Determination of Spatiotemporal Parameters in Straight Drive Cricket Bat Swing Using Accelerometer Sensors

The position, velocity and timing of a cricket bat swing measured in practice and during a match can provide a coach with details of batting skill. A straight drive was analyzed using data from two triaxial accelerometers mounted on the rear face of a bat and a video. The spatiotemporal details from the video were used to match the accelerometer data using rigid body dynamics in the plane of the swing. Discriminating the drive from the backlift and the return, the key issues of the swing motion and bat posture was investigated. The start and the end of the drive can be readily determined from the accelerometer data, and from this, the maximum bat swing velocity was determined. The accelerometer technology can be deployed during practice and match batting for skill assessment.