The Doosra

[umop 3p!sdn]

Hey,

I'm looking for information on how the doosra is bowled, I have no idea at all ho wit works. All I know is that it involves alot of topspin. I've tried looking around and cannot find anything to help. I'd love to know how to bowl one, even if I can't put it into practice.

I have developed a ball that does go the other way, but after a couple balls the batsmen will be able to pick it. it involves griping the ball with two and a half finger starting with the index. As you push down to deliver the ball, you let the ball slip out the left hand side of the hand, while still moving the wrist and hand in the same off spin movement. I've worked on this for some time, and can get it to move a bit but it's taken ages.

I'd love to know how to bowl a doosra or atleast know the process in how it is delivered. Any help would be great thanks.

 

[Julian87]

You can't bowl a doosra mate. But you can chuck one.

 

[Prince EWS]

You can't bowl a doosra mate. But you can chuck one.

In my practical experience, that is true, sadly enough. I can bowl the dreaded doosra but it's a clear chuck. The art of it would be getting that "chuck" down to a level accepted by the laws, but I'd prefer to stick to the traditional away-drifting arm-ball. I know I'm always within the rules with that.

 

[SJS]

You can't bowl a doosra mate. But you can chuck one.

Two hundred percent correct. It is a physical impossibility.

 

[SJS]

Hey,

I'm looking for information on how the doosra is bowled, I have no idea at all ho wit works. All I know is that it involves alot of topspin. I've tried looking around and cannot find anything to help. I'd love to know how to bowl one, even if I can't put it into practice.

I have developed a ball that does go the other way, but after a couple balls the batsmen will be able to pick it. it involves griping the ball with two and a half finger starting with the index. As you push down to deliver the ball, you let the ball slip out the left hand side of the hand, while still moving the wrist and hand in the same off spin movement. I've worked on this for some time, and can get it to move a bit but it's taken ages.

I'd love to know how to bowl a doosra or atleast know the process in how it is delivered. Any help would be great thanks.

As said before, its not possible to bowl it (withoutbending the elbow) but you can still learn it.

It works on this principal.

1) If you hold a ball, lets say a table tennins ball (for ease of conducting the experiment indoors), put it on a table and then holding it from the top spin it clockwise (as you would if you were screwing a nail 'IN'). The ball will spin clockwise in relation to the table (as seen from above). This is how you bowl the conventional off break.

2) Now take the same ball and instead of holding it down on the table, hold it in your fingers with the ball facing the ceiling. Now, with the ball facing upwards and the back of your hand facing the table top spin it in the same fashion as you had done in 1) above as if you were screwing a nail in the CEILING. The action of your fingers is the same, but because your palm is facing upwards, the ball moves in an anti-clockwise direction in relation to the table top !

So you have managed to turn the ball in exactly two opposite directions in relation to the surface (representing the pitch) with the same direction movement of the fingers.

Now you can try to put it in practice with a cricket ball outdoors. You will face one problem, It is easier to twist/spin the ball with the fingers and simultaneously propel it forward in the conventional way without bending from the elbow. Try doing it starting with the palm facing upwards and remaing that way as you spin and you can do it (propel it forward while twisting it) only by bending from the elbow.

 

[Julian87]

Two hundred percent correct. It is a physical impossibility.

Which is why every single one of Murali's test and ODI wickets he has taken with the ball should be stripped off him.

 

[Manee]

Two hundred percent correct. It is a physical impossibility.

I am sure I remember seeing Steve Tikolo bowl a legal doosra Vs England in the World Cup. Don't you need a double jointed wrist which can turn the hand 360 degrees about the wrist.

 

[Prince EWS]

The Alex Loudon doosra is legal. It's not the classic doosra though; he actually flicks the ball with his middle finger. A totally different delivery.

 

[Athlai]

Which is why every single one of Murali's test and ODI wickets he has taken with the ball should be stripped off him.

Dire. If he was born in a beneficial way to make him bowl a particular delivery that others can't, all the best to him. It's like saying Ian Thorpe should have to give his gold medals back because he was born with feet that were practically flippers.

 

[SJS]

I am sure I remember seeing Steve Tikolo bowl a legal doosra Vs England in the World Cup. Don't you need a double jointed wrist which can turn the hand 360 degrees about the wrist.

No. You can do it without a double jointed wrist. All you have to be willing to do is to bend the wrist a bit or more and there is no way an umpire can tell whether it is more than 15 degrees or less. Making a farce of ICC's stupid regulation in this regard.

In India you can go to most major clubs and youngsters are freely bowling the doosra with varying degrees of success. Being able to bowl it is one thing to be able to bowl it well still requires you to be a very good bowler. I went to 4-5 Delhi clubs during my extended vacation last winter and saw at least one bowler in every net bowling it. It looks ugly as far as the purity of action is concerned (the elbow looks to be clearly bent) but the coaches have stopped tellingthe boys not to do it. The reasons are obvious.

 

[SJS]

The Alex Loudon doosra is legal. It's not the classic doosra though; he actually flicks the ball with his middle finger. A totally different delivery.

Thats a different delivery. The doosra (the other one in Hindi amd Urdu) is now used for the delivery that Saqlain brought to international cricket with success and others, most prominently Murali and Harbhajan, have used it with varying degrees of clashes with the authorities till ICC decided to take the easy way out.

 

[SJS]

Which is why every single one of Murali's test and ODI wickets he has taken with the ball should be stripped off him.

I would have agreed completely if ICC had not made what was illegal earlier as legal today. They have further obfuscated matters by putting an angle-of-bent to decide on legality. I cant see how an umpire can tell whether it is 14 degrees or 16. So the umpires have virtually given up with fewer and fewer transgressions reported nowadays.

 

[Manee]

I would have agreed completely if ICC had not made what was illegal earlier as legal today. They have further obfuscated matters by putting an angle-of-bent to decide on legality. I cant see how an umpire can tell whether it is 14 degrees or 16. So the umpires have virtually given up with fewer and fewer transgressions reported nowadays.

I thought that 15 degrees was the minimum angle visible to the naked eye. Although, that never made too much sense to me.

 

[pup11]

Now the umpires are too sacred to no-ball a bowler for chucking, they just report a suspect action to referee and than the bowler has to go through a bio-mechanic test (which i think is not conclusive), a bowler can always chuck intentionally in a match and get away with it during a bio-mechanic test.

 

[Athlai]

I believe if someone chucks often in a game, then the action which is suspect to the viewers eyes would be analysed by the match referee, and the player would be fined, banned or whatever punishment they deem necessary. Too hard to fathom?

 

[Manee]

I feel heavier punishments should be imposed if the player is seen to be deliberately chucking and breaking the rules rather than it coming as a result of an attempted variation.

 

[BhupinderSingh]

You can't bowl a doosra mate. But you can chuck one.

Saqlain Mushtaq used to bowl a legal doosra,hence what you've said is not true.

 

[Prince EWS]

Saqlain Mushtaq used to bowl a legal doosra,hence what you've said is not true.

Imran Khan as well.

 

[Manee]

Saqlain definately bowls the doosra with a bent arm,



But whether he straightens it cannot be seen.

 

[Perm]

I rate myself bowling the doosra TBH, bowl it with the same action as Muralitharan, but probably with an arm that's a bit more bent.