The Matthew Potts Trajectory
As a Team Builder and Selector, I have several tools in my toolbox to control games. One Such Tool is Building a Robust Bowling Attack. A Robust Bowling Attack allows me to Control Games of Cricket through the administration of High Quality Bowling throughout an innings. Building a Robust Bowling Attack isn’t easy, there are mitigating factors some of which aren’t in our control. For example, for the better part of two decades Bangladesh Cricket only produced Left Arm Orthodox Spinners. England find themselves in a similar situation. While England have Exciting Fast Bowling Talent in County Cricket, less than a handful of those Fast Bowlers have established themselves. That makes Selection and Team Building Challenging.
Matthew Potts is One Bowler that is emerging from that uncertainty. While this was clearly the Summer of Gus Atkinson, Potts is starting to make his mark in One Day Cricket. It’s important here to remember that Potts hasn’t played a lot of 50 Over Cricket, he’s only represented Durham 16 Times. His Numbers, especially his control numbers aren’t great. That said, it’s important to watch the games. Potts has a Strong a Repeatable Action, He’s Physical, and has an uncanny ability to Bowl a Heavy Ball off a Good Length. Even more important, he gets good movement off the seam. Nothing captured his growth better than the 14th Over of 2nd ODI at Leeds.
The fans will remember Potts going through Steven Smith with what seemed like an unplayable delivery. For me, I was impressed with the first four balls of that over where he coddled a marauding Mitchell Marsh. In the previous over, Marsh had taken Bryden Carse to the cleaners. He approached Potts’ Over with the same intent. But unlike Carse, Potts combined discipline, skill, and intelligence to control Marsh’s predatory instincts. He Bowled a Relentlessly Fullish Good Length with the Ball Cutting Inside. That made it impossible for Marsh to play the pull or the cut. When he did err slightly Marsh did get him away for a boundary behind backward point. But clearly Marsh wasn’t in control of that shot. None of this is to say that Potts is a finished article. It is to say that Potts is on a Good Trajectory and one that will serve England well across formats.
One More Thing
Cricket needs Elite Bowling Coaches. In Baseball, we’ve seen the likes of Dave Duncan and Leo Mazzone change the career paths of struggling or unfulfilled pitchers. Historically at least, the Atlanta Braves, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Tampa Bay Rays have been havens for Struggling Pitchers to reclaim their careers. What is Cricket’s Version of that? Are we producing High Quality Bowling Coaches? Are we producing Elite Defensive Minds? Are we Coaching the Coaches Correctly? Also, Should a Fast Bowling Coach be Coaching a Leg Spinner?