Bowling mastery: Adapting to every scenario in cricket 

Just like a batsman has to adjust and adapt his technique based on a lot of factors like weather, match situations, etc, a bowler too has to mould his technique in order to excel. The elite players of the game like Jasprit Bumrah, Mitchell Starc, etc. are invincible only because they have mastered this art. They are the most reliable bowlers, no matter what the situation is, the skipper knows they have their tactics to adjust and deliver.  

Today, in this article by ZAP cricket, we share a comprehensive guide on how a bowler can alter their bowling as per the need. Bowling at each and every stage of the game has its own pros and cons. Hence, for players it is recommended that they understand the nature of the game and meet the requirements to achieve peak levels. 

Bowling with the new ball 

All the bowlers desperately want to start the innings by bowling with the new ball as that’s when they can let the batsman dance to their tunes. The ball swings and skids a lot initially, providing them the ideal condition to hit the stumps. Hence, during initial overs, bowlers should try to hit with their stalk ball at the right line and length. That is how they can challenge the batman. 

A great example of this is Bhuvneshwar Kumar, how he used to produce those swinging deliveries, questioning the opponent’s technique on each and every ball. He never experimented much in the starting overs, rather used to just change the direction of swing. 

Bowling with a semi new ball and in middle overs 

One of the basic rules of bowling is that as the game proceeds, the line and length moves towards the batsman. Hence, with a semi new ball, the bowler aims to pitch maximum balls short of good length, with a little bit of variation every now and then. The batman is still a little hesitant with their shots as the ball is still moving. Hence, bowlers can take maximum advantage by bowling in the right areas. Along with that, a bowler shall also aim at blocking singles. 

In the middle overs, the batsman will try to take cheeky runs and smash the loose deliveries out of the park. Hence, here is when the bowler has to smartly set their field and ball deliveries with variations. 

The best example for this is Ravichandran Ashwin, how he used to manipulate by bowling plenty of variations, creating confusion in the opponent’s mind. Carrom ball, wrong one, off spin, batsman didn’t know what was coming his way. 

Bowling in death overs

Bowling in the death is the trickiest. It’s the phase when batsmen are willing to smash every ball, but the bowler has to counter that. The best way is to take away speed from the ball, by bowling slower ones, cutters, knuckle balls, etc. And if that becomes too predictable, the bowler shall bowl in areas where it’s difficult for the batsman to free his arms. To best see how a bowler can play mind games in death overs, you can see the clips of Jasprit Bumrah. He is a man who has won plenty of matches for India and for Mumbai Indians with his tactics in the death overs. 

Bowling in different pitches

Bowling on a green top wicket is different as compared to on a wicket with cracks. Similarly, bowling on a damp wicket is different from bowling on a Patta wicket. Thus, the nature of the wicket too plays a massive role and it can completely alter the plan of a bowler. Understanding the true nature of the wicket, weather conditions and batsman’s style of playing help in better execution of plans. From dry pitches to overcast skies, adjustment is mandatory. 

For instance, on a rainy day, when the wicket is damp, bowler should try to ball maximum balls at driving length. But, if they do so on a sunny day as well, there are high chances that the bowler would leak plenty of runs.

Bowling to different batsmen

Bottom handed players will play most of the shots square of the wicket and top handed players will play more shots in the V. Similarly, some players hit cover drive towards covers and some towards extra covers. Hence, reading the style of the play and batsman’s techniques can be very helpful. 

For example, if you bowl a bouncer to Suryakumar Yadav, he might play the ball over deep sqaurer leg and if you bowl the same bowl to Rohit Sharma, he might hit it between deep mid wicket and deep squeeze leg. Hence, analysing a batsman’s playing style is equally important. 

Thus, bowling in different conditions is a crucial aspect of the game, requiring adaptability and strategic thinking from the bowler. The weather, the pitch and even the time of the day, can significantly influence the ball’s behaviour, making it challenging to consistently hit the right areas.