Back-Foot Play
Also known as: back foot, back-foot stroke
Back-foot play is batting in which the batter moves the weight back and onto the rear foot to play short-pitched or rising deliveries. This creates time by moving away from the pitch of the ball.
Against short-pitched bowling the front-foot approach is not available — the ball bounces past the batter's front-foot reach. The answer is to go back. This means the back foot moves across toward off stump and the batter stands tall, watching the ball come up and playing it at a comfortable height. Back-foot strokes include the back-foot drive (punched firmly through the off side), the cut shot, the pull, the hook, and the defensive prod. Solid back-foot play allows batters to handle fast, short-pitched attacks without being forced into trouble by the rising ball. In pitches that have pace and bounce, back-foot ability is as important as a strong front-foot defence.
Practise the "back and across" movement as a habit before every delivery. As a result, it becomes automatic. This means imagine a string pulling your back foot toward the off stump as the bowler runs in.
Work on punching back-foot drives back past the bowler straight or to cover. This means the ability to score straight off the back foot stops bowlers attacking middle and off stump without consequence.
Example
To a short ball just outside off stump, the batter moves back and across and punches it off the back foot through the covers for four.
Why it matters
Back-foot play is the answer to short-pitched bowling. SwingVantage's cricket analysis (in development) will measure back-foot position and impact height to help batters develop a complete two-footed game.
How it shows up on video
Good back-foot play shows the batter moving quickly back and across to give themselves room and height, planting the back foot parallel to the crease, and meeting the ball in front of the body with a vertical or nearly vertical bat. Errors show the batter staying rooted on the front foot against a short ball, playing off a bent elbow in front of the face, and losing control of the contact point.
Common mistakes
- Not moving back and across early enough, leaving no room to play and forcing a cramped defensive block
- Planting the back foot toward leg stump so the ball arrives behind the hip rather than in front of the body
- Playing at the ball with a loose, bent elbow rather than a firm, extended arm on the back-foot drive
- Failing to keep the head still when rocking back, causing the sightline to the ball to shift at contact
In SwingVantage Motion Lab
SwingVantage cricket analysis (currently in development) will track the back-foot position relative to the crease and the batter's contact-point height and distance from the body to assess back-foot play quality.
Related terms
- Pull ShotThe pull shot is a back-foot, cross-bat stroke played to a short-pitched ball, swinging it around to the leg side, typically between mid-wicket and square leg.
- Hook ShotThe hook shot is an attacking batting stroke played to a short-pitched, rising ball aimed at the body or head. This means the batter pivots and whips the ball to the leg side, often in front of square.
- Square CutThe square cut is a back-foot, cross-bat stroke played to a short, wide ball outside off stump, slashing it square on the off side toward point.
- FootworkFootwork in cricket batting refers to the movement of the feet to get into the optimal position to play each delivery. This means moving quickly and correctly to the pitch of the ball is the basis of all good batting.
Put this into your swing
SwingVantage can spot this in your own swing — free to start.