Twenty20 – A Batsmens’ Game?

It's been nearly a decade since the introduction of T20, and wow has the face of the game changed since then.

When T20 was first marketed, we became aware of how fast, frenetic, energetic and explosive this new format was going to be.

While all this was exciting and new to someone like me, a youngster learning his way in the game

The realisation of what this format actually meant was about to hit home.

We had 4 overs to bowl at the world's best batsmen, who had the mission statement to simply destroy the bowler. Brilliant..

We constantly hear about how great the modern day batsmen have become, with their ability to wack the ball to all parts.

But what about the bowler?

Does anyone even think about us? The poor sod who stands at the top of his mark, quaking in his boots.

Knowing that any slight misdirection and 'bang'! The ball disappears and your waiting for the umpire to signal 4 or 6 again.

And they say it's not a batsmens game.

Of course it's a batsmens game. Just look at the luxuries they have at their disposal.

They have the freedom to take risks, go hard at every ball, and invent and play shots that would make W.G. Grace and the like turn in their grave.

Let's take a second to look at some of the unbelievable statistics in T20. We've seen scores and strike rates unimaginable in the game some 15 years ago.

We've had the fastest 100 in 34 balls from Australia's Andrew Symonds. The fastest 50 made by India's Yuvraj Singh in 12 balls. And the record total of 260 made by Sri Lanka against minnows Kenya. That is 13 runs per over.

One bouncer an over, the dreaded power play, flat wickets...actually the more I think about it, why on earth would you want to be a bowler today?

So, as bowlers, what do we do in this situation?

Do we just run-up, bowl as normal, and hope and pray that today is our day and we go for the odd boundary as oppose to every ball as the crowd expects?

Do we just admit that T20 is a batsmen's game and leave it to our batsmen to simply outscore the opposition?

Well from my point of view the answer is a definite no.

T20 has absolutely taken batting into levels we never thought possible. But has bowling gone the same way?

The answer to that question is most definitely yes.

Bowlers are without doubt finding ways to end the T20 lottery. We, as a unit worldwide, are now becoming experts at bowling in the shorter form of the game.

There are, of course, many reasons behind this.

The main one being, which nobody can deny, is that T20 is now a serious participant in the world of sport, never mind the world of cricket alone.

We are now taking part in worldwide recognised competitions, watched by millions, where the world's best are all battling it out to be known as the finest T20 team on the planet.

With this comes exposure, money, and a chance to take your career to heights unknown to many a player who has played the game.

And let's be honest, you only have to be able to do something as simple bowl the perfect yorker. Not as easy as it sounds though, trust me.

It will come as no surprise to learn that bowlers, like me, are taking this form of the game a lot more seriously than when it burst onto the scene 8 years ago.

THE OLD FAVOURITES

Like the batsmen have invented new shots, the bowlers are also learning new skills and tricks to out-think their opponent.

But we have found that adapting our existing skills is still playing a major part in the bowlers' fighting back.

The one delivery that we rely on the most as T20 bowlers, and succeed with the most I have to add, is the yorker.

Obviously this ball is nothing new, but still remains the best ball to bowl when trying to keep the runs down.

I can guarantee that every team that participates in T20 are longing for that bowler who can keep his composure under extreme pressure and bowl this ball to perfection when required.

Truth be told there aren't that many of us around, but as with everything in sport, the more we practice and play under pressure, the better we become.

The best T20 bowlers in the business will practice this delivery more than any other.

The slower ball has also been in the game a while, but the modern day professional is becoming better and better at disguising and performing the skill.

There are, of course, many variations when it comes to the slower ball. But the principle remains the same.

We are trying to make the batsmen think we are bowling at our normal pace, and when we bowl it slower, we are hoping that the batsmen plays the ball too early, Causing a miss-hit or even better, him to miss it completely.

When we talk about T20 in the changing rooms, it is Lasith Malinga of Sri Lanka who we all agree is the best at performing these skills under extreme pressure, and therefore probably the best T20 bowler in the game today.

We then have the bouncer, a favourite of mine and I am sure every fast bowler. 

This delivery has been underused in the shorter form of the game, but cricketers are now becoming more aware that it is a massive weapon in the bowlers' T20 armoury.

It is seen as the ball the batsmen do not expect in T20 as they are nearly always looking for the fuller ball to swing their arms through.

When I talk about the bowlers 'fighting back', what better ball to use than the bouncer? When you want to show your aggressive side and that you mean business, there is none better.

A good well directed short ball can put fear in any batsmen

And if we can cause a mistake as he tries to handle it, and more importantly let him know that he cant just stand there and wait for the full ball to hit to the boundary, then we are becoming more unpredictable.

Unpredictability is a bowlers greatest asset.

THE NEW CLASS

Many captains, who think they know everything, will tell you that the majority of fast bowlers are not the brightest bunch!

This may be true, but when it comes to thinking of new ways to dominate the batsmen in the shorter form of the game, the bowlers are proving Einstein's of the cricketing world.

New deliveries are being invented, field placings thought of, and the hatred of being hit for 10+ runs an over, yes it does hurt, is making the new breed of bowlers a determined bunch.

As a result we are seeing more and more of the slower ball bouncer.

It is proving a real find and a ball that batsmen really struggle to deal with. 

As the name suggests it combines two of the old school skills that we already understand. A bouncer, bowled with the same action as a slower ball. It is proving tricky for the batsmen to handle.

This is because as the ball digs into the wicket, it slows up and loses pace, and the batsmen, who may already be through their shot, find it difficult to generate power through the ball and get it to the boundary.

You may also notice that we are trying to get creative even before we let the ball go.

England's Stuart Broad, for example, has succeeded in bowling around the wicket at the death and firing his yorkers in wide of off-stump. There must be something about the different angle this creates, that some batsmen find tricky.

We have seen bowlers come in off a shorter run-up in between an over, bowlers running in as normal, stuttering as if they are going to stop, and then carry on and deliver the ball as normal.

I first saw Otis Gibson experimenting with these variations, and as I have tried them myself, I know they can mess with the rhythm of the batter and be used as a successful change up.

Some bowlers also change the angle of their approach to the wickets. The thought behind this, as with every new method, is to disrupt the batsmen and do anything you can to not let him settle and dominate you.

How can we forget about spin bowling. Playing a bigger part in the game than ever before, and especially so in T20.

These guys also spend hours expanding their game, working on varying their speed of delivery, deciding which balls will spin, which will not, and altering their angles to disrupt the batsmen.

Off-breaks, leg-spinners, slow left arm, left-arm chinaman, googlies, flippers, top spinners, sliders, doosras, carrom balls...wow the list just seems endless. Spin has progressed so much in such a short space of time.

All these skills and the ability to also produce a yorker means that spinners are proving crucial when it comes to slowing the run-rate down and picking up game changing wickets.

Just look at Arul Suppiah, a slow left arm bowler for Somerset, who in 2011 claimed world record figures of 3.4 overs, 0 maidens, 5 runs, 6 wickets. Just incredible.

And so we agree that spin bowlers are combining with seam bowlers to help make the T20 format more neutral, and not just a batsmen's game as we all think it is.

STAND OUT FIGURES

We have seen some quite brilliant bowling performances in T20, here are some examples:-

Ajantha Mendis - 4 overs 1 maiden 16 runs 6 wickets,  Sri Lanka vs Australia

Anil Kumble - 3.1 overs 1 maiden 5 runs 5 wickets,  Bangalore vs Rajasthan

Umar Gul - 4 overs 0 maidens 8 runs 4 wickets, Pakistan vs Australia

Alfonso Thomas - 4 overs 2 maidens 5 runs 2 wickets, Somerset vs Hampshire

Some low totals in T20:-

Northamptonshire 47 all out in 12.5 overs vs Durham

Rajasthan 58 all out in 15.1 overs vs Bangalore

Bermuda 62-9 in 20 overs vs Guyana

Gloucestershire 68 all out in 17.5 overs vs Hampshire

So yes, as a bowler some days it just isn't your day, it really can be that simple. You feel you do all you have been asked and you still go all around the park. 

That you can accept

It is no longer acceptable to sit there a moan that 'it's a batsmen's game' and wait for the luxury of 4 day cricket to come around where we can string together some dot balls.

Our inventories are escalating year after year, captains are becoming more knowledgeable, and due to the extra demand of T20's, we are all understanding the game better the more we play and watch.

When the two combine, you find the field perfectly set for the bowler to execute our plans, and when we do, the outcome nearly always favours the bowler.

The bowlers are most certainly fighting back!