing this interview with Browny as he’s one of my best mates so it was great to hear his story and the journey of how he got to where he is today. In this episode we discussed: How he’s born and raised in Sussex and has been a part of their system right the way through the underage groups to the senior team How he made his first-class debut at the age of 18 against Sri Lanka How he manages his preparation in terms of keeping & batting and how that’s changed throughout his career What it was like being Matt Prior’s understudy and learning what he learnt from him while he was at the height of his powers How playing grade cricket in Perth helped him both on and off the field What he’s working on as a leader and how he’s constantly having to audit himself. Plus a whole lot more. This is an excellent episode with a genuinely great bloke who is at the top of his game and will hopefully get to wear the England colours one day.

Charlie Burke had a dream of traveling the world as a professional cricketer. Unfortunately, he wasn’t good enough to make it as a player, so instead he’s become a high performance coach who travels the world with cricket. Charlie started his cricket coaching as a community development officer for the WACA before he progressed up the ranks at the WACA. He was then head hunted to do a role in game development in the Asia region for the ICC before ultimately becoming the Head coach of Hong Kong. In the past, Hong Kong hasn’t been known for it’s cricketing prowess but Charlie was instrumental in them getting qualified for numerous big global tournaments including the 2014 ICC T20 World Cup. As a Cricket Australia level 3 coach, Charlie is now regarded globally as a very experienced coach with a wealth of knowledge and assists Cricket Australia with educating the next generation of high performance coaches. In this episode we discussed: How coaching a basketball team while in High school helped make him into the coach he is today. How he became serious about cricket coaching after he was told he wouldn’t make it as a player. How a chance meeting with someone during the 2010 Under 19 World Cup lead him to coach Hong Kong on the International stage for 7 years. What the highlight of his time coaching Hong Kong was and why his team nearly had to be evacuated by a chopper after a match. Why coaching an associate nation is like coaching a grade club in Australia. The coaching principal that every coach should follow. What he spoke about during his presentation at the Cricket Australia level 3 coaching course recently Plus a whole lot more. This is a great episode with someone with a very interesting perspective on the game that everyone will get value from, so lets get into it.

Welcome to this episode with arguably one of England’s finest ever batsman, Robin Smith. Robin, or Judgie as he goes by, had a fantastic career that included scoring over 26,000 First class runs across a huge 426 First-class matches. Now just to put that into context, as of this interview in June 2018, Steve Smith has played 118 First-class matches, Virat Kohli has played 98 & Joe Root has played 125 matches. So that’s almost 4 times the number of matches each of them have played. That is A LOT of cricket! Judgie also played 62 Test matches and 71 One Day Internationals and combined scored 6,655 runs with 13 centuries and before Alex Hales scored 171 against Pakistan 2 years ago, Judgie’s 167 at Edgbaston against Australia in 1993 was the Highest ever ODI score by an English batsmen. After finishing his playing days in England, Judgie moved to Perth where he and his children now reside. He’s in the process of writing an autobiography, is studying a psychology degree, working full time and coaching junior cricketers so he’s certainly busy and active and is loving giving back to the game. His passion and love for the game and his mates comes through in this interview which I’m sure you’re going to love. In this episode we discussed: How his dad would get him out of bed at 5am every morning to practice How he and his older brother Chris had a net in their garden which other International players like Barry Richards and Mike Proctor would come and use to practice. How he transitioned from playing First Class cricket in South Africa to being a local player for Hampshire. The one thing his mentor said to him before his Test debut and how that always stuck with him and how a stern word from his good mate Allan Lamb allowed him to play his natural game in his Test debut. What his technical fundamentals are for any batter. How he taught Matthew Hayden to visualise before every match. Plus a whole lot more. This is a brilliant episode with a legend of a bloke who I didn’t even realise how good of a player he was until I did my research for this interview. So lets get into this episode.

Welcome to this episode with arguably the best young cricketer in Australia. This is the third of the series of interviews I did during my time in Melbourne. In this interview, I sat down with 20 year old Will Pucovski. Some of you may not have heard of Will – yet, but I have no doubt that he will become a household name in the future. Pucovski burst on to the scene as an 18-year-old during the Aussie under 19 national carnival in December 2016. He had an incredible carnival that included breaking a 22-year old record for the most runs in the Under 19 national carnival. During the carnival Will scored a mammoth 650 runs in eight innings including four centuries and followed it up the next week with his maiden 1st grade hundred in Victorian Premier Cricket. Since then he has gone on to represent Victoria in 6 first-class matches and 4 List A matches and has a highest score of 180. Not only does Will have the runs on the board as a young player but he has the goals and desire to reach huge heights which I have no doubt he’ll achieve. In this episode we discussed: How he identified that cricket was what he wanted to do and why he chose cricket over his winter sports How he trained in and out of season during his teenage years How his journey has accelerated very quickly in the past couple of years and how it’s been a rollercoaster What his preparation was leading up to the successful under 19 carnival and what he was focusing on How he found out he was playing for Victoria and how he felt when he has was waiting to bat and in his first few balls. What his goals are for the future – you’ll want to hear this! Plus a whole lot more This is a brilliant episode with a bright and very skillful young player who I can’t wait to see progress further.

G’day legends! Welcome to this episode with one of Australian’s best fast bowlers. During my time in Melbourne, I sat down with New South Welshman turned Victorian Chris Tremain, who was recently voted the Sheffield Shield Player of the Year after an outstanding season that saw him take 51 wickets from 10 matches at an amazing average of 21. Chris is a country boy who loves to get out into nature and in the past few years has turned into one of Australia’s premier fast-bowlers. Like most successful athletes and most of the guests we’ve had on our show so far, he hasn’t had it all his own way though. After not getting offered a contract with NSW he shifted across the border to Victoria which he initially had some reservations about however he’s now extremely settled as a Bushranger and has carved out a very successful career even though he says he’s had a lot of luck along the way. With 4 One Day International under his belt, I’m sure he’s got a lot more international cricket ahead of him. In this episode we discussed: How his first mentor helped him hone his skills from a young age and how he still helps him get out of bed when things are tough How perception is reality and why that’s important How his goals were to be a professional cricketer and how he always believed he would be even though now he believes there was a lot of luck involved. How making a conscious decision to give up alcohol helped shape his career. How getting fitter and stronger helped him bowl faster and for longer. What the best players do to separate themselves from the rest Plus a whole lot more This is a brilliant episode with a very down to earth guy who is at the Peak of his powers. I’m sure you’re going to enjoy hearing Chris’s story as much as I did so let's get into it.

In this interview I sat down with a very interesting and exciting cricketer who has recently announced his retirement from professional cricket – Aiden Blizzard. In the intro I didn’t mention who he plays for like I have done in other episodes as he’s had a number of different teams which we discussed in the interview. Blizzard started his career at Victoria before moving to South Australia and finishing off with Tasmania. In this time he also represented the Adelaide Strikers, Hobart Hurricanes and most recently the Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash while also spending three seasons with the Mumbai Indians in the IPl where he opened the batting with Sachin Tendulkar. In the last few years he has transitioned into coaching and was the High-Performance Manager of ACT cricket while still playing in the Big Bash. In this episode we discussed: How he transitioned from junior cricket in country Victoria to grade cricket in Melbourne How he progressed from grade cricket to the Victorian squad and what it was like debuting with and against some of the biggest names in Australian cricket at the time. What it was like to walk onto the ground at Eden Gardens in Mumbai with Sachin Tendulkar to open the batting in an IPL match. How Mike Hussey & Jacques Kallis operated for the Sydney Thunder when they won the BBL in 2016 What the transition has been like from playing to coaching and what’s next in his life plus a whole lot more This is a cracking episode with a great bloke who I learned a lot from and no doubt you will as well so let's get into it.

Women's cricket is on the rise around the world. When I was in Bangalore, India a couple of weeks ago, myself and Andrew Walton sat down and spoke to two women cricketers, Vanitha VR and Likhitha VG about their story and the future of women's cricket. Vanitha has had some success on the International stage having represented India while Likhitha has lead a domestic team to a title so they both are very good cricketers in their own right. In this interview we asked: 1. Introduction and background. 2. How did you arrive at KIOC? 3. What are your first memories of being here? 4. How has the experience at KIOC helped you as a cricketer and a person? 5. How would you describe your cricketing dreams? 6. Where do you believe women’s cricket in India is heading? 7. We have learned so much from you both in this trip, would there be anything that you have learned from us? This is a different format to normal but I hope you enjoy the insight from these two great cricketers.

Ashton Turner has played T20 International Cricket for Australia and over the last few years has become one of the best batters in Australia across both first-class and T20 cricket. In this years Big Bash he was man of the match on 3 occasions after match-winning innings and was second only to player of the tournament, Darcy Short for the most number of sixes hit in the tournament. He also became vice-captain of the Western Australian team this season and captained the team in the absence of Mitch Marsh. Had it not been for injury he would know doubt have played for Australia this summer and would probably be at the IPL right now. In this episode we discussed: How he followed the pathway set out by the WACA & Cricket Australia from the age of 10 How he never felt like he was good enough when playing in under age representative teams How he made his first-class debut for Australia under unusual circumstances. How getting clear in his game plans was the spark that took his game to the next level. How disappointed he was that a shoulder injury ruled him out for Australian selection and the IPL this year. How hard it was captaining Western Australia for the first time this year. How he went from fearing bug crowds to loving playing in front of big crowds. Plus a whole lot more

Hilton Cartwright has played Test Cricket & One Day Internationals for Australia and has a unique story of how he got there. Born in Zimbabwe and living there until he was 11 years old he isn’t your typical Australian player. While he’s dominated Australian domestic cricket at times he’s also had his share or struggles and gives us a great insight into that as well as the good times in his career. In this episode we discussed: How he hit a six in his first match and why it means he now wears the number 35 on his back when he plays for WA & the Perth Scorchers. How cricket gave him friends when he first moved from Zimbabwe to Perth. How he idolised Mitch Marsh at school and tried to keep up with his power hitting in their school days. How he became such a brilliant fielder without even trying to be. How he found out he was selected for Australia and the funny story behind that. What he was feeling and thinking as the bowler was running in to bowl the first ball he faced in Test cricket. How he uses visualization and plans thoroughly the night before he plays The simple mental process he recently changed to get back into form Why he enjoys to get out into the ocean for a surf plus a whole lot more.

Hylton or HD Ackermann is at a different stage of his life than many of our other guests. Ackermann played Test cricket for South Africa in the late 1990s and since retiring from professional cricket in 2009 has had a stint in the media and high-performance coaching in South Africa. He then relocated his family to Perth and has been the head of cricket at a private boys school here in Perth for the past 2 years. It’s great to have him on at this point in time when Australia is currently in South Africa battling away in the Test Series. He gave us a unique insight into what it’s like to play in Cape Town – the venue for the third and extremely controversial Test.

This is a great interview with Sam Whiteman as it’s another interesting story and as a wicket-keeper Whitey gives you another perspective on the game. Whiteman was a very good young cricketer who progressed through the ranks in WA cricket to make his first-class debut as an opening batsman at the age of 20. After having a brilliant season for WA 2013-14 Whiteman was selected for Australia A where he went on to score a century against India A And was touted as the next Australia wicket-keeper which he may well be right if it wasn’t for a cruel run of injuries over the past few seasons. In this episode we discussed: Making his 1st-grade debut at a young age How he made the transition from the country to the city as a teenager How thinking about higher honours caused him to go backwards How he dealt with multiple injury setbacks How he manages his preparation for both keeping and batting What his process and routines are like before matches How he deals with the pressure of big matches Plus a lot more I hope you enjoy this chat with with a highly skilled cricketer and great bloke.

Martin Hagger is a Professor, psychologist, sports psychologist, lecturer, speaker, author, researcher and athlete himself who travels the world researching the mind and human behaviour. It’s a change-up for us in this interview as I step away from cricketers and instead interview a sports psychologist. I’m pumped about this interview with Martin Hagger as there’s so many practical mental conditioning tips and techniques that the world’s best athletes use that you can use yourself. In this episode we discussed: The mindset that separates the absolute best from those that aren’t quite as good Why teams or individuals choke How to deal with anxiety and fear How to shut out mental distractions while competing How people can motivate themselves by setting goals How people can build confidence into their games and lives While Martin isn't a cricketer like our normal guest, we hope you see the value in what he has to share and can implement some of his teachings into your own life on and off the field.

This episode of The Cricket Mentoring podcast is with Australian fast-bowler Nathan Coulter-Nile. I’m really excited about this interview with Nathan Coulter-Nile as I think it gives you guys a huge amount of value. Coulter-Nile has played T20 & ODI cricket for Australia and has starred in the IPL over the past few years but his successes haven’t come easy. He’s been injured for a huge part of his career and has had to continually pick himself up and start again. In this episode we discussed: How he found out he had a rookie contract with Western Australia The conversation that sparked something within him to change how he went about his cricket. How he’s dealt with all the injury setbacks over the years. What it’s like to play in the IPL What he does to switch off and get away from the game What his routine is like in between balls Plus a whole lot more. I hope you enjoy this episode and insight into Nathan.

Adam Voges will go down as statistically one of the best Test batsmen of all time but for a huge part of his career, it didn’t look like he would even play a single Test match. Voges is a very clever and thoughtful cricketer & person who has a wealth of knowledge to share with you guys. He’s played all 3 forms of cricket for Australia, as well as playing in the IPL and numerous years of county cricket and has been a brilliant and successful captain and leader in the later parts of his career. In this episode we discussed: What his younger years looked like and how often he trained What changes he made to take his game to a new level How he bounced back from a difficult period of Test cricket What his mental routine is between balls What characteristics and similarities he’s seen in the world’s best players he’s played with and against. What traits a good leader should have It’s a story of perseverance, resilience and deep belief as well as meticulous preparation! I hope you enjoy this episode with Vogesy.

Everyone dreams of being successful and achieving their goals, but not everyone actually does achieve them. How do successful people overcome the hurdles they face and come out the other side? Dawid Malan has had to overcome a lot of frustration and tough times but has come out on top to have the success that he’s now having on the international stage. Hopefully this gives you some inspiration to work through your tough times and realise how good it could be…. Dawid is an English international cricketer who is at the top of his game right now. He has just finished a very successful Ashes campaign in Australia and a T20 series in New Zealand and in this episode he shares his journey.