New Lease of Life for Sean Williams
Sean Williams seems to be getting better with age
It took Sean Williams 90 innings, or ten years, eight months and one day, to score an ODI century. The floodgates were partially opened, and between 2016 and 2022, Williams scored four ODI centuries in 49 innings. Then in 2023, Williams went berserk, scoring three centuries (and counting), two back-to-back. Williams' form has held together Zimbabwe's campaign at the ODI World Cup qualifiers. And Williams' form has been in part because of cold swims.
Over the past 18 months, Williams has started his day, rain or shine, freezing cold or blistering heat, with the last thing some athletes do after a match or training: a cold swim. Some prefer ice baths.
Athletes take cold swims, showers or ice baths after a match or exercise because cold water or ice helps your blood vessels constrict. Constriction is thought to improve post-workout swelling and inflammation, which may cause pain and muscle destruction after activity. Williams uses the cold swim for different reasons.
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Williams has always been a temperamental being. It never took much to set him off and get him throwing his gear in the dressing room. His early struggles were attributed to his inability to regulate his emotions and reactions to situations.
Williams uses the cold swims to help him keep his feet on solid ground. "It's basically about learning not to fight the situation. If you fight the cold water, you are going to feel the cold. But if you keep still, concentrate on your breathing and just relax and take it easy, you can be there for a while," he told Espncricinfo recently.
Another reason for his purple patch is Dave Houghton, a shrewd tactician. Before analysts appeared in cricket and helped take the load off the coaches’ shoulders, Houghton filled notebooks compiling notes on the opposition.
In 1996, Houghton capitalised on England's questionable fitness and poor fielding. He elevated Zimbabwe's physical fitness and prepared them to run hard between the wickets. "He ran the English ragged in the field. Dave wasn't the best at rotating strike throughout his career, but against England, aged 39, he ran hard and rotated strike as well as the best runners in the side," says Dean du Plessis.
Houghton compiles more notes on his team. His coaching philosophy is similar to Greg Popovich's 'hug em and hold em' philosophy. He believes in filling each player's cup.
Speaking of the arrowplant, biologist Edward O. Wilson said, "When it grows on dry ground, it produces an elephant-ear leaf. In shallow water, it puts up leaves that look like lily pads. If grown in deep water, it develops slender leaves like eelgrass, sort of seaweedy ribbons. The environment awakens something in the plant, freeing it to transform into the shape best suited to its surroundings."
Houghton has not read Edward O. Wilson's work, but he understands that players are like the arrowplant; they react to their environment. You need to create certain conditions to get the best out of them. Houghton had to deal with a lot when he took over as player-coach for Zimbabwe in the mid to late 1990s. He had Neil Johnson, a difficult player, and Andy Flower, a prickly individual during his playing days.
As if that was not enough, he had Eddo Brandes. The big fast-bowler had a heart the size of a pea. It didn't take much to hit Brandes out of the attack. Houghton had to work on Brandes' confidence constantly. In 1997, Zimbabwe played India at Willowmoore Park, Benoni, in a triangular series, and Sachin Tendulkar hit Brandes out of the match on his way to a scintillating century. Disheartened, Brandes seriously considered retirement after the match.
It took several serious talks between Houghton and Brandes to stall the retirement. When India toured Zimbabwe and played in Bulawayo, Sachin hit Brandes over extra cover for six on the first ball he faced from him. "It took a while, but after much work, Dave managed to get Eddo in a position where he believed in himself and realised that it doesn't matter if you go for 15 runs in the over, you can still get the batter out," says Dean du Plessis.
Two balls later, Eddo dismissed Sachin with a vicious delivery that flew straight to Grant Flower at gully. Besides Brandes, Houghton also had Paul Strang, who also needed constant pumping up.
"Sean Williams has always been a complicated, complex and volatile cricketer. He is a person who needs love. When he gets lots of love and TLC, he does well," one person told me. Unsurprisingly, Houghton and Andrew Waller have been the two coaches who managed to get the best out of him.
When Waller joined the Zimbabwe Cricket set-up, first as the batting coach and then later as head coach, there was an uptick in Sean Williams' performances. When Dave Houghton joined Matebeland Tuskers as head coach, Williams went from scoring 60s, 70s and 80s to scoring big hundreds, 150, 160, and 170 in the Logan Cup.
Unlike most coaches, who disregarded his mental struggles - many of which stem from his difficult childhood - and threw him away because of his temperament, Houghton and Waller took time to understand him. Houghton doesn't coddle Williams, as he did when he cracked the whip on Andy Blignaut's poor attitude when Blignaut made his debut for Zimbabwe; Houghton is not afraid to cut Williams down to size when he feels Williams is acting like a prima donna.
The third piece of the puzzle to Williams' purple patch is family. "He has an unbelievably kind and supportive wife and has taken to fatherhood excellently. He is a doting father. Through them, he is beginning to understand that there are people who love and care for him as he is, flaws and all," says du Plessis.
Williams has a renewed love for the game, thanks to the cold swims, Dave Houghton and family life. He now runs the singles hard, swings the bat with force, and bangs long sixes. He smiles. He waves. He chatters. Williams now plays the game with revitalised enthusiasm.
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Thanks for reading. Until next time… - CS
The way Williams' form has gotten better with age reminds me of Andy Flower's career trajectory. It was in Flower's 30s he became consistent and started pushing big numbers.