BOWLING:

Dennis Lillee and Richard Hadlee, two of the greatest bowlers post-war, explain some of the mysteries of swing bowling - in an excerpt from the MCC Masterclass.

The theory of swing is this: as the ball travels through the air, so the air 'splits' on the seam. The differing airflow exerts different pressures on each side of the ball - and thus causes the ball to swing. The ball will swing more consistently if one side of it is more shiny than the other because the air on the shiny side flows past relative undisturbed but the airflow on the rougher side and on the seam becomes turbulent. This is why bowlers persist in shining the ball on their clothing however old it is. The slower the ball is bowled the more chance there is of it swinging because it will be more susceptible to the change in pressure.

Outswinger:

Probably the most difficult ball for the batsman to play is the outswinger, the ball which swings in the air away from the batsman towards the slips. Fast bowlers expect to swing the new ball when it is still shiny and the seam is firm and prominent, and opening bowlers who can command outswing may well take vital wickets for their side. Every bowler has to work out the exact grip which suits his own action best but Lillee and Hadlee agree with the following nine points:

1. The seam is upright but angled slightly in the direction of the intended swing, i.e. towards first slip.

2. Hold the ball loosely with the tips of the first two fingers close together on each side of the seam and with the thumb under the seam of the ball. With the ball angled, however, the fingers will be slightly across the seam.

3. The shiny side of the ball should be on the outside, the side opposite to the way you want it to swing.

4. When you release the ball the seam must be vertical and angled in the direction of the intended swing.

5. You will need to experiment to know exactly where you should place your fingers and thumb and you must choose exactly what suits you. For example, although we say that the thumb should be directly underneath, on the seam, it is more wise for you to be comfortable and have the certainty that, when you release the ball, the seam goes down the pitch upright. It is of no use following a coaching book slavishly if the ball is not going towards the batsman with the seam upright.

6. In this respect the position of the wrist is crucial. At the moment of delivery the wrist locks, and the bowler must feel that his two fingers each side of the seam stay behind the ball as long as possible.

7. The ideal action for bowling the outswinger is the classical sideways-on action where the right foot lands parallel to the bowling crease, the shoulders turn towards the on side and the front foot is placed slightly across the line of direction, i.e. towards the on side.

8. It is important to be able to select and hit a target with the outswinger, but it is no use having the ball swing early in its flight. The idea is to draw the batsman into a drive or a forward defensive stroke and then, once he has committed his bat to a line of flight, the ball swings late away, finds the outside edge of the bat, and flies to the slips for a catch.

9. When you are back at the start of your run, consider what your intention is. If the batsman has driven you successfully once or twice, maybe you will want to drop in a short one to make him less certain of the length and drive him on to the back foot, but your overall strategy is to draw him forward into the late swing.

Inswing:

1. Inswing is most effective when the ball swings late in its flight. Again, the ball is held loosely with the tips of the first two fingers and angled slightly in the direction of the intended swing, i.e. to fine-leg. The first and second fingers will lie on top of the ball, one on each side of the seam. The first finger usually lies alongside the seam and the second on the outside of the seam.

2. As the shiny side of the ball is held on the opposite side to the direction of swing, the shiny side is on the left-hand side as the bowler views it.

3. For inswing, at the moment of delivery, the front foot may be placed slightly wider than for the outswinger because room has to be created for the bowling arm to follow through down past the right-hand side of the body, not across it as for the outswinger.

4. It is easier to bowl the inswinger from wide of the crease but this rather signals the intention to the batsman, and it also creates a sharp angle of approach to, the wicket which may persuade the umpire to give the batsman the benefit of the doubt in marginal lbw decisions.

5. Inswing bowlers will expect to get catches close on the leg side and will usually position a backward short-leg and short square-leg. The line of attack will be on or about off-stump, which, with a full length and the ball swinging in late, aims to draw the batsman into a firm forward stroke.