Basic of Fast Bowling

Basic of fast bowling remains in Fiery speed, magical swing and agression of bowlers. The aspiring fast bowlers seek after the reply of how to Ball Faster,as speed is first requirement of a fast bowler,

A true fast bowler is always regarded as one of the most valuable assets to his team. Throughout the history of cricket, there have been numerous instances where a fast bowler single-handedly dismantled a strong batting lineup in a humiliating manner. This is not an effort to undermine the abilities of spinners. However, only a handful of spinners in cricket history have managed to earn deep respect from the finest batsmen of their respective generations.

Fast Bowlers vs Spinners

According to the record book, only 37 bowlers have achieved 300 wickets in Tests till the date. If performance in test cricket can better judge a bowler’s true potential,fast bowlers are far superior to spinners. only nine of those 37 bowlers of 300 wicket club are spinners. Until 1998 only one spinner could achieve this feat.

Fast Bowling in T-20 Era

The role of fast bowlers has undergone a change in the past decade, particularly after the emergence of the T-20 format. Now, chasing a target of 350 runs in an ODI is no longer an impossible task. The power play and fielding restrictions provide crucial advantages to the batsmen.

On the other hand, use of two different balls in an Innings of ODI has nearly eradicated the art of reverse swing. Legendary pace bowlers like Shoaib Akhtar or Wasim Akram have raised their voice against this detrimental decisions to the fast bowlers.

Basic of Fast Bowling – Category

Speed and swing are the two fundamental weapons of a genuine fast bowler. A fast bowler must give importance to raise his speed of bowling to get opponent batsmen shivering .

A fast bowler generally bowls at the speed around 115 km/hr to 140 km/hr.Fast bowlers are categorised in three different types on the basis of the speed of delivery

a) Medium fast

b) Fast Medium

c)Super Fast

Medium fast

A Medium fast bowler bowls with a speed of 100-115km/hr in average.

Millitary Medium pacers are generally used as changing bowler of the team. They usually play the role of batting all-rounders in team.

If a military medium bowler can consistently maintain a good line and length in their bowling, they become a valuable asset to the team.

A millitary medium pacer is characterized by a shorter run-up and slower speed compared to fast bowlers. Notable players in this category include Mudassar Nazar of Pakistan, Chris Harris of New Zealand, Mahinder Amarnath of India, Saurabh Ganguly of India, and Paul Collingwood of England.

Fast Medium

Most of the so-called fast bowlers belong to this category. These bowlers have the ability to deliver the ball at an average speed of 120-145km/hr.Their effectiveness in all formats of cricket has made them the most feared in the field.

Walsh, Kapil Dev, Glen McGrath, Dale Steyn, Anderson, and Pollock were all categorized as medium-fast bowlers. This list alone demonstrates the potential of this type of bowlers.They consistently maintained a good speed. With this they could make their deliveries lethal to the batsmen by using a deadly swing combined with their speed.

Super-fast

There is a slight difference in speed between fast-medium and Super-fast bowlers. This difference may seem insignificant in mathematics. But this difference is enough to intimidate batsmen.

Fast bowlers maintain an average speed of over 142 km/hr.Legends like Shoaib Akhtar, Bret Lee, Waqar Yunus fall into this category.Most bowlers in this category heavily rely on their speed. Their killer speed can snatch sleep of the best batsmen even.

The famous Pakistani fast bowler, Shoaib Akhtar, famously dismissed two legendary Indian batsmen, Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar, in two consecutive deliveries in a test match. Tendulkar himself later admitted that he struggled to read Shoaib’s deliveries due to its blistering speed.

Famous Four Horsemen of West Indies

In the seventies, not a single batsman in the world dared to face the four horsemen of West Indies – Andy Roberts, Michael Holding, Joel Garner, and Collin Croft. During those days, West Indies produced numerous talented fast bowlers.

In those days West Indies won two consecutive World Cups(1975,1979). Nobody could deny the contribution of their scary Fast Bowlers behind their success.

Epic battle between a dangerous fast bowler and a great batsman is undoubtedly an enjoyable moment of cricket.The cricketing world still remembers the epic battle between Malcolm Marshall and Sunil Gavaskar in 1983. Marshall’s bouncer couldn’t prevent little master Sunil Gavaskar from scoring a magnificent knock of 147 runs.

The battle of talent between fast bowler and specialist batsman often turns into unsporting brawl. Cricket world must not forget the fight between Javed Miandad and Dennis Lilly.