India’s T20 medium pacer Harshal Patel, who is described as a death over specialist, has been included in India’s squad for the T20 World Cup with high confidence. He said in a recent interview that he can bowl his quota of 4 overs, i.e. 24 balls as slower balls, i.e. slow balls, and there is nothing wrong with that.
But a slower ball, called a ‘slower one’, is not just about running fast and throwing it slowly, there are many nuances to it. This is tricking the batsman into expecting the ball to come faster. But players like Sehwag will send it for a six if they see these balls. There is risk involved. But if it is well mastered and bowled it can actually make batsmen hate to bowl.
Simply swinging slow balls around the arm slowly requires full swing just as fast as a fastball that is hit outside the pitch. There are many tricks like taking the thumb off the ball at the last moment, or just taking the snake finger off the ball, or turning the wrist at the last moment to slow the ball down. Even if you throw the ball in the palm of your hand, it becomes a slow ball. Cricket experts say that Harshal Patel is the best slow bowler in the world now, who bowls slow balls in many different ways and keeps the batsmen in a tizzy.
Harshal Patel’s description of his slower ones in an interview with ‘Cricket Monthly’ is this: “The trickery starts when the ball is in the air. It is also on the pitch. Slower one is effective if the balls stop a little on the pitch. At times the pitch is flat and favors the bat. Then you can only cheat in the air. The arm should be rotated rapidly. This means that the spin should be faster than the fast bowler, but the ball should release slowly from the hand.
That is, wrap the ball in the middle of the fingers and hold the ball near the fingertips. Even if you swing the arm at full speed and throw the ball, the ball should not have that speed and energy. If the ball is gripped and thrown by rotating the hand quickly, the ball is released slowly. Hold the ball as loosely as you want and rotate your shoulder as fast as you want. Run your fingers over the ball. My ball stitch is crosswise in the arm. I will throw like top spin.
But the bigger risk is low fultas or lumbar fultas. If you bowl a slower one to throw the ball, the ball will sag at the batsmen. Otherwise it falls flat. Slower one balls to me are trying to throw… not some stock ball. That is, there is no sudden deception; Continually cheating the batter. That is why in T20 if 4 overs a bowler can bowl 24 balls as slow balls. There is nothing wrong with that. If I bowl 24 balls slowly and concede only 30 runs and get 2 wickets, I think that’s good bowling. On the other hand, if I hit 150 kmph and give 50 runs in 4 overs, will the captain give me priority, not him?
If it is snowing I will bowl slow balls as slow short pitches. Sometimes the pitch and conditions don’t cooperate to bowl a slower one. And so it is. Also the slower ones should be bowled as befits the batsman, Virat Kohli is not a spinner, he is not a power hitter. So, he would come up and turn my slower balls into fullts and knock them over midwicket. Slow balls are usually used against power hitters. A slower one is useful against someone who goes into the crease and hits a six boundary,” explained Harshal Patel.