wfdu_ben91
International 12th Man
Of course there are going to be exceptions to the rule from time to time. But to say that players haven't honed their skills in their early 20's when they've already made International level cricket is absurd.Stereotypes are so good for some people, clearly.
Reality is many players know perfectly well how to do what they need to do before they even hit their 20s. I know how to bowl and\or bat at international level, and have done for years - I just don't have the ability to do it. And no matter how much I hone whatever ability I have, I won't ever get near international standard. I haven't ever really come close to making the most of what ability I do have either, because I don't practise and analyse myself very much - often at all.
Some players are more talented than others, some are better at honing their skills than others and some enjoy different advantages in skill-honing than others. Consequently, different players develop, and deteriorate, at different rates, at different starting ages and to different extents. There is no real template - but the idea that all or most players in their early to mid 20s need to experience anything to know what they need to do is nonsensical. All you need to do to learn that is to have seen it, whether your name is on a teamsheet or not.
Experience and maturity comes with knowing when to pick your spot, when to play particular shots and when to bowl specific delieveries at the most appropriate time. Experience is having dealt with various different situations in the past, which gives players an advantage in the future when they are confronted by a similar situation. Their skills don't get better, because if that were the case then you'd see bowlers being able to bowl 170kph and batsman facing it with ease. The only skills that are honed after the age of 20 is the mental side.