Fast Bowling Technique in Cricket
There are many techniques used by cricket fast bowlers to deliver a ball that will behave differently to another, and many of these deliveries require subtle differences in the fast bowler's grip on the ball. Fast bowlers also use different techniques in the run-up and delivery stride to achieve a comfortable action.
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Delivery Action
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Every fast bowler is different and the technique used by each to deliver the ball is one that is both comfortable and reduces the amount of stress placed on the body. Fast bowlers usually work off a longer run-up to the delivery area and can be either right- or left-handed. The moment of release in a fast bowler's delivery brings different techniques; these are side-on, front-on or mixed. A side-on action is commonly coached as it reduces the amount of stress placed on a fast bowler's back and usually brings with it the best chance of swinging the ball away from the batsman. Bowling with the side-on technique requires the shoulders of the bowler to be square to the batsman. The front-on technique requires the bowler's chest to be open at the moment of delivery; this is not an incorrect technique but is not encouraged by the majority of coaches. The mixed delivery technique is, as the name suggests, a mixture of the front-on and side-on techniques; this delivery action is generally discouraged as the stress of this technique on the body leaves the bowler open to injury.
Grip, Line & Length
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Some fast bowlers can be referred to as seam bowlers. This is due to the technique of creating ball movement as the ball bounces. To give the bowler the best chance of moving the ball off the pitch or in the air, a technique called "seam up" is usually used. To bowl "seam up," the bowler's wrist is positioned behind the ball with the seam vertical. The aim of this technique is to land the ball on the pitch with the seam as straight as possible. There are five areas a bowler can aim for on the cricket pitch: long hop/bouncer, short of a length, good length, full length and full toss. The type of ball bowled often depends on the pitch being played on; a hard, fast pitch usually requires the fast bowler to bowl short of a length while a slower pitch usually requires a full length.
Swing
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There are a number of techniques in fast bowling that revolve around swinging the ball, which means the bowler creates ball movement in the air toward or away form the batsman. Swing techniques can be split into the three categories of inswing, outswing and reverse swing. Inswing and outswing usually occur when the ball is new and hard in the first 10 to 15 overs of a game and are useful techniques for a fast bowler to learn, as movement in the air is the most difficult for a batsman to face. To bowl an inswinger to a right-handed batsman, the seam of the ball is angled towards the legs of the batsman; outswing requires the ball to be angled the opposite way. Reverse swing has developed since the 1970's; this technique is used when the ball becomes older and makes the ball move in the opposite direction to regular in and outswing. As the fielding side shines one side of the ball, creating a scuffed side, the grip used to move the ball away from the batsman will now make it move in the opposite direction. To achieve reverse swing a bowler must bowl over 80 mph.
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