Welcome to the Wits Cricket Research Hub for Science, Medicine and Rehabilitation, in short, the Wits Cricket Research Hub. It is here where we embark on exciting research from injury surveillance to three-dimensional technique analysis and much more. The Wits Cricket Research Hub’s main focus is on the creation of new knowledge, while we also realise that creating knowledge without any means of translation is futile. We therefore not only ensure that we embark on relevant research, but we also strive to disseminate our research findings in a consumer-friendly way. This website is intended for researchers in cricket, as well as for coaches, trainers, healthcare providers, players and anyone else involved in cricket. Share in our passion!
Origins
Since the start of my career as a physiotherapist, I have been interested in how the body moves and what we can learn from it. It all started out simple and straightforward with goniometers, inclinometers and pedometers to assess human movement. My research interests around cricket started in 2009. I was especially intrigued with the cricket fast bowling action, seeing that it was performed at a high speed, in an asymmetrical fashion with high loads traveling through the body. In 2013, I completed a PhD that explored the factors predisposing our bowlers to injury using three-dimensional movement analysis technology. As time went by, I became wiser and more experienced and invested in more advanced equipment such as inertial measurement and optical motion capture systems to analyse the movement of the body segments, electromyography to capture muscle activity, and ultrasound to explore muscle architecture. Our research team expanded, our collaborations grew, and we extended our scope of research from a focus on fast bowling to everything cricket.
Whether you are a creator or a consumer of knowledge – come and join our journey!
Benita Olivier
Director – Wits Cricket Research Hub
