Wrist Spin Bowling (part Five)

Hi, my season starts October 15. Still got a fair while to practice and get ready. My accuracy has started to really come together now, hoping it will remain that way and improve before the start of the season.

That's unlucky that they won't let you play till october, even thought the weather's great.

I think mine starts the week before that.

I also have a scratch match on the 23rd of September.
 
Thanks mate. I've had a lot to take in the last few days. Looking back and having had a few nights sleep I am happy with my decision to quit the club and feel liberated.

I learned from conversations with the first team captain that he wanted me in the first team, but other players had talked him out of it. This explained why I had been overlooked for the first team all season, which I wondered about a lot when players who were returning from injuries or other lay offs were being picked. Players who had no wickets to their name when I had 15 were being picked.

Then in the last few weeks there has been a player in the second team/Sunday team who has made a few remarks about my bowling. On Sunday he ended up being captain via an injury. We had a decent total to bowl at and 40 overs. At the start of the innings he came up to me and another bowler and said to both of us that he would give us a bowl, but on the proviso that if the batsmen went after either of us we'd be taken off/rotated. To me this is bang out of order already, for any captain. To put pressure on bowlers like that. However, he squarely told me that I'd be guaranteed a bowl.

Then half way through the innings, he came up to me and told me to stay interested with my body language and that I'd be on soon. The overs came and went, the run chase went down despite wickets falling and then a number 8 came out, had a great innings and creamed off the remaining 40 or so runs with a succession of boundaries.

Obviously I was never put on, and other bowlers had two spells. I could not accept this, having bowled only 4 overs in the previous three matches.

At the end the stand in captain and vice captain both came up to me to "apologise" for not putting me on, I told them I wasn't having it and left pretty sharpish after a few exchanges of words. I wasn't having any of it and told them not to talk to me. The stand in captain gave himself a full 9 over allocation, naturally (0 wickets but economical).

The end!

I am really looking forward to a new club and challenge.

My figures for the season:-

Overs 66.1
Maidens 1
Runs 377
Wickets 15

Dismissals:-

Bowled 9
Caught 3
LBW 1
Stumped 2

Could have been worse, could have been better. I'll take those figures and look forward to a new chapter.

Take this as motivation to absolutely roll this old team if you ever play against them.
 
Does anyone here ever get to bowl with another spin bowler with 2 sets of stumps one at either end bowling taking turns bowling to each other. I used to do with my sons, but they always got fed up with it too fast. I've always rated it as a good method of practicing - because there's the potential to give immediate and helpful feedback. I've had the opportunity a couple of times in the last two weeks to do this and in doing so was able to work with my top-spinner which I rarely do. Not sure if you recall, but as a variation I generally recommend the Top-Spinner as being the ball you learn next after the Leg-Break, but I rarely bowl it because I don't get to practice it enough. But, in one of these bowler to bowler sessions I had a go and my mate Koush (The other bloke) who's a number 3 bat in the 1st team was like 'Whoa! What was that'? Then it went from there, that was all the encouragement I needed to throw a few down and he was very impressed. We netted today - just him and me and having had that little bit of practice allowed me to send a few down among the Leg-Breaks and Flippers when he was batting and he was totally out-foxed by the inclusion of the Top-Spinner. His feedback was because of the Top-Spinner he couldn't play the Leg-Break in the same way and felt with the Leg-Break he had generally 3 shots to work with, but with the inclusion of the Top-Spinner he know felt he had to wait for it to pitch to see whether it was going to turn or not, massively changing his options. He said that he could not read it out of the hand and it also mean that a slow loopy Flipper also took on a slightly different dimension that had him playing differently.

Nah I've never really done this but have done it with a keeper a few times. Yeah I love the topspinner, but particularly the topspinner with just a hint of leg spin - on australian pitches that delivery really is magic. Bounce, dip, and just enough turn, and that is why it is my stock ball. Especially being on the faster side pace wise, the topspinning leggy is really hard to play. I also find I get more spin or fizz from the hands when bowling with more topspin, it just feels better, whereas with the big leggy and similar deliveries the ball feels more like it just slides out.
 
Definitely the best way to take, no use just being angry. Channeling it into progress is definitely a way better use.

Prove them wrong.

Definitely agree. I love when I get the chance to prove people wrong, it makes me bowl so much better. Though I'm lucky I haven't had to prove people wrong within my team, just had to prove the opposition wrong.
 
Thanks mate. I've had a lot to take in the last few days. Looking back and having had a few nights sleep I am happy with my decision to quit the club and feel liberated.

I learned from conversations with the first team captain that he wanted me in the first team, but other players had talked him out of it. This explained why I had been overlooked for the first team all season, which I wondered about a lot when players who were returning from injuries or other lay offs were being picked. Players who had no wickets to their name when I had 15 were being picked.

Then in the last few weeks there has been a player in the second team/Sunday team who has made a few remarks about my bowling. On Sunday he ended up being captain via an injury. We had a decent total to bowl at and 40 overs. At the start of the innings he came up to me and another bowler and said to both of us that he would give us a bowl, but on the proviso that if the batsmen went after either of us we'd be taken off/rotated. To me this is bang out of order already, for any captain. To put pressure on bowlers like that. However, he squarely told me that I'd be guaranteed a bowl.

Then half way through the innings, he came up to me and told me to stay interested with my body language and that I'd be on soon. The overs came and went, the run chase went down despite wickets falling and then a number 8 came out, had a great innings and creamed off the remaining 40 or so runs with a succession of boundaries.

Obviously I was never put on, and other bowlers had two spells. I could not accept this, having bowled only 4 overs in the previous three matches.

At the end the stand in captain and vice captain both came up to me to "apologise" for not putting me on, I told them I wasn't having it and left pretty sharpish after a few exchanges of words. I wasn't having any of it and told them not to talk to me. The stand in captain gave himself a full 9 over allocation, naturally (0 wickets but economical).

The end!

I am really looking forward to a new club and challenge.

My figures for the season:-

Overs 66.1
Maidens 1
Runs 377
Wickets 15

Dismissals:-

Bowled 9
Caught 3
LBW 1
Stumped 2

Could have been worse, could have been better. I'll take those figures and look forward to a new chapter.
Sounds like you've done the right thing. 1st XI teams at biggish clubs seem to be very cliquey, then add to that the fact that you're a Leg-Spinner, there's till that whole thing with Leg-Spinners being a 'Luxury'. You've only got to watch cricket on SKY for a few games and you soon get the sense of how spin-bowlers are viewed and then x that by 5 for Wrist Spinners. It's a tough gig. There's only been 1 Wrist spinner in our 1st XI team in the last 10 years or so and he's reaching an age where I'd say he should be peaking. He bowls medium pace. Nuff said...
 
Darth Spin Darth Spin that's a pretty impressive Strike Rate 26.4. Beats virtually every pro playing in one day games as far as I can make out. Mendis comes close with 27.2. I reckon less overs makes a bit of difference. I'd imagine strike rates in T20 are much better. I did quick calculation of mine and I'm around 30.
 
Nah I've never really done this but have done it with a keeper a few times. Yeah I love the topspinner, but particularly the topspinner with just a hint of leg spin - on australian pitches that delivery really is magic. Bounce, dip, and just enough turn, and that is why it is my stock ball. Especially being on the faster side pace wise, the topspinning leggy is really hard to play. I also find I get more spin or fizz from the hands when bowling with more topspin, it just feels better, whereas with the big leggy and similar deliveries the ball feels more like it just slides out.

I love the top spinner as well, getting the ball to pitch a little bit further back than the batsman expects unbelievably effective for getting them to miss, edge or miscue the ball.
 
Darth Spin Darth Spin that's a pretty impressive Strike Rate 26.4. Beats virtually every pro playing in one day games as far as I can make out. Mendis comes close with 27.2. I reckon less overs makes a bit of difference. I'd imagine strike rates in T20 are much better. I did quick calculation of mine and I'm around 30.

Thanks mate. My typical strike rate is usually higher than that. My figures for all seasons in all formats (some T20s but mainly 35/40 overs games) are:-

Overs 166.3
Maidens 4
Runs 1035
Wickets 48
Strike Rate 20.81
Average 21.6
Economy 6.22
 
Yeah great strike rate, always good to have strike bowler in the team.

My stats so far (2 seasons) look like:

Overs- 68.4
Maidens- 2
Runs- 393
Wickets- 10
Average- 39.3
Economy- 5.72

So not great, that does include me bowling pace for a bit though.
 
My stats from 4 seasons are:

Overs- 288.2
Maidens- 17
Wickets- 72
Average- 17.32
Strike Rate- 24
Economy- 4.32

It would be nice to reach 100 wickets this year. All I'd need is 28 wickets in 20 games or more if we make finals.

Keep in mind that these seasons range from u14s to u18s. If I take out my earlier years, my average and strike rate climb a couple points.
 
My stats from 4 seasons are:

Overs- 288.2
Maidens- 17
Wickets- 72
Average- 17.32
Strike Rate- 24
Economy- 4.32

It would be nice to reach 100 wickets this year. All I'd need is 28 wickets in 20 games or more if we make finals.

Keep in mind that these seasons range from u14s to u18s. If I take out my earlier years, my average and strike rate climb a couple points.

Damn those are very good stats. Even without the juniors, a couple of points up is still very very good.
 
Yeah great strike rate, always good to have strike bowler in the team.

My stats so far (2 seasons) look like:

Overs- 68.4
Maidens- 2
Runs- 393
Wickets- 10
Average- 39.3
Economy- 5.72

So not great, that does include me bowling pace for a bit though.

I’ll add to this with I was very happy with my last few bowling innings of the season.

5-2-18-0
2-0-5-0 (bowled out for 62, we made 8-228)
4-0-14-1 (wicket first ball, bloke on 29(63))
3-0-12-1 (wicket first ball, bloke on 82(47))
 
Last edited:
Cheers. Yeah what is it about getting wickets first ball? Happens all the time for me too.

I tend to get my overs around drinks break and the seam bowlers in my team are either medium pace swing bowlers or slightly faster bowlers that tend to bowl too short.

I think the batsmen get used to the pace and in particular that guy that was on 80 odd was just pulling everything over square leg/cow corner because we kept bowling short.

I came on and I think the lack of pace (granted still a little short lol) along with the bounce I get and little bit of turn caught him on the splice of his bat and he was caught at shortish mid wicket. Was also a fairly good, sharp, waist high catch by the captain.

The other guy was bogged down and tried to slog me over the long boundary into a a strong breeze first ball and got caught at cow corner.
 
I tend to get my overs around drinks break and the seam bowlers in my team are either medium pace swing bowlers or slightly faster bowlers that tend to bowl too short.

I think the batsmen get used to the pace and in particular that guy that was on 80 odd was just pulling everything over square leg/cow corner because we kept bowling short.

I came on and I think the lack of pace (granted still a little short lol) along with the bounce I get and little bit of turn caught him on the splice of his bat and he was caught at shortish mid wicket. Was also a fairly good, sharp, waist high catch by the captain.

The other guy was bogged down and tried to slog me over the long boundary into a a strong breeze first ball and got caught at cow corner.

I'm the same. Its the best feeling when you get a wicket just before drinks so you get an early drinks... then when you come back on the field you still get to bowl the rest of your over.
 
I’m guessing most, if not all of you, are specialist bowlers and not really all rounders.

But regardless, do you find that as your batting picks up a bit your bowling tends to fall off and vice versa.

Sorted out the problem with my batting (too tense, I just relaxed more lol) and had a pretty mediocre session with the ball. Could be because I’m also trying to sort out my ideal stock ball pace and it’s playing around with my consistency a bit. But it almost happens in cycles where I’ll bowl well but bat poorly and then it rotates around to where I bat well but bowl poorly.
 
Back
Top