Is Jasprit Bumrah’s Slower Ball the Best in World Cricket?

This statement invites viewers to watch a video featuring Jasprit Bumrah’s execution of a lethal slower yorker and an analysis by an Australian cricket legend on the secret behind Bumrah’s special delivery. The video likely showcases Bumrah’s mastery of the slower ball, demonstrating its effectiveness in deceiving batsmen, and provides insights from an expert on how Bumrah achieves such success with this delivery.

The slower ball delivered by Jasprit Bumrah is considered both beautiful and rare in cricket. It captivates the audience and leaves batsmen bewildered when he unleashes it, showcasing his skillful execution and ability to deceive with finesse.

It’s quite paradoxical that amidst the speed and power of Jasprit Bumrah‘s fast bowling, some of the most memorable deliveries he’s bowled are his slower balls. Instances like the Shaun Marsh curveball, Mohammad Rizwan snapper, Ollie Robinson gripper, and Steve Smith corker stand out from the past. In the ongoing England series, recent examples include the Rehan Ahmed stunner and Ben Foakes ripper.

Bumrah’s bowling action is perfectly suited for executing slower balls, much like it is for delivering devastating yorkers. His short run-up quickly transitions into explosive action. With hyper-extended elbows and a natural release point in front of his body, he releases the ball closer to the batsman than most bowlers, significantly reducing the batsman’s reaction time to decipher the change of pace.

Facing a Bumrah slower ball challenges a batsman’s muscle memory. Typically, a batsman facing a 145kph bowler is conditioned to react in less than 0.4 seconds, the duration of a ball’s journey across the pitch. However, when confronted with a significantly slower delivery, the batsman must quickly realign his focus and timing, disrupting the usual rhythm of their response.

During India’s tour to Australia in 2018, the delivery that dismissed Marsh was clocked at 114 kph, significantly slower than the preceding delivery which was around 140 kph. This substantial difference in pace makes it challenging for the batsman to adjust. Their batting stance becomes unbalanced, their footwork betrays panic, and they appear like a novice attempting to cope with the unexpected change in pace.

Bumrah possesses the subtle art of disguise when delivering his slower ball. He maintains his arm speed, action, and wrist position without any obvious alterations. There are no giveaways such as changes in the seam position. Instead, he provides only subtle clues, such as positioning his palm skywards during the load-up for the slower ball compared to facing it towards the side for his regular deliveries. Additionally, he holds the ball slightly deeper in his palms and may give it an extra tweak akin to a spinner’s variation. However, from the batsman’s perspective, decoding these variations is nearly impossible. They must rely on their instincts to judge the delivery in flight or off the pitch.

Bumrah’s slower ball repertoire primarily consists of variations of the off-cutter, where he uses his fingers to cut the side of the ball. This technique allows the ball to loop in the air and typically move into a right-handed batsman. Despite not employing other slower ball variations like the knuckleball or those delivered from the side of the hand, Bumrah’s mastery lies in the lengths and angles he employs. For instance, the delivery to Marsh was a full-length delivery on middle and off, floating and swerving in the air. In contrast, deliveries to Rizwan and Smith in the World Cup were pitched on a good length, landing outside the off-stump. The one to Robinson came from around the stumps, angling in before breaking back like an off-spinner, while the delivery to Foakes was on the fuller side of the good-length patch.

Bumrah’s sparing use of slower balls adds to their effectiveness. For instance, the delivery to Marsh was only the second slower one he had attempted in the Test series. His ability to choose the right weapon at the right time demonstrates his awareness, wisdom, and intuition as a bowler. Despite having various weapons in his arsenal, Bumrah’s judicious selection of deliveries makes him a potent force on the field.

Bumrah strategically sets traps for batsmen, occasionally employing double-bluffs. Ahead of the Marsh delivery, he adjusted his field, hinting at a delivery outside the off-stump to tempt the batsman. Similarly, he deployed the slower ball to Robinson after a series of bouncers, exploiting a leg-side heavy field to catch the batsman off-guard.

Bumrah displays versatility in his bowling, devoid of fixed preferences. Unlike most bowlers who have a preferred length for specific deliveries, Bumrah can execute a slower ball effectively from any length due to his exceptional control over varying lengths.

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