Cricket: The front foot driving game

How's your arm? Give all your players the best answer around and see them fizz it back into the stumps!

Two teams with the coach bowling.

All batters have 4 balls. Each wicket that falls means that team loses four runs.

Catch after 1 bounce = out.

Players bat until they are out but must retire at 20 runs (optional). Runs are only awarded if the ball is played through the cones. If the ball is wide, or left, then the batter may have another ball.

This game can be played in teams (6-10 a-side) or in pairs (8-10 players).

Rules of the game:

There should be a batter at both ends.

If playing in pairs, give each pair two or three wickets. If playing in teams, when a wicket falls it is the turn of the next batsman. Tip and run, or two or three balls to make a run.

The coach throws either all front foot defence or all back foot defence bowls.

The fielders must stay on the cones or with one hand on the wall until the ball is thrown, otherwise batsmen automatically get a two run bonus.

Ways of getting out:

Bowled, caught, run out, stumped, playing an attacking shot, or failing to score off the limited number of deliveries.

The batsman can only score singles but the boundaries count for overthrows.

Overthrows: side walls = 2 runs, back wall behind wicket keeper = 1 run, front wall = 4 runs (Unless you hit a 4 you can run singles to add to the side and back wall scores.)

If a batsman leaves the ball it does not count and he does not have to run.

If the batsman plays and misses it counts as a delivery

The coach throws from approximately 10 paces away. Mark the front foot and back foot target areas on the floor with chalk or markers. Use markers for fielders to stand on or next to. Make sure that the batsman does not bat for too long (e.g. retire at 20)

Position all markers so the batsman can just about run a single without being run out.

Organisation: Divide the group into 2 equal teams. Organise as shown in the diagram,set target for off drives only. Ball is served (on batters command of ready!) from the second cone infront of batter. Each player has 3 attempts to strike the ball. Fielders positioned between cones and boundary gather the ball and return to wicket keeper.
An alternative method to execute a run out is for the wicket keeper to stand in a circle and instead of breaking the wicket when a ball is returned, simply to bounce the ball in the circle.

Scoring: 1 run is scored if the ball passes between cones at fielders end, or is travelling in the correct direction when it is intercept (fielders remain behind the cones until the ball is hit). 3 runs are scored if ball passes between cones and batter runs around the cone and back again before the wicket keeper catches the fielders return and breaks the wicket. Direct hits count.
4 runs are scored if ball reaches boundary wall and any extra runs completed. Batters may be caught or run out. Team with the most runs wins.

Equipment: 1 bat and 1 tennis ball, set of wickets, 4 marker cones, and chalk markings.