The Googly

[Jim2109]

I still don't have a googly, but my "drag down" wrong'un, which I thought was just uneven bounce in the nets, actually does the same in the middle as well

I bowled one yesterday, by mistake of course. but basically it happens when I sometimes don't release the ball cleanly, and my fingers drag down the back of it like a slider. except if they drag just right it imparts off spin on the ball (its basically an off cutter), and because of that it often flights normally rather than dragging really short like it will if I drag down the back by mistake. so it is a genuine "wrong one" (in more ways than one haha) that actually turned back in during yesterdays game!

my friend was fielding at slip and he said after the game "oh what was that off cutter thing you bowled?", knowing full well I don't have a googly. I knew I had bowled one but it was a yard short and the batsman got bat on it and kept it out, he didn't really struggle, but might have done a yard fuller. I think it has merit though. I can bowl an awesome off-cutter when I bowl seam up, it turns more than most offies manage, and I worked on it a little last week in practice whilst disguising it as a leg break (having realised that my pace action is actually just my leg spin action sped up! it looks hideous haha). I think it may get used in a match at some point though as it is fairly well disguised. the off spinning flipper isn't quite ready yet, it needs more consistency and my new action makes it harder to bowl until I get my head around the release. my back spinning flipper is dead and buried for now, I'm not sure I'll be able to use it at all this season, I can't keep it down, it just flies up high and ends up a full toss almost every time.

 

[someblokecalleddave]

Next thing he will do that thing with the hanky, where they tie the corners and use it as a hat Hey chippy i have been up in north west nsw for a week on my brothers property and the days have been really hot and sunny but i noticed its been raining down your way. We were practising on a pretty good turf wicket that this cow cockie layed in his backyard. I shaved it with the victa and rolled it with a tractor! Lifes good on the farm , no wonder so many good cricketers grew up in the bush.

Yeah, my Dad used to do that (The hankie thing) I've not seen anyone do that for real in years, that's the kind of thing that would really wind my wife up - very working class and 'Tilbury'! What's a cow cockie?

 

[someblokecalleddave]

I still don't have a googly, but my "drag down" wrong'un, which I thought was just uneven bounce in the nets, actually does the same in the middle as well

I bowled one yesterday, by mistake of course. but basically it happens when I sometimes don't release the ball cleanly, and my fingers drag down the back of it like a slider. except if they drag just right it imparts off spin on the ball (its basically an off cutter), and because of that it often flights normally rather than dragging really short like it will if I drag down the back by mistake. so it is a genuine "wrong one" (in more ways than one haha) that actually turned back in during yesterdays game!

my friend was fielding at slip and he said after the game "oh what was that off cutter thing you bowled?", knowing full well I don't have a googly. I knew I had bowled one but it was a yard short and the batsman got bat on it and kept it out, he didn't really struggle, but might have done a yard fuller. I think it has merit though. I can bowl an awesome off-cutter when I bowl seam up, it turns more than most offies manage, and I worked on it a little last week in practice whilst disguising it as a leg break (having realised that my pace action is actually just my leg spin action sped up! it looks hideous haha). I think it may get used in a match at some point though as it is fairly well disguised. the off spinning flipper isn't quite ready yet, it needs more consistency and my new action makes it harder to bowl until I get my head around the release. my back spinning flipper is dead and buried for now, I'm not sure I'll be able to use it at all this season, I can't keep it down, it just flies up high and ends up a full toss almost every time.

I reckon you should try the off-cutter as a variation?

 

[macca]

Yeah, my Dad used to do that (The hankie thing) I've not seen anyone do that for real in years, that's the kind of thing that would really wind my wife up - very working class and 'Tilbury'! What's a cow cockie?

Cow cockie is a farmer, usually someone who runs cattle.

The last time I saw the hanky knotted hat was probably on the tv series little britain but you used to see it a lot on English cricket test tv broadcasts up till the 80,s but i haven't seen it for years now. Another thing they had for a while were those robin hood type green hats they wore at the nottingham tests, it seemed the whole crowd was given one for free because nearly everyone wore one it seemed.

Back on topic, and I am just about to get my son bowling his wrongun again and use it in indoor if he wants to. Got to get it a yard fuller and it will be a good delivery but he gets along quite good without one with just the occassional accidental wrongun from his topspinner every 6 overs or so. Really you dont need to bowl any more than that at his age even if he cant bowl it on demand that way I find it impossible to pick from behind the stumps whereas his legit wrongun I can pick easy from his action and then the drift but the amount of turn is still hard to predict.

 

[someblokecalleddave]

Cow cockie is a farmer, usually someone who runs cattle.

The last time I saw the hanky knotted hat was probably on the tv series little britain but you used to see it a lot on English cricket test tv broadcasts up till the 80,s but i haven't seen it for years now. Another thing they had for a while were those robin hood type green hats they wore at the nottingham tests, it seemed the whole crowd was given one for free because nearly everyone wore one it seemed.

Back on topic, and I am just about to get my son bowling his wrongun again and use it in indoor if he wants to. Got to get it a yard fuller and it will be a good delivery but he gets along quite good without one with just the occassional accidental wrongun from his topspinner every 6 overs or so. Really you dont need to bowl any more than that at his age even if he cant bowl it on demand that way I find it impossible to pick from behind the stumps whereas his legit wrongun I can pick easy from his action and then the drift but the amount of turn is still hard to predict.

I've been bowling them a lot more of late, I find a very relaxed grip helps and like Jimmy some of my Toppies end up being wroung uns.

 

[someblokecalleddave]

I've just answered a question at length on Youtube so thought I'd bung it on here so as to not waste it as such.

The bloke asked............

"I own Peter Philpotts book on wrist spin and he talks about hand/wrist positions when bowling. Do you have to use much of an effort in turning your whole wrist around bowling a top-spinner and googly? Or is it merely hand position on release"?

The wrist position is absolutely essential, especially if you’re bowling the variations. I have to be fully focussed and very relaxed in order to bowl well and Philpott in his book talks about this ‘In the zone’ aspect of bowling at length. He even says that even when practicing, if you’re not wholly focused you’re wasting your time. Once I get in the zone my own way that I’m able to be aware of my wrist position is to focus on where the underside (veiny bit) of my wrist is, I kind of ignore the hand because at the joint it’s bent because of the cocked wrist. But as I unfurl the wrist through the bowling action its at this point that I control the wrist facing the underside forwards, towards mid-wicket , towards Square Leg or upside down for the wrong un.

The only one that takes effort is the Wrong Un because it involves twisting the whole arm round and dropping the shoulder in the action in order that the under-side of the wrist is facing upwards. This combined with flick at the end when you start tends to put a lot of stress on your shoulder and jars the whole rotator cuff in a way that can lead to very serious damage. Your rotator cuff is like an elastic band and it can get over-stretched to the point where it’s unable to repair itself and then you’re screwed. They can fix it, but it will never be as good, so if you start to find that in the morning when you wake up you cant raise your arms above your head for some time, that’s the alarm call telling you to ease up on your body and give it a rest.

My own personal experience is that the physical aspect can be worked with easily….. Rotational press up, Terra Bands, hand stands and the Plank all help to build core strength and local strength, but stretching and twisting routines allow for the maintenance of the agility and flexibility. I don’t know whether you can bend over and stand on your hands while their laid flat on the ground like an extreme version of touching your toes? I can’t at the end of the winter when I’ve not been doing anything, but give it a few days of working with it and I can. I think the same thing applies with twisting your wrist, elbow and arm in order to get the wrist in the position for the Wrong Un, you just have to work at it. Same applies with the obscure Flippers, when I first started with them they seemed impossible and I got medial epicondylitis, but then rested my arm and went about getting the muscle strength and flexibility in a more measured and slower way without bowling. Once I’d got the strength and the flexibility in the hand, wrist and forearms I was then able to bowl the variations that again require extreme wrist positioning when bowling.