Doosra going same as offbreak

Neville YoungCoach, Australia

There could be a couple of reasons why it isn`t working for you.The first is that although you think your palm is facing you at the delivery point, it isn`t. Get the batsman to tell you whether he see`s only the back of your hand at release or whether he can see the edge of your hand facing towards him. If he can see the edge of your hand then you will be bowling topspinners or off breaks.

If he sees only the back of your hand then your index finger is rotating forwards, not sideways. If this is the problem try using your middle finger to rotate the ball, you should find that using your middle finger makes it easier to rotate the ball towards the off side. It also has the advantage of being longer than your index finger so you should get more leverage and so more spin..

Sit at a table (preferably outside) with you elbow on the table and grip the ball as you would for bowling the doosra. Turn your hand so your palm is facing towards you. Experiment flicking your wrist and finger to turn the ball anti clockwise (presuming you are right handed) until you can do it consistently, then try it in the nets. Practice without a batsman until you can deliver it consistently and on line and length and then try it out against batsmen in the nets. Lastly when you have mastered the skill try it in a game.

Good Luck, it will be hard work and put a considerable strain on your arm and elbow, and it can be difficult to perform consistently without some bending of the elbow.

This is simply because your elbow will also be facing the bowler at the time of belivery. The weight of the ball in your hand and the weight of your arm will cause considerable force to be applied to your elbow (Force = mass x acceleration). So the faster your arm comes through, the more force is applied to the elbow and can sometimes cause the arm to bend during delivery. Trying to lock your elbow to prevent this can be painful..