Building a robust fast bowler begins with strengthening the legs first. This may surprise many of you. You may have heard that fast bowlers need a strong butt. Well, this is true. The glutes (buttocks) are very powerful. They help you to sprint, to jump, and land with greater stability. Guess what? All of those motions are evident in fast bowling. So how do you get strong glutes?

Do your deep squats, lunges, and sprints from a push-up position. Sure, you can do a whole heap of isolation exercises too, but they will not be as effective for fast bowling as functional movements.

Failure to strengthen your glutes places added stress on your lower back and hamstrings. Your spine is already experiencing anywhere from 7-13 times your bodyweight of force in a flexed and rotated position, so it needs all the support it can get to minmise the damage!

To realise improvements in strength, you only need to do at least 2 solid sessions a week. If you have lifting experience, then I suggest you follow this prescription. Below is an example:

• Deep squat: 3 sets of 5 reps at a 6 rep load, 3 minute recovery between sets.

In my Top 100 Fast Bowling Exercises book, you will find more excellent whole-body movements you can train to perform better on field.  The prescription above can help you obtain that strength you may be missing in your legs. Without strength, you also lack power, a key element in bowling quickly.