The fielders take their positions, some distance behind the cones; coaches underarm the ball at some velocity towards the batsman.

The goal is for the batsman to play the off drive so the ball goes between those two cones; if he hits it right, he calls his partner for the run, if his shot is off target, he calls `No' to the run. And when the call is `Yes', batsman and non-striker race across for the single.

There is no theory discussed, but in this simulation, the batsman and non-striker are practicing skill sets: the shot itself, which has to be hit perfectly if the ball is to go between the target cones; the calling, which is a key facet of running between wickets, and even the running itself, where the focus is on sliding the bat into the crease, and turning with your eye on the ball and the fielder.

All of it is important, but none of it is the point of this session - the focus is clearly on the fielders. As each shot is hit, the fielder first up in line races forward, attacking the ball, going low to field, setting himself and throwing at the non-striker's end. On the other side of the stumps, four of their mates are ranged in fielding positions, and their job is to back up the throw, prevent the ball going through for over-throws.

It is day six of camp for the latest batch of 22 hopefuls, and the first time they are doing this drill. The preliminary instruction is minimal - the batsmen are told what they need to do; the fielders are told that the objective is to get the run out, and they are then left to their own devices.

Some pick it up quickly, covering the ground fast, going low to the ball with the body behind the line, picking up and releasing quickly. Others fumble; the first time they charge the ball, they miss, and have to go chasing as the ball eludes their first grasp; the second time, you notice that the first failure has bred caution - the kids stay back, opting to field safely rather than charge and possibly, miss.

Greg Chappell, Ian Frazer and the five local coaches are, throughout the session, short on blame, and long on praise. When a fielder gets it all right, there is applause from the coaches, and a quick word about what worked and why. When a fielder muffs up, there is no blame, no criticism - in fact, any words spoken are of encouragement: "Good, you attacked the ball, don't worry if you didn't get it right."

The only time the coaches intervene is when the safety-first type of fielder stays back instead of racing forward to the ball. When that happens, Chappell or Frazer step in quickly: "Don't stay back," the kid is told. "As long as you move towards the ball, you are in control; stay back, and the ball controls you - and those guys are already thinking of the second run."

As the session extends, you notice that gradually, even the weaker fielders are beginning to get it. No one stays back - they walk in as the ball is delivered, they race forward as soon as the shot is hit, they attack the ball hard, at a dead sprint, and the release gets quicker, better, and the consequent praise more fulsome.

"Typically, a coach stands somewhere in the field and hits the ball and the fielders, all in a half circle in front of him, field and throw it back. Even some international teams do that, and where is the point to it?" Chappell explains, after the session has wound down.

"The point is to work on skill sets in real life situations. That is why we have the kids batting, not the coaches hitting. That the kids get to practice their off driving is a bonus, and if you notice, not once during the session did any of them mishit the shot.

"As you probably noticed, not all the kids can get it right first time. Some fail, and we encourage them to fail. If they get into their heads the idea that getting the ball in their hands is the priority, they will hang back, and play safe. We make sure they know it is okay to fail - what is not okay is to hang back. They need to attack the ball, every single time.

"You probably saw the result - once they missed a few times, they got the hang of it; they attacked the ball harder and earlier, they threw cleaner, the backing up was good; in a word, they figured out for themselves exactly what they will be doing on the ground. And since they learnt the lessons by themselves, instead of us lecturing them, they will never forget it, it becomes a part of their cricketing makeup."