Hey guys, I was just wondering if anyone has found a particularly good way of getting a nice seam alignment. I know lots of people say 'just practise by throwing a ball from hand to hand'. I have absolutely no trouble getting a perfect seam doing that but as soon as I try a full length bowl it becomes very hit and miss. I am determined to perfect this as i notice when my seam is perfect i get MUCH nicer turn, bounce, and despite what alot of research suggests, drift. Did you guys find anything helped in particular? at the moment im just trialing every different method in the book blindly to try and figure it out.
Seam Alignment
- Thread starter Ben Baker
- Start date
This really is a do and learn thing and like Macca said make sure someone else is doing the observing for you so you can just bowl.
Pratice by bowling and using the old half red and half white ball, spinning the ball from hand to hand is a bit misleading as you will unconciously do things differently when you bowl.
When you bowl experiment with subtle differences as to where the seam is, you'll eventually find an optimum point and from there it is just a matter of getting used to the feeling of having the seam in the right position so you can repeat it whenever you like.
Pratice by bowling and using the old half red and half white ball, spinning the ball from hand to hand is a bit misleading as you will unconciously do things differently when you bowl.
When you bowl experiment with subtle differences as to where the seam is, you'll eventually find an optimum point and from there it is just a matter of getting used to the feeling of having the seam in the right position so you can repeat it whenever you like.
Cheers guys, I'm normally down there by myself but i can still see my seam relatively easily. And yes i think i'm just going to have to keep experimenting. Just out of curiosity though, i often play on a synthetic wicket on saturday and i noticed just how much difference the seem alignment makes. When i get a nice seam i really notice the ball rip, but if i scramble it, often it just skids straight through. Theres not really any middle ground. Whats the like compared to turf?
loopylegspinner
Member
Turf is a bit more forgiving but, in general, perfect seam alignment = Maximum turn, bounce and drift.
macca
Active Member
It would be good if you could find a turf wicket, maybe a practise one, nearby. End of season can be a good time to use council ones before footy starts.
What would be the % of perfect seam deliveries you get off in a spell of say 6 overs? The scrambled ones skidding through, how do the batsmen handle them you reckon?
Sounds like you are doing some drills to work on it, I like underarm and up to launch it high and trying to get the ball to spin around on its seam perfectly like the planet Saturn. ( not really saturnlike because that would require a detached, flat and rather pronounced seam). Dunno if it helps but it is strangely satisfying. Like spinning tops.
I often sneak out onto the turf wick near my house, and bowl a few. But i rarely get to bowl on it when its completely match ready. When i do though however, i can really get the ball to turn, but i feel like on a match ready pitch, it wont be quite so easy.
As for my seam % alignment, it depends how grippy the pitch is. On a slippery pitch i have to bowl the ball with a lot of topspin to get it to grip, and i can get a good seem quite easily when doing this. On grippy pitches however, when i try to exploit a bit more side spin, my seam position falters. With only probably a quarter at best with a nice seam. Its brutal variation. I bowled to a class batter the other day and he really struggled, with some skidding alot and some gripping (The only problem was i couldnt control it!). The 'natural' variation is nice, but i'd really like to be able to have more control over what turns and what doesn't.
It just bothers me because most of those exercises i can get a nice seam quite easily, but EVERYTHING seems to change when i actually run up and bowl!
As for my seam % alignment, it depends how grippy the pitch is. On a slippery pitch i have to bowl the ball with a lot of topspin to get it to grip, and i can get a good seem quite easily when doing this. On grippy pitches however, when i try to exploit a bit more side spin, my seam position falters. With only probably a quarter at best with a nice seam. Its brutal variation. I bowled to a class batter the other day and he really struggled, with some skidding alot and some gripping (The only problem was i couldnt control it!). The 'natural' variation is nice, but i'd really like to be able to have more control over what turns and what doesn't.
It just bothers me because most of those exercises i can get a nice seam quite easily, but EVERYTHING seems to change when i actually run up and bowl!
CancelledUser2014
Account Cancelled by User
To be honest, I'm not sure how. But have a look at South Africa's unlimited Titans leg spinner Shaun von Berg and India's Ravindra Jadeja, I think they are the spinners who have the most pronounced and upright seams in world cricket at the moment. Even more upright than a swing bowlers' seam.