The Batting Buddies article last week has stirred much debate in the Rosaneri camp.

Some are point blankly refusing to take part calling it poppycock, and others are acclaiming it as one of the best coaching techniques they have ever heard of. Somewhere in between these two extremes is the majority of the squad. But whatever your opinions of the article, it has succeeded in getting everyone to think about runs and how to get more of them.

Even if you have only looked at your suggested Batting Buddy total and thought, “Yes, I should be able to get my half of that”. Then that is a start in helping you to focus on achieving a target. The targets have deliberately been set to push people to become better players, but also to be very realistic on their past form and potential.

Not taking part is not a problem, but it would be helpful if you set yourself some type of target or standard in order to be able to measure your improvement for the 2008 season.

Any improvements in your batting will start at the winter nets. Last week was a great session to get back into the spirit of things, but it will only be through getting your head down during the next 2 months or so that will lead to you hitting next summers targets.

Your imagination will be a vital tool during the next 2 months, as imagining yourself batting in different situations will improve your adaptability in the middle. The obvious one to consider here is batting within your crease for a wicketkeeper that stands up, or batting out of your crease for a wicketkeeper that stands back. This type of practice gives you a clear view of exactly what the advantages are of each technique. As a general rule, you should be looking to bat out of your crease for a quick bowler and from within your crease for a spinner.

Other imagination techniques include playing shots with a certain field in mind. Here you set yourself an imaginary gap in the field to aim for, and try to exploit the weakness. For example, you may decide to hit straight over the bowlers head as mid on and mid off are in close rather than set back.

Anyway, myself and my buddy are fully partaking in the Run Buddy scheme and we are relishing the task ahead. Hopefully we spur each other on in the desired fashion and help Rosaneri hit some big 200+ totals.