Don Bradman's batting technique

When he began playing on turf pitches in 1926, some attempts were made to alter his style to conform to more orthodox methods, but he resisted and went on to unprecedented success as a run-maker.

In his biography of Bradman, "Johnny" Moyes, described his grip:[2] With most players, the [bat] handle runs across the palm of the [right, or bottom] hand and rests against the ball of the thumb.

[4] All these elements combined to give his backswing a "crooked" look, in that the face of the bat pointed at the slips cordon, rather than going straight, as advised in the coaching manuals.

This "crookedness" troubled his early critics, but Bradman resisted any major technical changes and it became a moot point after he broke the record for the most runs in a Test series during the 1930 tour of England.

[6] Shillinglaw concluded that Bradman's initially perceived weakness was actually the key reason for his success – it created a "rotary" action in his swing of the bat that delivered extra power and ensured that he kept the ball along the ground.

As it neared the top of the back-lift, Bradman manoeuvred the bat through a continuous arc and back towards the plane of the ball during the downswing in preparation for impact.

Additionally, his backswing (according to former Australian captain Greg Chappell) kept his hands in close to his body, leaving him perfectly balanced and able to change his stroke mid-swing, if he was initially deceived by the flight of the ball.

[18] "If there really is a blemish on his amazing record it is ... the absence of a significant innings on one of those 'sticky dogs' of old, when the ball was hissing and cavorting under a hot sun following heavy rain.