Left handers

Guavahalves · 13-07-2009, 10:16 AM

10 out of 22 players of the 1st Ashes test were left handed batsmen (2 of those were right handed bowlers)

7-10% of the general population are left handed.

Why is there such an over representation in cricket?

pskov · 13-07-2009, 12:17 PM

Lots of right-handed people bat left-handed so their dominant hand is on top (two examples I can think of are Brian Lara and Marcus Trescothick).

Conversely, Michael Clarke is left-handed but bats right-handed for the same reason.

GingerFurball · 13-07-2009, 01:27 PM

Some of them aren't really left handed though.

Cook, Broad, Anderson, Hussey and North are all right handed.

Katich, Johnson, Panesar and Strauss bat and bowl left handed. Not sure about Hughes, cricinfo doesn't list a bowling style for him.

Clarke is a lefty who bats right handed, as did Ashley Giles. Nathan Bracken is the same I think.

GingerFurball · 13-07-2009, 01:34 PM

In fact, here's a team of left handed bats who all bowl right arm:

Graeme Smith
Marcus Trescothick
Alastair Cook
Brian Lara
Mike Hussey
Sourav Ganguly
Adam Gilchrist
Morne Morkel
Stuart Broad
James Anderson
Simon Jones

GingerFurball · 13-07-2009, 01:50 PM

And a corresponding team who bowl left arm but bat right handed:

Dennis Compton
Frank Worrell
Inzamam-ul-Haq
Michael Clarke
Grant Flower
Murray Bisset (+)
Ashley Giles
Bishan Bedi
Nathan Bracken
Zaheer Khan
RP Singh

four_or_six · 13-07-2009, 01:56 PM

And interestingly, Mitchell Johnson bats and bowls left-handed and yet writes with his right hand.

Chubb · 13-07-2009, 02:01 PM

It would be interesting to find out if the first time these players held a bat they did so right or left handed. Did they make a concious effort to change or was it simply what felt natural?

BoyBrumby · 13-07-2009, 02:21 PM

Don't know about the rest, but I read that Mike Hussey decided to bat left-handed as a kid because he was such a big Border fan.

zaremba · 13-07-2009, 02:27 PM

Some other teams of players who bowled right, batted left:

Team A

1. Matt Hayden
2. Justin Langer
3. David Gower
4. Graeme Pollock
5. Neil Harvey
6. Shiv Chanderpaul
7. Richard Hadlee
8. Jack Russell (w)
9. Curtly Ambrose
10. Brian Statham
11. Bill O'Reilly

Team B

1. Chris Gayle
2. Mark Taylor
3. Kumar Sangakkara
4. Clive Lloyd
5. Graham Thorpe
6. Lance Klusener
7. Jacob Oram
8. Rod Marsh (w)
9. Chris Old
10. Bob Massie
11. Bruce Taylor

Team C

1. John Wright
2. John Edrich
3. Clem Hill
4. Andy Flower (w)
5. Stephen Fleming
6. Jack Gregory
7. Greg Matthews
8. Brian Close
9. Ken Higgs
10.Graham Dilley
11. Mohammad Asif

four_or_six · 13-07-2009, 02:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chubb

It would be interesting to find out if the first time these players held a bat they did so right or left handed. Did they make a concious effort to change or was it simply what felt natural?

I remember that Thorpe swapped when he was a kid to make it harder for his brothers to bowl at him.

zaremba · 13-07-2009, 02:39 PM

Of those who bowled left arm but batted right, there's a relatively small number of batsmen and a relatively high number of the better-known SLA bowlers in history:

Underwood
Rhodes
Bedi
Verity
Hirst
Lock
Briggs
Blythe
Edmonds
Giles
Shastri
Fleetwood-Smith
Valentine

GingerFurball · 13-07-2009, 03:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chubb

It would be interesting to find out if the first time these players held a bat they did so right or left handed. Did they make a concious effort to change or was it simply what felt natural?

In my case, I'm left handed but bat right handed, as it simply feels more natural to me.

PhoenixFire · 13-07-2009, 03:15 PM

I know someone who bats left handed, throws left handed, but bowls right handed. Weird huh.

NUFAN · 13-07-2009, 06:26 PM

It is interesting the number of cricketers now in the game who are left handed.

As has been said, having the right hand up the top does make sense for a natural RH to bat LH.

My TV at home has a mirror image function and it was good fun during the first test to see some of the lefties batting right handed. Marcus North mirror image batting style looks fairly similar to Damian Martyn actually.

Dydl · 13-07-2009, 07:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by four_or_six

And interestingly, Mitchell Johnson bats and bowls left-handed and yet writes with his right hand.

Yeah, I've always found that very strange. Not sure whether to classify him as left- or right-handed generally.

13-07-2009, 10:16 AM	#1 (permalink)
Guavahalves Cricket Spectator Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Scotland Posts: 2	Left handers 10 out of 22 players of the 1st Ashes test were left handed batsmen (2 of those were right handed bowlers) 7-10% of the general population are left handed. Why is there such an over representation in cricket?

13-07-2009, 02:01 PM	#7 (permalink)
Chubb State Captain Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: New Zealand Posts: 1,830	It would be interesting to find out if the first time these players held a bat they did so right or left handed. Did they make a concious effort to change or was it simply what felt natural? __________________ ZIMBABWE Somebody has to...

13-07-2009, 02:21 PM	#8 (permalink)
BoyBrumby Englishman Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Doing the stance Posts: 42,658	Don't know about the rest, but I read that Mike Hussey decided to bat left-handed as a kid because he was such a big Border fan. __________________ *- As featured in The Independent.* "This is not the time for namby-pamby promising youngsters who might just do something; not the time for building for the future. Pragmatism rules and they don't come more pragmatic than Rogers." - Victor Marks makes the case for stiff-legged and stiff-armed 35 year old left-handers in Ashes squads

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13-07-2009, 12:17 PM	#2 (permalink)
pskov International 12th Man Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: uk Posts: 1,704	Lots of right-handed people bat left-handed so their dominant hand is on top (two examples I can think of are Brian Lara and Marcus Trescothick). Conversely, Michael Clarke is left-handed but bats right-handed for the same reason.

13-07-2009, 01:27 PM	#3 (permalink)
GingerFurball Hall of Fame Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Crabs Subbie Posts: 15,473	Some of them aren't really left handed though. Cook, Broad, Anderson, Hussey and North are all right handed. Katich, Johnson, Panesar and Strauss bat and bowl left handed. Not sure about Hughes, cricinfo doesn't list a bowling style for him. Clarke is a lefty who bats right handed, as did Ashley Giles. Nathan Bracken is the same I think.

13-07-2009, 01:34 PM	#4 (permalink)
GingerFurball Hall of Fame Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Crabs Subbie Posts: 15,473	In fact, here's a team of left handed bats who all bowl right arm: Graeme Smith Marcus Trescothick Alastair Cook Brian Lara Mike Hussey Sourav Ganguly Adam Gilchrist Morne Morkel Stuart Broad James Anderson Simon Jones

13-07-2009, 01:50 PM	#5 (permalink)
GingerFurball Hall of Fame Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Crabs Subbie Posts: 15,473	And a corresponding team who bowl left arm but bat right handed: Dennis Compton Frank Worrell Inzamam-ul-Haq Michael Clarke Grant Flower Murray Bisset (+) Ashley Giles Bishan Bedi Nathan Bracken Zaheer Khan RP Singh

13-07-2009, 01:56 PM	#6 (permalink)
four_or_six Cricketer Of The Year Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: UK Posts: 9,136	And interestingly, Mitchell Johnson bats and bowls left-handed and yet writes with his right hand.

13-07-2009, 02:27 PM	#9 (permalink)
zaremba Cricketer Of The Year Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: chez les Ashes Posts: 8,730	Some other teams of players who bowled right, batted left: Team A 1. Matt Hayden 2. Justin Langer 3. David Gower 4. Graeme Pollock 5. Neil Harvey 6. Shiv Chanderpaul 7. Richard Hadlee 8. Jack Russell (w) 9. Curtly Ambrose 10. Brian Statham 11. Bill O'Reilly Team B 1. Chris Gayle 2. Mark Taylor 3. Kumar Sangakkara 4. Clive Lloyd 5. Graham Thorpe 6. Lance Klusener 7. Jacob Oram 8. Rod Marsh (w) 9. Chris Old 10. Bob Massie 11. Bruce Taylor Team C 1. John Wright 2. John Edrich 3. Clem Hill 4. Andy Flower (w) 5. Stephen Fleming 6. Jack Gregory 7. Greg Matthews 8. Brian Close 9. Ken Higgs 10.Graham Dilley 11. Mohammad Asif

13-07-2009, 02:39 PM	#11 (permalink)
zaremba Cricketer Of The Year Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: chez les Ashes Posts: 8,730	Of those who bowled left arm but batted right, there's a relatively small number of batsmen and a relatively high number of the better-known SLA bowlers in history: Underwood Rhodes Bedi Verity Hirst Lock Briggs Blythe Edmonds Giles Shastri Fleetwood-Smith Valentine

13-07-2009, 06:26 PM	#14 (permalink)
NUFAN International Coach Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: NSW Posts: 13,787	It is interesting the number of cricketers now in the game who are left handed. As has been said, having the right hand up the top does make sense for a natural RH to bat LH. My TV at home has a mirror image function and it was good fun during the first test to see some of the lefties batting right handed. Marcus North mirror image batting style looks fairly similar to Damian Martyn actually.

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