• Welcome to the Cricket Web forums, one of the biggest forums in the world dedicated to cricket.

    You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community you will have access to post topics, respond to polls, upload content and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join the Cricket Web community today!

    If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us.

Why aren't there more spinner all rounders?

AndrewB

International Vice-Captain
Tony Greig. Might be to do with asain teams becoming better in the 90s (Bangladesh and Sri lanka)
AIUI Greig was mainly a medium-pace bowler who occasionally bowled off-spin (most notably in the WI in 1973-4). I happened to read a few pages of Sobers' autobiography today, and he describes Greig's bowling there as "off-cutters" and suggests that he should have tried them more often.
 
Last edited:

Athlai

Not Terrible
Bangladesh is hording them all. Every single player in the Bangladeshi team is a spinning allrounder. Even the pace bowlers that can't bat, it's just that they aren't allowed to bowl the spin that they naturally excel at which hampers their confidence and batting ability.
 

Burgey

Request Your Custom Title Now!
The last truly exceptional spinning all rounder in world cricket was Richie Benaud. Before him it was Colin McCool.
 

Daemon

Request Your Custom Title Now!
The last truly exceptional spinning all rounder in world cricket was Richie Benaud. Before him it was Colin McCool.
We've had to wait decades but cricket finally has Labu to step into those shoes
 

Burgey

Request Your Custom Title Now!
I thought he started off as a spinner & reverted to seam bowling because he had to? I'm probably wrong.
Mate, no one bowls spin by choice. It's the povvo discipline in cricket. If you have the ability to whiz a ball through at 90mph past a bloke's head, are you really going to think "Nah, I'll toss this one up and invite him to put me 27 rows back"?

Of course not. Spinners are simply less-abled cricketers, both physically and mentally.
 

jimmy101

Cricketer Of The Year
I suppose if you're a young Shane Warne it makes sense to bowl leg-spin. That way you can still enjoy a quick ciggie before the game & relax with a tin of baked beans afterwards.
 
A kid has to have very long fingers at a young age to take up spinning...whereas it's much easier to deliver the ball like a brush stroke, painting like an artist, the pacer.
 

CricAddict

Cricketer Of The Year
Mate, no one bowls spin by choice. It's the povvo discipline in cricket. If you have the ability to whiz a ball through at 90mph past a bloke's head, are you really going to think "Nah, I'll toss this one up and invite him to put me 27 rows back"?

Of course not. Spinners are simply less-abled cricketers, both physically and mentally.
While Burgey is a bit condescending here, I agree with him. Spinners are spinners because they couldn't be pacers.
 

TheJediBrah

Request Your Custom Title Now!
I suppose if you're a young Shane Warne it makes sense to bowl leg-spin. That way you can still enjoy a quick ciggie before the game & relax with a tin of baked beans afterwards.
Warney probably only took up spin because he was too fat to bowl pace. Funnily enough a step further he only played cricket because he was too fat (and not good enough) to play football
 

Top