PakPassion is proud to present an exclusive interview with one of the most exciting fast bowling coaches of our era the former fast bowler, Ian Pont.

Former fast bowler, Ian Pont has been recognized as a leading practitioner in the field of coaching in cricket with a special interest in the area of fast bowling.

His involvement in the game of cricket as a player began in 1982 from his county days with Nottinghamshire and culminated with Essex in 1988, with a brief foray into the world of baseball due to his "pitching" abilities in 1987.

Pont's coaching capabilities were were put to good use by the Bangladesh national team in 2010-11 when he was appointed bowling coach. He later assumed the position of the head coach for the Dhaka Gladiators in the inaugral edition of the BPL where his team won the tournament.

Pont is currently in India working with some of the country's upcoming fast bowling talent and over the years has worked with some of the biggest names in the world of fast bowling.

PakPassion is proud to present an exclusive interview with one of the most exciting fast bowling coaches of our era.

Hope you all enjoy the interview.

PakPassion.net : Were you disappointed that the PCB did not make a decision regarding the role of bowling coach? It seems like a cop out to most?

Ian Pont : An employer has the right to re-advertise any vacancy they feel doesn't attract the right calibre of candidate. However, I read Initkhab's comments about the type of coach they wanted and I thought he was describing me! So if they genuinely want a fast bowling coach versed in biomechanics they have already found him. I wrote the best-selling book The Fast Bowler's Bible, on this very subject in 2005. My work with developing pace and accuracy in bowlers over 19 years is well documented. Being a pioneer in pace, or a leader in your field, means that not everyone understands what you do or what can be done. 

It's never about what piece of coaching paper someone holds. I know many Level 3 and Level 4 coaches who know nothing about this subject of teaching pace bowling. It is a specialised area and calls for a specialist to deliver. Ultimately, it is for the PCB to decide and I am sure they have their own ideas who they want. I wish them well in finding the right candidate because Pakistan deserves a dynamic bowling coach who can lift the entire bowling level across the board, up a few notches. You have to know what you are doing to make that happen.


PakPassion.net : Have the PCB been in touch with you regarding the role since you applied?

Ian Pont : I have heard nothing from the PCB apart from an acknowledgement of my application at the very start of the process.


PakPassion.net : You've obviously seen Wahab Riaz bowl, any thoughts on his action/technique?

Ian Pont : I have yes. I have videos of him, too. Wahab looks like he crosses his feet over and blocks off a little at the crease. This means he restricts his pace and doesn't fully engage his hips. He has that straight legged jump into the wicket (like Ryan ten Doeschate and Stuart Clark) so doesn't engage his hips into his action, but has good fast feet. He also collapses his front leg and has a gap between the knees on release of the ball (watching sideways) meaning pace is lost and the bowling is being done exclusively with the top half of the body only. He has good shoulder rotation but poor chest drive and finishes upright instead of head and hips level to the floor like a 'surfboard back'.

There could be so much more pace to come from Wahab but there needs to be coached an understanding of how to achieve it with drill work. I feel he could be so much more effective than just using part of his body to bowl with.


PakPassion.net : You worked with Imran Nazir at the BPL where he achieved some good results. What makes him tick and how did you get the best out of him?

Ian Pont : Imran Nazir is a great lad. I got on extremely well with him. But I found he was unclear about this role when batting at the top. After a few mis-fires in the BPL at the beginning when he just had a brain freeze and threw his wicket away, I spoke with him about his ability and mindset. I got the impression he was playing as if every ball was a free hit and to plunder as many runs as he could from as few a balls as possible. The thing is, he is way better than that as a batsman. 

So I backed him and said that I wanted him to be batting after the 6 overs PP and not get out in it. I said if you are still in then please go on and bat through but with your positive intent. He had complete licence to play shots but I also wanted him to be batting and not sitting back in the dug out.

He stepped up with this new responsibility and clarity of what he was doing. I feel this is important in T20 in particular. A coach must be clear about what that player should be doing and when they should be doing it, based on that player's ability to execute it. Imran is someone who can be special if he is clear in his mind and believes in the role he is given. That's what I did with the Dhaka Gladiators.


PakPassion.net : Your views on the much talked about Mohammad Sami as a fast bowler? 

Ian Pont : MS is a talented and classy quick bowler in my opinion. He was just outstanding in the BPL. I feel he took the responsibility of bowling fast up front with the new ball well, and I wouldn't use him in any other role except taking the new ball in T20. I don't feel he is a bowler who likes to wait for a few overs to get into the game. And he can swing the ball so I would open with him and ask him to be hitting his back of a length area, hard. He can also bowl great yorkers (did a hat trick against Dhaka Gladiators to finish a match) so again he is someone who needs confidence and backing to do well, plus having a role in the side he feels he can deliver on.


PakPassion.net : Whatever happened to Atul Sharma, what's he doing currently and did he actually bowl at 100 mph?

Ian Pont : Well I haven't seen or heard from Atul for more than two years so cannot answer that! I never saw him bowl at 100 mph. Speeds were done in the US with Jeff Gorski the javelin coach, I believe. Atul stayed there 6 months and did his own thing at that time and they trained on his arm speed. My role was on the mechanics to make it cricket related so it could be used to hit the right area as needed. But I am as baffled as anyone where Atul is and what he is doing. 

Our last meeting was in South Africa (when the IPL was there) and he had a grade two slap lesion tear of the head bicep muscle from fielding, that required surgery. He chose not to have that done as it would mean 9 months rehab and instead carried on training with it all taped up. For all I know he might still be injured. But he's about 26 so whether he wanted to play cricket and have a go at it, is up to him. As he hasn't surfaced anywhere my assumption is he's doing something else. 

You cannot force people to play or tell them what to do. A life lesson for any coach. Atul was just one of many 100s of bowlers I was working with over those 3 years and I am sure there will be new names coming through in the next 3. None of us will ever know what might have been possible. 


PakPassion.net : What is different about your coaching compared to other fast bowling coaches?

Ian Pont : Oh boy, where to start! I want to say that EVERY bowling coach must be able to manage players, make them feel important, work on their confidence and help them when they have issues. They must also know how to bowl the deliveries and how to set up net sessions and practices to get the best out of a player. We all know how to bowl inswing and outswing. We all know how to grip the ball. Also you have to be able to catch using a mitt. So most fast bowling coaches limit themselves to this role - one of 'mentoring' - being a friend to the bowling unit and just keep them 'ticking over'. 

But this is where I go much further and deeper in fast bowling coaching. My passion is in coaching SPEED and ACCURACY. And this can only be done when you understand how the body works and how the action delivers it. In the same way batting coaching is all about technique, fast bowling rarely is. That's because coaches do not understand where speed comes from and how you generate it. This is why coaches do not teach technique. But I do, if it is required.

It does seem strange that we can jump higher, throw further, hit harder, swim faster. run quicker,... yet people believe you cannot bowl faster? You are 'born' with it? But you are not 'born' a lawyer or doctor. This 'born' a fast bowler comes from people who cannot coach speed into bowlers, but sadly know how to coach speed out of them. 

Many pace bowlers remain completely undeveloped. They have what they have from trial and error, they compensate for problems, they learn to bowl by outcomes (where the ball goes) and many have inefficient and sometimes, injury-prone actions that go unchecked. 

My interest is in HOW to get it there consistently and faster. How to develop the skills of a bowler from what they do in their action. How to improve on their natural talent, not lose it. How to turn an average bowler in a good one and a good bowler into a great one. This is what I do as a coach. Fast bowling is a process and like all processes, it can be learned. And there is DEFINITELY a process for teaching speed and accuracy that all bowlers can use. You can take a gifted young quick and with the right technique, turn him into something remarkable. Without coaching, that gifted quick will have what he has and it may be pot luck if he turns out to be world-class. 

I want to take luck out of coaching and focus on training bowlers to make the most of what they have and step up a couple of levels.

So my coaching is about "up skilling' the bowlers technically so they can deliver under pressure without having to 'feel' for a yorker, or worry about whether they can hit their lengths. If you have great technique this comes naturally, and that's the whole point. What you practice becomes 'natural' over time. So you don't have to be stuck with what you are born with. You can develop it far further.


PakPassion.net : What do you think are the most important physical attributes for a fast bowler? Which muscles do you think one should work on if they are trying to become a pace bowler? And how does one balance his weight training and bowling in the nets to bring about optimum results?

Ian Pont : You need a big heart and a passion for hard work. I don't believe there is any one set of physical attributes that guarantees success as a pace bowler. Height gives you longer levers, which is desirable, but only if you use them correctly. Being big and strong can be imposing, but big muscles can also slow you down. So a simple 'overall athleticism' is a starting point but I would say it's a desire or hunger to bowl fast that is more important than anything.

I have a personal dislike on the overbearing nature of weight training. It is useful but should not be the main domination. A fast bowler does not need to do weight training in my opinion to bowl fast, and it is only necessary if they feel they need it because they are not bowling enough overs. Bowlers have to be 'fit for purpose' and the way you get that is to actually bowl. I am quite old school when it comes to this. I don't feel we bowl enough structured overs in net practice (most of it is aimless and people become human bowling machines) and spend way too long in the gym.

If players want to feel strong by weight training, it is important they do not bulk up too much. Being strong is a wonderful feeling, but I am talking here about specifically pace bowlers. Overall fitness and strength is great, of course. If your action is solid and you bowl good overs that are well-managed, I think that weight training should only be minimal.


PakPassion.net : Why do certain bowlers start off well but then lose pace over a short period of time? If anything, one expects them to improve or maintain that pace uptil a reasonable age?

Ian Pont : I feel that bowlers 'settle' into bowling and perhaps realise they don't have to bowl every ball as fast as they can to be successful. The emphasis is on line and length so this perhaps discourages bowlers from trying to maintain their speed. Also, some changes that bowling coaches make adversely affect a bowler's speed so after some coaching they start becoming medium or medium fast bowlers.

Brett Lee and Shoaib Akthar are two bowlers who maintained high speeds into their mid-30s so it is clearly possible to do so. English quick Devon Malcolm was still bowling 145-150 kph at age 40! 

It is a mindset though. If you have the desire to bowl fast, that normally doesn't leave you.


PakPassion.net : What age bracket do you think a fast bowler reaches his peak levels of strength and stamina?

Ian Pont : The age range 26-30 seems to be when a fast bowler matures. 


PakPassion.net : There seems to be very few high quality fast bowlers around at the moment, do you think this is a phase cricket is going through?

Ian Pont : I am sure it is. It is cyclical. There will be periods in time where fast bowling was great and also when it was less so. Fast bowling standards are only as good as the bowlers playing after all. It does worry me though that there aren't more fast bowling greats generally. For all the science, training, technology, coaches, weight training, facilities and finances, you would think that there would be many, many more quality pacers around.

Not wishing to jump on my favourite hobby horse, it's simply because coaches don't teach speed.


PakPassion.net : Injuries are part and parcel of cricket for fast bowlers, but the likes of Fidel Edwards seem to be constantly injured, why is that. Something to do with his action perhaps?

Ian Pont : Sometimes bowlers are simply injury prone. Others have issues with their action and this causes long term stresses that develop. I think it's important for coaching staff to correctly monitor workloads and actions to help a player stay on the field longer.


PakPassion.net : Who do you think is currently the quickest bowler in the world?

Ian Pont : Shaun Tait.


PakPassion.net : Stuart Broad just seems to be getting better and better as a bowler, technically what changes have you seen in his bowling which have caused this improvement?

Ian Pont : I don't feel Stuart has made many, if any, changes in his bowling action. Apart from 'throwing away' his front arm (which loses him 5-8 kph) and not finishing off his action fully, his action has always been like this. He has just learned to bowl consistently. It isn't rocket science really, if you can bowl most deliveries in the right place. It's what made McGrath and Pollock so effective as bowlers. It's why Hilfenhaus is coming to the fore now. It's why Philander has started so well. And its why Steyn is so wonderful.

When you bowl more balls in the right area, you become more effective. This gives you better stats and you makes you a 'better bowler'.


PakPassion.net : What are your thoughts on another big fast bowling hope for India, Varun Aaron?

Ian Pont : He's shown a great deal of promise. And apart from getting smoked for 63 off 4 overs in an IPL match, he appears to have decent control. T20 is a lottery though but it is a test of how well you can think and then change what you are doing. He missed his yorkers lengths badly sometimes, but clearly has pace (150 kph). 

One lad I am working with, Harshal Patel of RCB, has tremendous swing away and bowls good lengths, but doesn't have Aaron's pace. If Aaron can learn to hit his spot then he will cause some major problems. It's all about patience too for bowlers. They have to work a batsman over. This is something Dale Steyn does so well now.


PakPassion.net : As a unit - which bowling attack would you rate as the best at the moment?

Ian Pont : If we are talking about Test matches I cannot look much further than England to be honest. They are ranked at number one and it's usually because the bowlers are bowling sides out. The batting over the winter by England was not crash hot and almost lost them number one spot. But with Broad, Anderson, Bresnan and Swann with Finn to come in and Tremlett, I think they have the edge as a team. I feel Australia are rebuilding. And South Africa as well. But right now the English attack is keeping the side at the top.


PakPassion.net : Irfan Pathan burst onto the scene, but has fallen away, where do you think his bowling has gone wrong?

Ian Pont : He has been around a long while now. I get the impression he isn't 100% certain what he should be doing with his action. For example he sometimes has different load ups when he bowls, as if he has been working on something with a coach, but it hasn't yet been cemented in his mind. 

I think he should settle on what he wants and then just stick with it. Don't change things in a match or if something doesn't work for a few balls. You have to give things a chance, under pressure, and you have to trust yourself. I just have a feeling he isn't settled in his mind and that can cause havoc. The coach has a massive role to play here in understanding how and why things are going wrong


PakPassion.net : The West Indian quick bowlers seem to succumb to one injury after another, where are they going wrong, bad luck or something else?

Ian Pont : As mentioned above, some quicks are simply injury prone. I don't know what preparation the WI bowlers do but sometimes if that workload isn't right it can cause injuries - too much can be overuse injuries, too little can be "undercooked' and not prepared for the workload itself. It does seem unlucky for them to have so many injuries though. I would always look at what they are doing as a probable cause and eliminate that first.


PakPassion.net : Who is the most talented fast bowler you have ever worked with?

Ian Pont : Darren Gough would have to be up there. Dale Steyn of course as he is NOW but was only 19 and raw when I worked with him. Shoaib Akthar easily the most knowledgable about his own bowling. Andre Adams is a better bowler than his stats show. But I guess at the time I worked with them, for sheer fast bowling talent, it would have to be Shoaib, although Dale Steyn will probably turn out to be one of the greatest fast bowlers of all time.


PakPassion.net : Any quick bowlers you have worked with who you had high hopes for but never quite made it?

Ian Pont : Most of the day to day work I do with my academy is with Under 11-21s. So most of the private talent I have is yet to come through. I have a few unknown quicks who I thought would go on and make it but for various non-related cricket reasons, haven't. 

I guess the one bowler who plays professionally and I spent time with and hasn't quite fulfilled what he could, is Graham Napier of Essex. I thought he would really have a bright future as a quick (140-145kph) but seems to have not really gone all the way. 

Sometimes people don't make it due to lack of opportunity, others because they don't push hard for it. As I said above in an earlier answer it's important to have a big heart and lots of desire to be a success as a fast bowler. You have to look in the mirror sometimes and ask yourself "did I give this everything I have got'? The answer you hear will be the truth.


PakPassion.net : Many thanks for your time Ian and best wishes for the future.

Ian Pont : My pleasure.

Discuss!