Introducing young players to cricket in a positive and engaging way is key to long-term participation and enjoyment.

Richard O’Sullivan brings more than 30 years of grassroots coaching experience, and is the creator of Box Cricket, a format now widely used in schools. His approach focuses on making the game accessible, active, and enjoyable for beginners.

He joins The icoachcricket Podcast to share his coaching philosophy, explain how Box Cricket works in practice, and outline how coaches can create meaningful first experiences for players starting out in the game.

The mental side of cricket is an increasingly important area of development, particularly for young players navigating the demands of the game.

Martin Fairn has worked extensively on the mental skills of players across the pathway and brings experience from a range of different sports. Currently working with Worcestershire and with footballers in the Lionesses setup, he has a broad perspective on athlete development.

He joins the podcast to discuss how young players can build a strong mindset, and what coaches can do to support and develop players’ mental skills from an early age.

Coaching in cricket has evolved dramatically over the past few decades. From the informal, experience-led approaches of the 1990s and early 2000s to today’s more structured, player-centred environments, the role of the coach continues to shift. But where might it go next?

Paul Shaw has spent time reflecting on this journey, examining how coaching has developed, what has driven that change, and what the future might hold for the game.

In the final episode of series three, he joins Tim Dellor to explore the evolution of cricket coaching, from past practices to modern methods, and considers how coaches can continue to adapt in an ever-changing landscape.

Sajid Mahmood enjoyed a successful career, representing England across all formats before moving into coaching.

Now based at a West London school, he works closely with academy bowlers.

He discusses what he looks for in young fast bowlers, how he uses competition to drive development, and his enjoyment of coaching areas of the game he didn’t focus on as a player.

John Abrahams scored 13,560 runs for Lancashire between 1973 and 1988.

After captaining Lancashire to List A success, John went on to spend more than 30 years in a range of coaching roles with the ECB.

Widely respected across the game, he shares his approach to developing the art of captaincy, highlighting the importance of investing time and energy into nurturing the next generation of on-field leaders.

Sara Begg has coached across the globe, from community cricket in inner London to leading projects in emerging cricket nations, and is currently working in Brazil.

She has extended this work into her PhD, collaborating with teenagers in Nepal to design a cricket-based programme aimed at challenging gender norms and expanding opportunities for girls in both sport and everyday life.

In this conversation, recorded before her departure, she reflects on cricket’s power to bring communities together and its role in challenging harmful gender norms, enriching the lives of women and girls both on and off the field.

Pete Alway is leading the research focusing on reducing injury risk, with specialist expertise in the biomechanics and physiology of pace bowling.

As the ECB’s Research and Operations Manager he based at the ECB Performance Centre in Loughborough monitoring players and reducing injury risk.

In this episode, he shares insights into how fast bowlers can be best prepared and managed to maximise performance while staying fit.

24 years ago, Deep Dasgupta was playing his final game behind the stumps for India.

He is now balancing coaching in the UK with commentary in India.

Deep takes time out from his busy World Cup commentary schedule to join Tim Dellor to share his coaching philosophy and approach to developing the modern wicketkeeper.