From: shamim@.bellcore.com (Shamim Naqvi,MRE-2E342,829-4813,,21272)
Subject: Re: W&W swing bowling
Reply-To: shamim@.bellcore.com
Organization: Bell Communications Research, Morristown, NJ
Date: Wed, 12 Aug 92 13:21:32 GMT


This whole discussion on swing bowling by W&W misses an important
point.  RSC nettors and the media seem to be concentrating on the
semi-shine ball tactic. The fact of the matter is that this tactic is
quite old and everybody uses it nowadays all over the world. Even in
league cricket.

May be the tactic didn't start with Sarfraz Nawaz but he certainly made
it famous.  The idea was that in the harder and coarser grounds of the
Indian sub-continent, the fast bowlers were not a factor in the game
after the first 20 overs. Old timers will remember that Pakistan used
to play two medium pacers (at one time, Asif Iqbal and Majid Khan used
to open the attack for Pakistan) and three spinners.  After an initial
spell with the new ball, the pacers would go off to long on and the
spinners would come on. In the lusher and softer grounds of England,
and the conducive weather the ball maintained its shine longer and kept
on swinging. So the tactic of the semi-shined ball brought the pacer
back into the Indo-Pak game.

Now if matters had stopped there, we all could go on to another topic.
The next development and the one that puzzled the English this time
around is what is being called "reverse swing." With the semi-shined
ball, the maxim is that the ball "goes with the shine." What this means
is that if a bowler keeps the shiny side outside, the ball swings out,
etc. Batsmen read the shine and play accordingly. Reverse swing means
that the ball goes against the shine.  And that is the problem that the
English batsmen confronted in this series.  The semi-shined ball comes
ram-rod straight for three quarters of the distance at 85+ mph. The
batsman can see the shiny side and the rough side. Which way will it
go?  Will it go with the shine or will it go in the reverse direction?
In the last quarter of its flight, and sometimes after it has pitched,
the ball goes one way or the other. This gives very very little time to
the batsmen to adjust their stroke.  Basically they have to decide in
the last quarter of the ball's flight.  Thus the premier batsmen, those
who can see the ball late and play very late, can cope with this sort
of bowling. People who play early with large back lifts, e.g., Lewis,
have no chance.

In the days of Bedser, aspiring bowlers would show up at the nets at
the Oval.  They would be given a ball and asked to swing it. Those who
could were retained for further evaluation; those who couldn't were
sent home. Much the same happens in Pakistani cricket nowadays. Any
pace bowler aspiring to play serious cricket must have the inherent
gift of being able to swing the ball. Otherwise he is never going to
get a wicket in grade cricket. From this group, then, emerges the
subset of those who can swing it late. And then those who through grip,
action and most of all, God given talent can swing it very very late
and may be even in the reverse direction.

Woodcock summed it up the best. Imagine, he said, that you are a
Pakistani batsmen who has just endured a fast spell from Malcolm. With
relief you see him taking his sweater and being replaced by Pringle.

Now imagine you are an English batsmen. From one end, Mushtaq is asking
you questions whose answers you are guessing most of the time. From the
other end, Waqar is bowling at 85+ mph and the ball is swinging late,
sometimes with the shine and sometimes reverse. With relief you see,
Waqar taking his sweater.  But then you notice that he is being
replaced by Wasim who starts asking you entirely different but equally
difficult questions.


	--SAN

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