The Snake ball - mesmerizing lethal beauty
Cricket has a peculiar way of mesmerizing you from time to time. If you have been watching cricket for quite some time like I have, I can safely assume that you too have witnessed some of the most surprising things happen during a match that intrigued you to the core. This little piece is about one such interesting thing I have observed in the realm of seam and swing bowling - "The Snake ball"
A snake ball is not something you will find in the hardcore glossary of cricket terms but certainly will in the dictionary of cricketers and cricket fans. A snake ball is used to describe a delivery bowled generally by a pacer which the ball first moves in, cuts back and then moves away. As a batsman, all you can think about is thank your lucky stars that the ball didn't rattle the stumps.
Here, I am taking two examples to discuss with you the magical snake ball but first, we should discuss the distinction between the art of swing bowling and seam bowling.
A swing bowler tries to deceive the batsman by getting sideways movement through the air. A swing bowler tries to pitch the ball up, landing the ball closer to the batsman as it allows the ball more time in the air for swing to occur which forces batsman to play straight-bat shots like drives, which might result in a leading edge behind the stumps if the ball is moving away and LBW if moving in. It can be assisted by the weather conditions at the ground if the wind is flowing perpendicular to the pitch.
On the other hand, a seam bowler tries to get sideways movement off the pitch by pitching the ball right on the seam so that it may deviate either way if it hits a crack on the pitch. A seam bowler generally tries to pitch the ball a little shorter off the length in order to land the ball harder onto the pitch to get more deviation of the ball. It mostly depends on the pitch conditions, given how hard the pitch is and if cracks are present or not. However, it doesn't depend entirely on the pitch conditions. Wind can play a tricky part as well because if the wind is flowing parallel to the pitch. it might very well vary the bounce of the ball.
The very skilled Australian pacer James Pattinson awe-struck the cricketing fraternity with this beautiful snake ball. The seam position couldn't be better as the ball landed right on the seam at an impressive speed of 143.9 kph or 89.4 mph, moved in towards the batsman, cut back, and moved away later.
Bowled at a perfect length combined with good pace, the ball was intentionally landed onto the cracks on the pitch to deceive the batsman successfully. The batsman, Cheteshwar Pujara was completely beaten with the sharp in-swing. The wicketkeeper Matthew Wade caught the ball well after it moved away. This was a terrific utilization of the pitch by the talented seam bowler.
Moving on,
Shoaib Akhtar, the Pakistani speedster, impressed the world of cricket with his incredible pace, precise length and swing from his debut to the last match. One of the most feared bowlers to ever grace the game, Shoaib bowled an absolute beauty in a Test match against India to get rid of VVS Laxman.
The ball was bowled at a magnificent pace of 142.1 kph or 92.6mph and wasn't pitched at all. Akhtar brilliantly utilized his pace and reverse swing abilities to move the ball away after bowling at an inward angle.
Bowling at such a pace and garnishing it with outward movement very close to the batsman was phenomenal. This is what a dangerous piece of swing bowling can do. Leave one of the finest batsmen in the world like VVS Laxman in disbelief.