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Problem with swing bowling

karan316

State Vice-Captain
I have a minor issue with my bowling, not exactly a problem tbh, but its something I don't understand.

My natural action allows me to get a lot of in-swing with good control. I mix them up with a few out swingers and straighter ones. All the deliveries I bowl are pretty much in my control throughout the innings except for the in-swingers.

Everything goes normal with the new ball, the ball curves in to the batsmen like a normal in-swinger, I can bowl some which move out, straighter ones, etc. things are completely in my control.

But, with a 15-20 over old ball, when I try to move the ball in, it just curves out at the last moment. Its pretty effective for me, coz the batsmen have no clue about whats going on and they keep edging it or missing it in on most occasions. But I have no idea why it happens, I have bowled with all kinds of grips and even bowled cross seam, but the ball always moves away at the last second no matter how much I try to move it in. I have to adjust my line and try to aim at the leg-stump to ensure that the ball moves away and stays on or outside off stump.

And now this is the most bizarre part, when the ball gets a bit more soft(35-40 overs old), it looks like the ball is moving in(just a hint of in-swing), and cuts away sharply after pitching. Almost like a leg spin delivery with a bit of drift. But I have no clue how with the same grip, I can achieve too much in-swing at the start, and then out-swing and later the ones which just pitch and move away.

I m pretty happy that it happens, but I would like to know some technical stuff behind it so that I can use it more effectively.
I bowl somewhere around a 110-120kmph (so m definitely not reversing it), the release(when I bowl in-swing) is pretty similar to Kulasekara. It would be great if someone can explain what actually is the reason behind all this.
 
Last edited:

45DegreeOBS

Cricket Spectator
I have a minor issue with my bowling, not exactly a problem tbh, but its something I don't understand.

My natural action allows me to get a lot of in-swing with good control. I mix them up with a few out swingers and straighter ones. All the deliveries I bowl are pretty much in my control throughout the innings except for the in-swingers.

Everything goes normal with the new ball, the ball curves in to the batsmen like a normal in-swinger, I can bowl some which move out, straighter ones, etc. things are completely in my control.

But, with a 15-20 over old ball, when I try to move the ball in, it just curves out at the last moment. Its pretty effective for me, coz the batsmen have no clue about whats going on and they keep edging it or missing it in on most occasions. But I have no idea why it happens, I have bowled with all kinds of grips and even bowled cross seam, but the ball always moves away at the last second no matter how much I try to move it in. I have to adjust my line and try to aim at the leg-stump to ensure that the ball moves away and stays on or outside off stump.

And now this is the most bizarre part, when the ball gets a bit more soft(35-40 overs old), it looks like the ball is moving in(just a hint of in-swing), and cuts away sharply after pitching. Almost like a leg spin delivery with a bit of drift. But I have no clue how with the same grip, I can achieve too much in-swing at the start, and then out-swing and later the ones which just pitch and move away.

I m pretty happy that it happens, but I would like to know some technical stuff behind it so that I can use it more effectively.
I bowl somewhere around a 110-120kmph (so m definitely not reversing it), the release(when I bowl in-swing) is pretty similar to Kulasekara. It would be great if someone can explain what actually is the reason behind all this.
It's actually pretty obvious. If you bowl the in-swinger, your wrist is in a certain position and your wrist and fingers perform a movement/s which applies side-spin and back spin to the ball. As the ball moves through the air with the rough side on the right side the seam is pointing towards leg slip with the seam at 45 degrees or less, rotating (spinning) backwards and towards mid off. The airflow is laminar on the shiny side of the ball, so it leaves the ball early, but the airflow that reaches the seam is tripped by the seam and becomes turbulent airflow which sticks to the ball for longer. Thus there is a wake which forces the ball to the on-side of a RHB. With an older ball that doesn't have shine and has turbulence on both sides, movement through the air by swing is impossible unless your able to reverse swing the ball, or if you use the Magnus Effect. Your inswinger bowled with an old ball is actually just gripping the surface and turning like a leg break, which is why it moves away, instead of back in. With a very old, soft ball, (30-40 overs+) there is a hint of in-drift, caused by the Magnus Effect because of (1) the spin on the ball and (2) the fact that a light, soft, rough ball (like a tennis ball) drifts much more than a heavy, hard smooth ball. (new cricket ball) There is still some turn away because older balls also tend to grip the surface better than new balls.

Bowling scrambled seam will just inhibit any swing, but the ball will still move away slightly after pitching, and if it's a very old, rough ball it might drift in. You should find that your outswingers nip in with an old, non-swinging ball, just as your inswinger nips away with a 40 over ball.

Try doing some wrist flexibility exercises, they should help you get more revolutions on the ball so you'll get more in-swing and more in-drift or away-nip later on in the match.
 

karan316

State Vice-Captain
It's actually pretty obvious. If you bowl the in-swinger, your wrist is in a certain position and your wrist and fingers perform a movement/s which applies side-spin and back spin to the ball. As the ball moves through the air with the rough side on the right side the seam is pointing towards leg slip with the seam at 45 degrees or less, rotating (spinning) backwards and towards mid off. The airflow is laminar on the shiny side of the ball, so it leaves the ball early, but the airflow that reaches the seam is tripped by the seam and becomes turbulent airflow which sticks to the ball for longer. Thus there is a wake which forces the ball to the on-side of a RHB. With an older ball that doesn't have shine and has turbulence on both sides, movement through the air by swing is impossible unless your able to reverse swing the ball, or if you use the Magnus Effect. Your inswinger bowled with an old ball is actually just gripping the surface and turning like a leg break, which is why it moves away, instead of back in. With a very old, soft ball, (30-40 overs+) there is a hint of in-drift, caused by the Magnus Effect because of (1) the spin on the ball and (2) the fact that a light, soft, rough ball (like a tennis ball) drifts much more than a heavy, hard smooth ball. (new cricket ball) There is still some turn away because older balls also tend to grip the surface better than new balls.

Bowling scrambled seam will just inhibit any swing, but the ball will still move away slightly after pitching, and if it's a very old, rough ball it might drift in. You should find that your outswingers nip in with an old, non-swinging ball, just as your inswinger nips away with a 40 over ball.

Try doing some wrist flexibility exercises, they should help you get more revolutions on the ball so you'll get more in-swing and more in-drift or away-nip later on in the match.
I don't have any issues with wrist flexibility or the amount of swing I get, in fact I rather get an extreme amount of swing. Like I said before, once the ball is 15-20 overs old, it swings away at the last moment no matter how I grip the ball, whether the shiny side is in, or its out, or if I hold the ball with a cross seam, the ball would look like a normal straight/inswinging delivery and suddenly leave the batsmen at the last moment. One difference that I see with the way I release the ball is that maybe m releasing the ball with my seam(towards the legslip) at a more than 45 degree angle.
 

45DegreeOBS

Cricket Spectator
I don't have any issues with wrist flexibility or the amount of swing I get, in fact I rather get an extreme amount of swing. Like I said before, once the ball is 15-20 overs old, it swings away at the last moment no matter how I grip the ball, whether the shiny side is in, or its out, or if I hold the ball with a cross seam, the ball would look like a normal straight/inswinging delivery and suddenly leave the batsmen at the last moment. One difference that I see with the way I release the ball is that maybe m releasing the ball with my seam(towards the legslip) at a more than 45 degree angle.
I'm a leg spinner, and I also don't have any problems with wrist flexibility (my wrists are nearly double jointed) but I still work on it. You should work on both your strengths and weaknesses.

If it swings away through the air at the last moment, your either imagining it, your momentum is carrying you that way and subsequently the ball, there is a cross wind, your actually releasing the ball with clockwise spin and not counter clockwise, you have an extreme round arm action, the side-spin on the ball causes the initial drift to the left but there aren't enough revs to make the ball drift to the right as it does when bowled with a bit more revs (there is a big possibility that this is what's happening, a ball with counter clockwise spin drifts to the left in the flight and given enough revs to the right later in the flight) or something inexplicable happens when you bowl to make the ball swing away at the last moment. If that is the case (which it most likely is) no need to understand it as long as you can control it and use it to your advantage. Good luck with your bowling! :)
 

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