Study reveals birth dates have disproportional effect on development in cricket pathway

GEORGE DOBELL - EXCLUSIVE: The study's authors have called on the ECB to implement "more equitable" policies and "change how young players are recruited" and "how competition is structured"

Questions should be asked whether a failure to take into account the relevance of birth dates is hindering England's ability to develop players, according to a new study.

The study, Relative Age Effects in Male Cricket, suggests that poor policies at the ECB have created a "lottery" which disproportionately shapes "developmental potential" and fails to optimise the talent available.

As a result, the study's authors have called on the ECB to implement "more equitable" policies and "change how young players are recruited" and "how competition is structured."

An understanding of the relevance of relative age effects (RAEs) in sport are not new. For several years there have been an understanding that enhanced physiological and psychosocial skills of relatively older athletes (those both in birth quarters one and two, from September and December respectively) might allow them to outperform their relatively younger but age-matched peers (born in birth quarters three and four, from March and June respectively). This, in turn, can lead to them gaining more coaching and competition opportunities.

But there has, until now, been little research conducted specifically on the relevance of RAEs in cricket and English cricket in particular. So the authors collected over 20 years of data for players at youth levels on the national talent pathway (ie Regional Under 15, Regional Under 17 and Under 19 World Cup) as well as for players who represented England and England Lions across all formats (debut from 2000 to 2021).

The results make for some startling reading.

Batting

1. In the last 20 years no specialist batter born in birth quarter (BQ) four has played more than 25 Tests (Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali, for example, are classed as allrounders).

2. Of England's Test batting line up (those who have batted in the top seven) in 2021 (when this study was done), Dom Sibley, Zak Crawley, Haseeb Hameed, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Butler, Dawid Malan, Ollie Pope were born in BQ1 and BQ2, only Rory Burns, Stokes and Dan Lawence were born in BQ and BQ4.

3. In Test matches, batters born in BQ1 and BQ2 have accumulated 905 Test caps compared to BQ3 and BQ4, who have accumulated 442 (from a data range of those who made their Test debuts between 2000 and 2021).

4. In ODIs, batters born in Born in BQ1 and BQ2 have accumulated 1,398 caps compared to BQ3 and BQ4 who have accumulated 436 (debut 2000-2021).

^{Ollie Pope is one of the majority of England batsmen to be born in the first half of the school year [Getty Images]}

Bowlers

1. In the last 20 years, Steve Harmison is the only bowler to be born in BQ1 to play 25 Tests or more.

2. England's Test bowling attack in 2021 - James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Chris Woakes, Jofra Archer, Moeen, Stokes, Dom Bess, Craig Overton, Sam Curran and Jack Leach were all born in BQ3 or BQ4. Only Mark Wood and Ollie Robinson were born in BQ2.

3. In Test matches, bowlers born in BQ1 and BQ2 have accumulated 265 Test caps, while those in BQ3 and BQ4 have accumulated 674 (debut 2000-2021).

4. In ODI matches, bowlers born in BQ1 and BQ2 have accumulated 691 caps compared to those born in BQ3 and BQ4 who have accumulated 1,401 (debut 2000-2021).

It is interesting to note the conflicting returns for batters and bowlers. While being born in birth quarters one and two would appear to be a distinct advantage for batters, it would appear to be a distinct disadvantage for bowlers. 

The study, quoting previous research from McGrath and Finch, suggests that "fast bowlers are most likely to suffer from overuse injuries, such as stress fractures in the lower lumbar spine. Since injuries are more likely to occur during the adolescence growth spurt, it is plausible that those who are selected onto talent pathways from an early age are at an increased risk of developing such injuries due to high training loads and subsequently drop out at the latter stages of the talent pathways."

In short, it is by avoiding exposure to the pathway system that bowlers appear to have the best chance of progressing.

As the study concludes: "It is important that organisational structures focus on long-term participation strategies when recruiting, developing, and deselecting young cricketers in their talent pathways, in order to avoid dropout, injury, burnout, and promote continued engagement in cricket."

The study's lead author was Dr Adam Kelly, who is a senior lecturer and course leader for Sports Coaching and Physical Education at Birmingham City University. His team included Tom Brown, who was behind the research which inspired the South Asian Cricket Academy.

"It is important to understand that RAEs are not naturally occurring phenomena," Kelly told The Cricketer: "Rather, they are created by key stake-holders through their decisions, actions, and policies. Organisational structures in cricket can choose to adapt policies to meet the needs of those who participate to create more equitable competition and moderate RAEs. 

“More specifically, they can change how young players are recruited, how competition is structured, and how they interact with players, coaches, parents, communities, and the environments where we engage in cricket.

"The lottery of when you are born should not shape your developmental potential.

"It is important that stakeholders employed at the ECB and in youth cricket settings better understand how RAEs may affect their talent pathway, in order to ensure they are using resources most effectively, providing an equitable system, capture a wide pool of potential talent, and better understand how they may impact individual development."