Two types of swing
February 18, 2008
This is a fascinating video about two different ways of bowling outswing.
It seems to me that you might lose some pace if you swing it with your wrist in the way that Pathan does in the video. However, I was chatting with a friend about it and he said that Steyn does it in the Pathan manner. And Steyn is one of the quickest around at the moment.
I wonder if we can classify other swing bowlers into one of these two categories and see if there is a correlation with pace. I’d be most interested in knowing what Lee does, for instance. Also, is there more than one way to bowl inswing too?
P.S. This is why Akram is one of the most interesting commentators to listen to. Most of the ESPN-Star/Channel 9 commentators are batsmen. Only Akram and Greig seem to give interesting insights into pace bowling.
February 18, 2008 at 10:34 pm
This is completely tangential and I hope it does not stop anyone from talking about the issues addressed.
When you are coached to be a fast bowler (in India) while in school, how much are technical aspects like wrist position, using the off-hand etc. emphasised and addressed by the junior coaches? It seems to me that these are critical factors and cannot be left too late in the development of a bowler. Or can they? In other words, are our junior coaches knowledgeable enough?
Another way to frame this would be: can good fast bowlers be produced by competent coaching (assuming the distribution of talent is the same across different populations)? Or is being a ‘natural’ the only way to advance?
February 20, 2008 at 4:30 am
I haven’t any data on this to give any sort of definitive answer. However, looking at the national teams, Indian pacemen are among the world’s best when it comes to the art of (conventional) swing bowling. Therefore, it’s either the case that some junior coaches are tutoring them well or these things can actually be learnt later (by a visit to the MRF pace foundation, for instance).
I guess one needs a combination of natural talent, coaching as well as a good talent scout who spots you. Pakistan and the erstwhile West Indies would be good data points to look at while theorising on this.
February 20, 2008 at 9:32 am
Indian youngsters are really good at imitating what they see on TV. Three decent left arm seamers rising from the ranks at about the same time that Wasim was about to call it a day? I think the evidence is conclusive.
February 20, 2008 at 8:52 pm
Obviously, there wouldn’t be data. I was merely fishing for anecdotal insight/evidence.
February 20, 2008 at 8:52 pm
It is refreshing to hear Akram talk about an art nobody knows much about in detail.
February 20, 2008 at 10:28 pm
Yes John, the impact of TV cannot be discounted. And I think that in the near future, YouTube can have a similarly significant impact.
It seems that swing bowling is still not completely understood. It’s astounding that after all these years, it still remains such an imprecise science.
Srivaths, by “data” I meant personal experience. From the very little I’ve seen, coaches seem to spend more time coaching batting than bowling. Perhaps part of the reason is that batting lends itself more easily to coaching than bowling.
June 3, 2009 at 9:30 am
It seems that swing bowling is still not completely understood. It’s astounding that after all these years, it still remains such an imprecise science
October 22, 2009 at 12:18 pm
wasim was the king of swing.