Cricket coach and PitchVision columnist Sam Lavery tackles how to integrate running into net sessions.

Runs are the currency we value the most. So how do we go about improving how many runs we can score?

There are two simple ways:

Either improve our ability to hit the ball with a range of shots, improve our ability to run, or both.

Last week we looked at how to score big without boundaries, now we are going to switch it and look at some boundary options.

Ticking over the scoreboard is a coaching mantra for a reason.

The thing that kills limited over innings in the school and club club cricket game are unnecessary dot ball strings. Batters often get carried away with the notion of smashing the ball over the ropes, forgetting the importance of scoring between those big shots.

So, ability to mix boundaries with singles and doubles is crucial, let's look at some skills.

This is a guest article from batting coach, Gary Palmer.

What is the purpose of the pre-match batting practice?

The aim is to build confidence by consistently hitting the ball out of the middle of the bat while exaggerating perfect technique. To feel good in the middle you can use throw downs to capture the feel of the correct shapes of your shots.

The better your preparation the more confident you will feel. This leads to being more relaxed at the crease when you finally go out to bat. You will have confidence in you technique and ability to execute shots successfully because you have prepared well and have a feel for the correct shapes.

A strange thing happened in the final of IPL 7.

Batting first against KKR, King's XI Punjab had two in form overseas superstars ready to go in and start crashing boundaries. Maxwell looked primed. Miller was itching to biff it. Instead, a slight wicketkeeper with a traditional technique - best known for not being MS Dhoni - was sent in after 5 overs.

Wriddhiman Saha looks every bit the anti-T20 player. His batting was once said to have "the look of an accountant passing journal entries." Solid. Reliable. Safe.

He ignored this cliche about himself, and proceeded to smash a blistering Twenty20 hundred. Read on to find out how you can emulate this story in your Twenty20 cricket.

15 balls.

That's how long it took Yusuf Pathan to reach the fastest fifty in IPL history. He hit Dale Steyn for twenty six in an over. It was a thoroughly modern display of power batting.

What happened in the 22 ball innings tells a story of batting, a story that can teach you a thing or two.

This is an article from PitchVision Coach, and minor counties cricketer Chris Watling.

When the spinner comes on, are you filled with dread?

Many batsmen have this secret fear, you are certainly not alone. You can no longer use the pace of the ball to work it around and hit your boundaries. You are forced to defend and wait. Against a good spinner you get tied down.

And we all know what happens when you lose patience: head up, ball in the air, back to the pavilion.

There is a better way.

One of the young coaches in my coaching team, Matt Thompson, recently recounted a coaching session with one of the International players at the school.

Matt and Tom had a range hitting session and it was clear Tom was inconsistent.

Matt's solution was to get back to basics.

How do we establish a balance between traditional values, and modern creativity and invention?

As a coach I often hear the old school approach has stood firm and overcome even the best the world.

The clean and "conventional" stroke play of Jayawardene or Ian Bell.

The full face and physical presence of Matthew Hayden, intimidating bowlers with simplicity and power.

Kumar Sangakkara signed off his Twenty20 career with a Man of the Match performance steering Sri Lanka to World glory.

Yet entering final Sunday, Kumar was experiencing something every batsman feels: hideous batting form.

Sri Lanka had progressed to the final of the tournament despite Sangakkara scoring 19 runs at an average of 4.75. He was horribly out of form and couldn't buy a run.

We all know that feeling!

For most players, the downward spiral tends to continue, our scores remain low, our confidence is eroded on a daily basis and our emotions shift between dejection and desperation.

But this cycle did not happen to Kumar Sangakkara.