Leg Spin

Leg Breaks - this is the one if you're a Leg Spinner you're meant to be able to do and it's the one that if I'm honest is the one I'm worst at. Over the last few months I've been talking to people on the www.simplycricket.net website and they've said that if I'm going to ever achieve my goals I'm going to have to somehow re-learn how to bowl leg breaks. I say re-learn because it is the ball/action that i started out with.

Recently I've been exercising my arms, shoulders and rotator cuff using specific exercises in order that I can stave off any injuries over the summer. I've also not been bowling, trying out the idea that if I have a break from it I might come back with a slightly different approach and this seems to have worked as today what with the weather being very mild and sunny I bowled some balls concentrating on the leg break.

The thing I seemed to have lost the ability to do was release the ball with the plam of the hand facing the batsman, so that when the wrist flicks the ball is release spinning from right to left. Today I made a point of trying to do this and had a great deal of success pitching the ball very wide of leg and making it turn into off and hit the stumps albeit over a very short distance. It seems if I can repeat this action and watch my follow through as that's also a bit ropey when bowling leg breaks I might be moving in the right direction again? I've been enthused by the success with getting the ball to turn and I'm now looking to follow this up with a concerted effort to crack this before the season so this becomes my stock ball.

I think I need to move away from having the flipper as my main ball. If I can use the leg break with the top spinner as my main balls that can then leave me with the flipper and the Wrong un as "Surprise balls" to pull out of the bag in situations that might call for the added variety. Hopefully this weather is going to continue into tomorrow in the same way as there may be a chance for some bowling against one of the old MPA 1st XI blokes - Thomas. He's the bloke that was always able to knock me all over the park. So tomorrow could be fun.