Wrist Spin Bowling (Part Four)

[macca]

I found the best thing about writing these reports is being able to come back months later and check things with the actual records the association has online.

My young bloke took 2/6 off 4 overs today. Last week his final figures were 1/11( not 9) off 3. So cumulative he has 3/17 off 7 with 1 maiden. Great start to season. Leading team bowling figures and coach is real pleased to have a legspinner. Team had a big win as well.

He had two guys caught at midwicket, beaten by spin and bounce. Bread and butter dismissals for the legspinner.They all count.

 

[someblokecalleddave]

A field that I can imagine setting for bowling around the wicket is this - short fine leg, deep midwicket, deep square leg, short midwicket, long on, point, cover, mid off. You can still give away runs with this field, but that is only if you err on length. As Bedi says (often) : Length is mandatory, line is optional.

It is defensive because if the batsman chooses to he can just kick it away without any danger of getting out. But if he wants to score runs, you are forcing the batsmen to hit against spin for not too many runs (on leg side) or with the gaps on off-side, he has to move quite a distance down the leg to make room for himself on the off. If that wretched reverse-sweep comes out, you might want to move the short midwicket fielder to off-side.

Have a look at this field that was set for me in the last game I played in September. I was bowling over the stumps tight in to the stumps, almost down the middle on the off-stump. I had catches put down at those marked A to E. Another ball dropped short of Point and another ball was just short of deep square leg. When the field was set I though the captain had lost his marbles, but the two blokes that were batting and had been for ages one was nearing 100 were hitting almost everything through square leg, backward of Square leg, Mid wicket and through the on-side generally. One bloke was hitting through cover and when he was on strike the captain brought the bloke at mid off into cover and moved everyone round a place, leaving the bloke at Deep square leg. His instructions were to bowl my usual line and it worked a treat but for the fact that the fielders just weren't that agile, committed or quick enough or just couldn't hang on to them! I still came away dead chuffed as it was my best bowling performance all year and it restored my confidence in that I was doing the right thing. The interesting thing was that looking at it to me it initially looked stupid, but he had obviously noted that both of the batsmen were obviously really reluctant to play through the off-side and were weak there.

It think this example for me demonstrated how important it is to watch batsmen and cricket macthes on the TV/internet and listen and watch what the commentators are saying about weaknesses in batsmens technique. If you can note these and bow to them and set creative fields like this you're potentially going to do so much better. I have to be honest, it's not something that I'm particularly good at as I seem to be totally focussed on the fielding and not letting the ball get past me, or I find that I'm thinking about the last piece of crap fielding by someone 20 or 30 years younger than me and I'm moaning in my head about that rather than thinking about the strokes that the batsmen are playing. Something I'll have to work on I suppose?

 

[chippyben]

Have a look at this field that was set for me in the last game I played in September. I was bowling over the stumps tight in to the stumps, almost down the middle on the off-stump. I had catches put down at those marked A to E. Another ball dropped short of Point and another ball was just short of deep square leg. When the field was set I though the captain had lost his marbles, but the two blokes that were batting and had been for ages one was nearing 100 were hitting almost everything through square leg, backward of Square leg, Mid wicket and through the on-side generally. One bloke was hitting through cover and when he was on strike the captain brought the bloke at mid off into cover and moved everyone round a place, leaving the bloke at Deep square leg. His instructions were to bowl my usual line and it worked a treat but for the fact that the fielders just weren't that agile, committed or quick enough or just couldn't hang on to them! I still came away dead chuffed as it was my best bowling performance all year and it restored my confidence in that I was doing the right thing. The interesting thing was that looking at it to me it initially looked stupid, but he had obviously noted that both of the batsmen were obviously really reluctant to play through the off-side and were weak there.

It think this example for me demonstrated how important it is to watch batsmen and cricket macthes on the TV/internet and listen and watch what the commentators are saying about weaknesses in batsmens technique. If you can note these and bow to them and set creative fields like this you're potentially going to do so much better. I have to be honest, it's not something that I'm particularly good at as I seem to be totally focussed on the fielding and not letting the ball get past me, or I find that I'm thinking about the last piece of crap fielding by someone 20 or 30 years younger than me and I'm moaning in my head about that rather than thinking about the strokes that the batsmen are playing. Something I'll have to work on I suppose?

I've been doing little exercises to try and improve my cricket nous so to speak when I'm not bowling.
I ask 1) What are this particular batsmens strengths and weaknesses.
2) What are the bowlers strengths and weaknesses
3) How do we defend our bowlers weaknesses
4) How are we going to get him out( If he's impatient try and dry him up. If he's got a favourite shot stop him scoring off it so he plays shots he less comfortable with. etc etc)
And then set the field accordingly.
The other method I use when bowling(pace) for my field is bluff especially when batsmen are set. Setting a field for a bouncer say and making a point of getting people in position and basically making it very obvious of my tactics and then bowling nothing of the sort( my bouncer is far to slow nowadays anyway). Its all just to put some doubt in there mind and change things up. Or pretend you have seen a weakness in their batting style and set a few blokes in position to 'Target" it. Once again making your thoughts obvious to the batsman. Some batsmen have the arrogance to try and prove that they are actually strong in this area and they either cart you and you go back to an ordinary field or they fall into your trap. Another one is just to stick someone right under their nose, many batsmen see this as a lack of respect or try and blast you out of there, thereby playing rash shots. The position itself is very unlikely to get a catch but it does get wickets. We have credited 3 to that tactic already this year. Of course because I suggest it I'm the mug that has to get in there though!!!
I love this side of the game, the outwitting of opponents is so rewarding and you would be surprised how often technically good players fall for it.
I am still very much a novice in working all this out for leg spin though as Ive never played in a team with one in it (that was any good anyway) but its fascinating learning.

 

[macca]

I have just been checking out all the junior association bowling figures online and after 2 rounds and one wash-out my son ,with 3/17 from 7 overs, is right up there in all sorts of stats tables. Leading his team bowling averages and equal 2nd in comp. No 8 out of 163 bowlers at his club! He will probably be swamped soon by other kids hitting their stride, that has happened every year. But if he kept returning these figures he will have a big season. He has had two 4,s hit off him and bowled 1 off stump wide. Thats a 2.43 economy rate. Strike rate is 14 which is half his long term SR of 28.

He has made a real good impression at his new club. No doubt about that. Early days yet though.

Being in a strong team is a big change. 3 top batsmen. 3 top pace bowlers. the rest are all good allrounders, no weak links whatsoever. First WK is absolutely sensational ,his stumping last week the best ever off my boys bowling. My young bloke wont have to do much batting this year. That suits him. He is too slow a scorer for 30 over game.

Yesterday the coach called on my son and our best quick to "finish them off" in the last 4 overs and it was a good chance to get a couple of wickets as our boys already had the game won. He had 0/3 in his first 2 overs and in the first over of the second spell took his two wickets. After that he was really chasing that 3rd wicket. He had 2 dead set tailenders in his sights and went so close to getting both of em, but ran out of overs.

I was watching from side-on and his length was spot on. His two shortest balls got the wickets. But they were not long hops or anything like underpitched. Also he varied his pace nicely. Basically getting a bit faster as the over goes on than slowing down for the last ball or two, but not always.

Maybe next week will bring the his first caning of season, who knows?

Long Live Legspin.

 

[someblokecalleddave]

Bowling a good length is one of the issues that I have, but I had the chance to bowl against a bloke who I met in the very early days of mpafirsteleven. This blokes a Pakistani and spent his younger life over there playing cricket at good standard before coming over here to work as surgeon. He's still quite good with the bat, probably about the same age as me. He's got lots to say and it all sounds very knowledgeable and he was saying that my bowling since last seeing him has massively improved. I bowled with him last week and he was saying that in his opinion the only thing he could see that I was doing wrong last week was that the length was wrong (I was bowling on to a mat). He said that I needed to bowl to a batsman and bowl the right length in accordance to the whether the batsman played off of the backfoot or front foot. So today he turned up with his bat and I got to bowl at him. Again he was pretty impressed saying that the length that I was bowling was causing him to play off the front foot and block most of the time and that my length was spot on. Anything slightly legside he was hitting with a sweep shot which at the same time he seemed to be covering himself in the event that it got past the bat by padding it away. I got a few past him for stumpings - wrong un as he bounded down the wicket and he hit a few to positions where he'd have been caught, so all in all it was a good knock about. Got to bat as well which is something I need practice at and he bowls off-spin so if I can keep practicing with this bloke which seems to be his intention I may survive the offies next year?

 

[someblokecalleddave]

I've been doing little exercises to try and improve my cricket nous so to speak when I'm not bowling.
I ask 1) What are this particular batsmens strengths and weaknesses.
2) What are the bowlers strengths and weaknesses
3) How do we defend our bowlers weaknesses
4) How are we going to get him out( If he's impatient try and dry him up. If he's got a favourite shot stop him scoring off it so he plays shots he less comfortable with. etc etc)
And then set the field accordingly.
The other method I use when bowling(pace) for my field is bluff especially when batsmen are set. Setting a field for a bouncer say and making a point of getting people in position and basically making it very obvious of my tactics and then bowling nothing of the sort( my bouncer is far to slow nowadays anyway). Its all just to put some doubt in there mind and change things up. Or pretend you have seen a weakness in their batting style and set a few blokes in position to 'Target" it. Once again making your thoughts obvious to the batsman. Some batsmen have the arrogance to try and prove that they are actually strong in this area and they either cart you and you go back to an ordinary field or they fall into your trap. Another one is just to stick someone right under their nose, many batsmen see this as a lack of respect or try and blast you out of there, thereby playing rash shots. The position itself is very unlikely to get a catch but it does get wickets. We have credited 3 to that tactic already this year. Of course because I suggest it I'm the mug that has to get in there though!!!
I love this side of the game, the outwitting of opponents is so rewarding and you would be surprised how often technically good players fall for it.
I am still very much a novice in working all this out for leg spin though as Ive never played in a team with one in it (that was any good anyway) but its fascinating learning.

I'm liking this, this is a good strategy, it's a bit like the reflective cycle approach I wrote about earlier in the year.

 

[chippyben]

I'm liking this, this is a good strategy, it's a bit like the reflective cycle approach I wrote about earlier in the year.

I find a methodical approach like a checklist the best way to work through most things and simplify them. I have my own one for training too similar to that reflective approach you use.

 

[macca]

Saw another good 13 old wristpinner on sat. That makes 4 in my sons age group all about the same level i reckon. The left handed guy is probably the best but he isn't really a legspinner you could stretch it and say.

One has exactly the same figures as my young bloke. He is the little kid I saw last year that bowls in a long sleeve shirt and cap and is really roundarm. He was great to watch and we might see him this weekend again.

My son gets out to legspin every time he faces it just about. He got stumped again in his first game, against legspin. He can play offspin a lot better.

 

[Jim2109]

Does he have a sweep shot? Against leg spin I pretty much sweep everything (although the sweep is my best shot, and I'm actually pretty good at it. I often sweep 60mph+ seamers as well!! Their team mates always give them stick, like "mate, this guy just swept you, could you bowl any slower?"). If its pitched somewhere that I cant sweep, I'll move my feet so that I can lol, that includes coming a long way down the pitch. Its just the safest option against a turning ball for me, I'm not good enough to get an upright bat behind the ball, whereas a horizontal bat covers lateral movement a lot better. Bounce is the only risk, but if its bouncing high enough to beat the bat then you're not getting out LBW, and top edges are just a calculated risk. Stumpings becomes a rarity because the ball will tend to hit your body if you miss it. It takes a smart leggie to counter it, none have succeeded against me thus far. The only leg spin I've got out to was when I tried to play properly and not sweep!

Also I think leggies have a mental problem when batting against other leggies. Its like we are so bent on proving that we can read other leg spinners and demolish them that it actually has the opposite effect. I hate other leg spinners when I'm playing, and that includes team mates (and also aggressive offies). I want to be the number 1 spinner on the pitch. So I will go out to bat against spin with completely the wrong mindset and lacking in composure. I do the same when I bowl to them, although I normally win those battles (probably because they bat with the same mentality as me lol). I think 95% of my wickets were taken by spinners, I've never lasted more than 2 balls to a slow left armer, every time clean bowled. The bowler that has caused me the most problems in nets was also a slow left armer. Seam bowling is simple, I can get bat on ball all day long. But then I have more respect for it (even though it should be the opposite) and play more cautiously. Against spin I just want to cream the ball for 6 straight out of the traps.

 

[chippyben]

Saw another good 13 old wristpinner on sat. That makes 4 in my sons age group all about the same level i reckon. The left handed guy is probably the best but he isn't really a legspinner you could stretch it and say.

One has exactly the same figures as my young bloke. He is the little kid I saw last year that bowls in a long sleeve shirt and cap and is really roundarm. He was great to watch and we might see him this weekend again.

My son gets out to legspin every time he faces it just about. He got stumped again in his first game, against legspin. He can play offspin a lot better.

Macca that'll be great for his development if there is a bit of rivalry between them all. You need that extra bit of drive to try and get ahead of the next bloke. Its far better than bowling in a league where your killing it only to find out that your actually not that good when you play somewhere else.
We all love leg spin because its so hard to play so I guess we shouldn't be surprised that it gets us out too!!

 

[chippyben]

My Mrs and little fella have gone over to England to see her parents for a few weeks so Ive been able to get some serious practice in. I'm really happy with my progress and just trying to get repitition and consistency . I am getting my bowling arm to come through and work with my body instead of racing ahead like before. Its produced a lot more revs on the ball but feels like I'm putting a lot less effort in. I actually have to fight my instincts and hold my bowling arm back and the more I hold it back the more power I get because that gets my whole body working together. Strange but its working.
I'm getting the seam to rotate nicely too and only occasionally come out scrambled. I must admit I'm not really sure why this has improved but I'm not complaining.
Our first grade team have training tomorrow night and I'm feeling confident enough to go and have a bowl at them and see how I go.

 

[macca]

Does he have a sweep shot?

He can play the shot but not very good or often. But i am glad you mentioned the sweep because it is a shot that i have not seen a lot of so far this year but i will try and play it a bit today today in the nets against him and give him some practise.

I dont think he has bowled a sweepable ball yet this season.

 

[Jim2109]

every ball is sweepable! most people just have more than one shot and so dont need to play it every ball haha.

 

[shrek]

every ball is sweepable! most people just have more than one shot and so dont need to play it every ball haha.

Hehe! I don't think that is correct. Sweep is played on based on length- slightly shorter - top edge comes into play, fuller and it may sneak under your bat.

 

[macca]

every ball is sweepable! most people just have more than one shot and so dont need to play it every ball haha.

Jim2109 loves his sweep shot. Grimmett loved his late-cut. He tried to play at least one late-cut each time he batted as a demo to the rest of the batting line-up, Bradman included, as to how to play the shot.

Grimmett reckoned he showed bradman and mccabe both how to play the late-cut shot on the 1930 boat trip to ashes but grimmett reckoned bradman could never play it properly because according to grimmett bradman couldn't hold a bat properly! His grip was all wrong.

 

[chippyben]

Sweeping fast bowlers, I love it!!! Bit dangerous though if you don't where a helmet like me. Anything to unsettle them though is good in my book. I watched Shane Watson bowling to Umar Akmal last summer and Watson was swinging it both ways and so Akmal just walked down the pitch at him to get to the ball before it swung. We played a game last year where a bloke was swinging it a mile so I used the tactic. Keeping steady and well balanced, taking one big pace when they start there run and then another just before he bowled. Well it threw him right off and his geat length and accuracy was shot. He either tried to bounce me or york me and gave plenty of scoring opportunities and the keeper didn't want to stand up to him. A bit radical I suppose but its better than just meekly staying on the crease and getting nicks like all the previous batsmen. Good fun.
I didn't get to bowl against the 1st team last night because a storm came across. Anyway after it passed I went out and bowled on a very wet pitch. A bit desperate I know but practice is practice. A couple of the balls got soaked in puddles on the side of the pitch and then a strange thing happened. The sodden balls started to drift a lot. I have no idea why and I guess its not much use but its a strange and unexpected phenomena.

 

[doctortran]

Jim2109 loves his sweep shot. Grimmett loved his late-cut. He tried to play at least one late-cut each time he batted as a demo to the rest of the batting line-up, Bradman included, as to how to play the shot.

Grimmett reckoned he showed bradman and mccabe both how to play the late-cut shot on the 1930 boat trip to ashes but grimmett reckoned bradman could never play it properly because according to grimmett bradman couldn't hold a bat properly! His grip was all wrong.

The funny thing is that in every text book Bradman's technique was wrong. He brought the bat back well to the off side of the off stump. Similar to George Headley, but Headley's back lift was perhaps more radical (ie black bradman or white headley)!? The bottom hand of his grip (right hand) held the bat like a top spin forehand so he only hit six sixes in his entire test career and this from a strike rate of 60 (but he could hit sixes... i.e. against fleetwood mac in a first class match he made a century in two hours of play and ended up trying to get out lofting down the ground to give his future Australian teammate some confidence) -- he hence could criticise players like Neil Harvey for getting out by hitting it in the air. Bradman's technique was designed such that he'd never play uppishly. Perhaps something to think about when we bat against our fellow loopy leg spinners.

 

[macca]

The funny thing is that in every text book Bradman's technique was wrong

Maybe everybody else is wrong and bradman was right .

I found an absolute howler in Bradmans own text book "the art of cricket". He says in that book that it would be impossible for a bowler to apply enough backspin to effect a cricket ball. So unlike golf and tennis players, he wrote, cricket bowlers cant utilize backspin! Funny thing is, his club, state and national team mate clarrie grimmett had come up with a way to use backspin by 1941, well before bradman wrote his "art of cricket"

Grimmett kept Bradman in the dark over his flipper. Bradman thought it was called the "flicker". Bradman thought grimmett and later benaud were wasting their time bowling it.

Only in his old age when bradman saw warne tear the place down with the help of a grimmett backspinner did bradman finally see the full effect of backspin on a cricket ball. Too late to change what he wrote in "art of cricket".

 

[macca]

The other strange thing about bradman writing that it would be impossible for a spinner to apply enough backspin to effect a cricket ball is that bradman himself was fielding at cover when grimmett bowled his first two flippers in jan 1940 at the scg.

Are you telling me the greatest ball player in all sports history. The greatest batsman of all time. A champion tennis, squash, golf, and billiards player like bradman didn't see the backspin that completely beat sid barnes and arthur chipperfield with successive deliveries? I have a few theories on that.

There is a lot more to the history of the flipper. I spent months researching it and i found a comletely different story than any other published accounts. I found huge errors in the writings of famous modern cricket writers concerning the flipper and how it came to be.

 

[someblokecalleddave]

Maybe everybody else is wrong and bradman was right .

I found an absolute howler in Bradmans own text book "the art of cricket". He says in that book that it would be impossible for a bowler to apply enough backspin to effect a cricket ball. So unlike golf and tennis players, he wrote, cricket bowlers cant utilize backspin! Funny thing is, his club, state and national team mate clarrie grimmett had come up with a way to use backspin by 1941, well before bradman wrote his "art of cricket"

Grimmett kept Bradman in the dark over his flipper. Bradman thought it was called the "flicker". Bradman thought grimmett and later benaud were wasting their time bowling it.

Only in his old age when bradman saw warne tear the place down with the help of a grimmett backspinner did bradman finally see the full effect of backspin on a cricket ball. Too late to change what he wrote in "art of cricket".

Classic! No mention of the Slider either - I take it he was unaware of that as well? You'll have to get all your research together Macca and ditribute it somehow?