Hi... Very Unconventional Legspin Grip?

Top Contributors
J

Jonathan Curran

New Member
Hi, I'm an older guy (31) and my legspin grip is very unusual. I get decent turn, perfect spinning on seam and pointed towards slips, but just concerned whether this is going to pose problems? I cock the wrist at the beginning of my delivery as per normal legspin. My middle finger seems tonimpart the spin, and the side closer to my thumb is the side I can see while it's in the air. Comments? 2014-01-14 15.10.19_1.jpg 2014-01-14 15.11.02_1.jpg
 
That is interesting! If you were spinning the ball clockwise as pictured in your first photo, that would seem fairly straightforward but you do have something else going on there. It seems a bit like a googly in that you present the back of the hand to the batsman and from there I think the spin is created from the pace of the arm, with the ball unravelling across the middle finger.

If it's working for you - and sounds like it does - I can't see any reason not to bowl it. I might try it myself! I'd like to see the spin you are getting from it!

Can you get different seam angles from this grip?
 
Welcome to the club, I use the middle finger to put spin on the ball as well. Tends to get in the batsman's head if the look to the grip for clues.
 
leftie600 said:
Welcome to the club, I use the middle finger to put spin on the ball as well. Tends to get in the batsman's head if the look to the grip for clues.
Click to expand...
I've been practising with middle finger too (Iverson grip) but this seems to be unusual in that the middle finger rests along the seam, and he isn't scrambling the seam?
 
Looks like a pretty conventional grip to me. The angle of the seam is largely irrelevant to the movement of the ball once it leaves your hand.
 
Can't see the release in the video, but I would guess it was 80% topspin 20% legspin. You have quite a chest on action. Only problem with that grip is that the ball is quite deep in the hand, and it is likely to get stuck in the hand occasionally and drag down short. Have you tried to see if it works with a range of balls in different conditions - brand new, old and worn, wet and swollen seam etc?
 
SLA said:
Can't see the release in the video, but I would guess it was 80% topspin 20% legspin. You have quite a chest on action. Only problem with that grip is that the ball is quite deep in the hand, and it is likely to get stuck in the hand occasionally and drag down short. Have you tried to see if it works with a range of balls in different conditions - brand new, old and worn, wet and swollen seam etc?
Click to expand...

Hang on mate. Didn't you post yesterday there was no point making any judgement on a bowling action unless it was in an actual match situation?
 
macca said:
Hang on mate. Didn't you post yesterday there was no point making any judgement on a bowling action unless it was in an actual match situation?
Click to expand...

Positive observations of bowling actions are fine, normative analysis is not.
 
The ball is 90 degrees turned compared to a 'normal' legspin grip, and he's using the middle finger in place of 'normal' ring finger. Which means his wrist is around to about where a 'normal' legspinner would be bowling a googly...

...I would call that unconventional.
 
Spin Lizard said:
The ball is 90 degrees turned compared to a 'normal' legspin grip, and he's using the middle finger in place of 'normal' ring finger. Which means his wrist is around to about where a 'normal' legspinner would be bowling a googly...

...I would call that unconventional.
Click to expand...


Hold a ball in a legspin grip... take out the ball with the other hand, and put it back so the seam lies underneath the middle finger... you get his grip.
Its a normal grip just with the ball rotated through 90 degrees.
 
He's holding it in his right hand, therefore it is a normal grip!

SLA, he is spinning off his middle finger, not his ring finger. His ring finger isn't 'around' the ball at all, it is 'underneath' acting as a support. The first finger is way further spread. The thumb has no support role through the delivery. It is an unconventional grip, for an unconventionally spun leg-break.

Here, look:
sIPsLQ1.jpg
 
Spin Lizard said:
He's holding it in his right hand, therefore it is a normal grip!

SLA, he is spinning off his middle finger, not his ring finger. His ring finger isn't 'around' the ball at all, it is 'underneath' acting as a support. The first finger is way further spread. The thumb has no support role through the delivery. It is an unconventional grip, for an unconventionally spun leg-break.

Here, look:
sIPsLQ1.jpg
Click to expand...

That looks like the exact same grip to me for all intents and purposes. The ring finger is on the ball, and if you watch the video, the ring finger definitely stays on the ball throughout the release.

Now on the other hand I do bowl chinamen off my middle finger, and my third finger is tucked away nowhere near the ball and never touches it at any point.
 
boogiespinner said:
yes but the strange thing is that from the grip pictured he delivers with the seam spinning clean?
Click to expand...

yes, good spot. This is because he is using a slightly different wrist action to most leggies. He hyper-pronates and then the ball comes off the end of the fingers rather than round the side of the ring finger.

It is similar to the way a seam bowler can grip the ball in the usual manner and bowl a topspinning back-of-the-hand slower ball with the seam upright.

A mediumpacer I play cricket with can bowl two balls with the same grip, that both swing in the same direction, but one has backspin and the other has topspin. Its quite a common technique.
 
SLA said:
That looks like the exact same grip to me for all intents and purposes. The ring finger is on the ball, and if you watch the video, the ring finger definitely stays on the ball throughout the release.

Now on the other hand I do bowl chinamen off my middle finger, and my third finger is tucked away nowhere near the ball and never touches it at any point.
Click to expand...
Of course his third finger stays on the ball, he's holding it with that. Iin the same way your and my middle fingers stay on the ball during release when bowling orthodox.

I dunno SLA, if you reckon that's a standard legspin grip, I reckon you need your eyes checked.
 
Spin Lizard said:
Of course his third finger stays on the ball, he's holding it with that. Iin the same way your and my middle fingers stay on the ball during release when bowling orthodox.

I dunno SLA, if you reckon that's a standard legspin grip, I reckon you need your eyes checked.
Click to expand...

Other than the ball being angled slightly differently? The fingers are in basically the exact same place.
 
Yeah, attached to his right hand.


Resolution isn't great, but here, look:

YmZgFXS.jpg


That is not a 'two up two down' legspinners grip.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top