There are few things that Glenn Phillips cannot do on a cricket field. He bats, bowls handy off-spin, keeps wickets and pluck jaw-dropping, acrobatic catches from thin air in the outfield. And now he’s working closely on the intricate details within departments.
With the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka fast approaching, Phillips has gotten innovative in the batting legwork since last month. Turning up for the Otago Volts during New Zealand’s domestic T20 Super Smash, the hard-hitting right-handed batter was seen mirroring a left-handed stance to counter the spinners. With spin likely to be the key for the top contenders at the 20-team T20 World Cup, starting February 7, Phillips reckons his innovations will have an impact during crunch moments, especially against the left-arm tweakers.
The 31-year-old right-hander showcased his flair for the Volts against Central Districts on December 30. Phillips left spectators and commentators speechless by switching to a left-handed stance — once during the bowler’s run-up and once mid-delivery — to hammer a four and a six through the offside.
“I’ve always been able to bat left-handed,” he told nzc.nz.
“It’s something I’ve done since I was young. I was actually considering switching to bat left-handed when I was about 10 years old, but decided to stick with my right hand.
“I started working on it a bit more recently, facing pace-bowlers left-handed in the nets as well as spinners.
“I was more thinking it was something for the future but the fact that the opportunity came during the game to use it and I was able to pull it off was pretty cool.”
Phillips also reasoned the multiple dimensions as to why he bats this way these days.
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“These days I train batting left handed for two reasons. One to keep both hands and both sides of the brain working, but also to be able to counteract left arm-spin,” he remarked.
Phillips will be a vital member of the Kiwi squad for the eight-match white-ball series against India, starting January 11 in Baroda and also the subsequent T20 World Cup, where his left-field batting strategies might just come in handy.
