How do teams use short boundaries to their advantage?


IPL 2023 Winner

Short boundaries in IPL are like cheat codes—if you know how to use them. Teams don’t just hope for luck... they actively plan around them to gain a decisive edge, both with bat and ball.

Let’s break down the mind games 👇

🏏 Batting: Turn the Short Side into a Six-Hitting Zone

1. 🧭 Targeting the Short Side

  • Batters shift stance or angle to open up the short boundary.

  • They often take calculated risks toward that side, especially during death overs.

🔹 Example: Rinku Singh or Pooran often eye the short side and play inside-out lofts, slogs, or sweeps to clear it with ease.

2. 🧠 Match-Ups Built Around the Short Side

  • Lefties target off-spinners into the leg-side short boundary.

  • Righties pick slower bowlers to muscle over deep midwicket if that’s the short end.

🔹 Teams often promote batters just for that specific boundary advantage.

3. 🏗️ Pace-Off and Ramp Shots

  • On smaller grounds, batters use ramps, paddles, and scoops more confidently knowing the margin for error is bigger.

🎯 Bowling: Use It... or Outsmart It

1. 🎭 Bowling Away from the Short Side

  • Bowlers often bowl wide of off or into the longer boundary to force mistimed shots.

🔹 Think: Bumrah’s off-cutters or Harshal’s slower ones denying easy access to the short fence.

2. 🧠 Trapping Greedy Batters

  • Bowlers tempt batters into hitting toward the short side with subtle field placements and clever pace variations.

🔹 You’ll see a fielder at deep mid, but a slower ball delivered—baiting the slog = mistimed = wicket.

3. 🧱 Stacking the Short Side

  • Teams load fielders on the short side:

    • Deep square + deep mid + short fine

    • Dare the batter to go long

🧬 Strategic Tweaks Around the Ground Dimensions

Strategy Type Short Boundary Tactic Example
Batting Order Promote lefty if short boundary is leg-side
Bowling Match-Ups Use off-spinner to righty on long side
Field Placements Triple cover on short side + backload pace
Innings Phase Use Go hard at short side in final 5 overs

🏟️ Grounds Known for Short Side Shenanigans

  • Chinnaswamy (Bangalore) – High altitude + tiny boundaries = six-fest

  • Wankhede (Mumbai) – One square boundary is almost laughably short

  • Eden Gardens (Kolkata) – Shorter straight boundaries = spinner hell

  • Arun Jaitley Stadium (Delhi) – Midwicket boundary often exploited

🧠 Final Take:

“A short boundary isn’t just a bonus—it’s a battleground. Win the angle war, and you win the over.”

Want a visual heatmap of how a batter (like SKY or Maxwell) uses the short side? Or a breakdown of bowling lengths + wicket zones near short boundaries? I can hook you up 🔥📊