CRICKET NOTES.

Franklin Times, Volume XXIV, Issue 139, 3 December 1934, Page 6

CRICKET NOTES.

HINTS ON THE GAME The Art of Bowling Cultivating Natural Ability

(By “ Mid-on.”)

Having acquired command of length the ambitious young bowler may now attempt to impart spin and swerve to the ball. Let it be said at the outset that swerving the bail should be left out of consideration as far as possible. It is very difficult to command length when swerving the ball, and while it may be a good method of attack for bowlers who no longer have that fine sense of touch so essential in spinning the ball, all young bowlers would be well advised to leave attempts at swerving, as a main form of attack, severely alone. There is no royal road to success in spin bowling, and it must be borne in mind that very few bowlers have the same shaped hand, length or suppleness of fingers and flexibility of wrist. All of these are brought into play in spin bowling, and the keen bowler should try himself out and find just what he can do naturally. That is, let him bowl on a good pitch where the surface is even and will not affect the ball after it lands. Then, after bowling his natural ball all this practice, be it noted, .should be done without a batsman—let him alter his grip and note very carefully just what happens after delivery. Send down at least an over of each different grip so that there will be no doubt as to the effect of the different grips on the ball. Having done so, let the young bowler pick out the ball which “works” most in this natural action with varied grip—if any—note carefully the delivery and add it to his stock attack of length balls. Next, still sticking to his natural delivery as far as grip is concerned, let him next vary the position of his wrist. For instance, if in his natural delivery the front of his wrist is faced towards the batsman, let him try bowling with the front of the

wrist facing point and then facing square leg. Continue with these deliveries, carefully noting the effect. If the bowler is keen to succeed he will not mind hours of practice of this kind during the week. Having tried all these balls out and practised assiduously any which have made the ball “ do ” things, he is now ready to combine the two, and see what effect he can produce. That is, the young bowler should deliver the ball from different grips with the wrist facing at different angles. With careful perception and constant, practice he is sure to impart some kind of “ work ” on the ball with these moves. During all this practice the body should be used as much as is possible. All good bowlers impart body action at the time of delivery, and a bowler who does not will not rise to any heights for the simple reason that not only will he be mechanical in delivery, but his intention will be more easily seen by the batsmen. Having gone through this course with care, the young bowler will have been able to note whether he has a natural delivery, which is the best delivery of all, and the kind of delivery which causes critics to say: “He is a born bowler.”

-v Too much time cannot be given to practising the above movements for they are the best deliveries of all, and should be cultivated, but are more often than not despised by the young bowler simply because he has been told or read something about finger-spin. There is no ball easier to deliver than a natural ball, and if the .young bowler will follow the above notes carefully, and try himself out thoroughly, he will soon find out whether he has any aptitude for a natural delivery which will impart work to the ball. Such balls will be far more dangerous to any batsman than an obvious finger-spin, because they have the tremendous advantage of being delivered naturally. If the young bowler has conscientiously followed the above notes and tried them out he will be in a far better position to understand and master spin bowling—or, rather, graft, as it were, finger spin on to the balls he has already chosen for his attack, either to improve some of them or as additions to his attack. While very many books on bowling have been written the writer has not yet seen one which has emphasised the foregoing notes, yet they comprise one of the foundations of good bowling. Too many coaches overlook natural ability in both batting and bowling. While textbooks on bowling show photographs of how the ball should be held for various grips, two points are almost always overlooked: (1) The point

already emphasised in regard to the difference :n flexibility of body, shoulder, arm, wrist and fingers; and (2) the fact that the position of the , fingers for spin bowling must of ne- J cessity differ according to whether a 1 bowler delivers a straight-up overarm ball like Warwick Armstrong, or a square-arm ball like Clarence Grimmett. Thus, if the young bowler tries himself out as mentioned above he will be in a far better positionhaving already acquired a somewhat varied natural attack—to understand and use just that extra polish which finger-spin may impart.