Graeme Swann – The predator with a devilish smile

The world of sport can be cruel, as a sportsman’s beautiful dreams needn’t always come true.  When the crash landing comes, it happens so abruptly that it leaves the individual completely shattered. But that is when we can differentiate the men from the boys. A true champion with a never-say-die attitude will look at those setbacks as a stepping stone to success, and work that much harder. 

Those words; ‘never-say-die attitude’ and ‘true champion’ can be used to describe England’s premier spinner, Swann. After bowling five innocuous overs in in a one-day game against South Africa back in 2000, Swann found himself in the wilderness. It didn’t deter him from dreaming big. With hard-work and perseverance, he rose from the sporting wilderness, like a phoenix from the ashes, and stamped his class on the cricketing world. 

If we rewind back in time to 2004, no one in the County circuit would have envisaged the man with a devilish humour, Swann, playing again for England. After a frustrating season with Northamptonshire, he moved to Nottinghamshire in October 2004. In 2004, Swann didn’t seem like he could even buy a wicket. His career was going nowhere, as he averaged 38.93 that year. He has to thank Nottinghamshire’s coach Mick Newell for believing in his talents, and signing him for the 2005 season.

Since then, the chirpy Swann has never looked back. He played for the England A team that toured the Emerald Isles in 2005, and did well. In spite of some consistent performances for the A team and in County cricket, he was ignored by the national selectors. It is always said that England’s then coach, Fletcher never liked his attitude. It was only when the much-maligned Peter Moores was appointed as the coach in ’07, did some players, who were ignored during Fletcher’s regime, get a chance to showcase their talents. One of them was Swann.

In 07/08, when Swann was picked in England’s squad to tour Sri Lanka, a few critics opined that he was another of those bits-and-pieces players to emerge from English cricket’s stables. All those lingering doubts about Swann’s skills were soon put to rest. In the third One Day at Dambulla, he proved to be a difficult proposition even for the likes of Sangakkara, Jayawerdena and Dilshan. Those Sri Lankan batsmen, renowned for playing spin well, were mesmerized by his flight and guile. Swann enhanced his reputation in that One-Day series; by claiming a rich haul of seven wickets.

In 08/09, Swann made his Test debut against India at Chennai. On a turning wicket at Chennai, Swann did make his presence felt by taking four wickets. Sehwag’s savage hitting and Tendulkar’s controlled mastery meant that he found himself on the losing side. But everyone could see that Swann was here to stay. 

With Monty Panesar’s stock as a spinner fading rapidly, Swann soon spun his way to the top of the pile, among English spinners. Once he established himself in the Test side, he cut a swathe through opposition batting line-ups. In particular, 2010 was an annus mirabilis for him. During that year, he took 64 wickets at 25.96. Even recently, Swann, with his partner in crime, Monty Panesar, spun a web around the Indian batsmen to help England win a historic series in India. After that famous series win in India, the spin duo of Swann and Monty were called as dust devils. 

Swann, no doubt has been instrumental in England’s success over the last few years. To win Tests, any captain needs a bowling attack that can take twenty wickets. In Jimmy Anderson and Swann, England have two strike bowlers who can consistently take wickets in all conditions.

Another way to measure a spinner’s success is to look at his record against teams from the subcontinent. It is a well-known fact that batsmen from the subcontinent are fine players of spin. If we take that as a barometer to measure Swann’s career, he passes the litmus test with flying colours.

Graeme Swann has taken 35 wickets against Pakistan at just 17. His 28 wickets have cost him only 22.78 against Sri Lanka. Even the ultimate masters of playing spin, the Indian batsmen, haven’t been able to dominate Swann, as he has taken 41 wickets at a respectable average of 32.68 against India. In the just-concluded series in India, Swann took 20 wickets at 24.75.  To dominate Indian batsmen in their own backyard is some achievement.

There are no hidden secrets behind Swann’s modus operandi. Swann doesn’t have a fancy doosra to bank upon. Instead, he relies on flight, deception and turn. The key to his bowling is that he imparts serious revolutions on the ball. The ace off-spinner has been clocked at 2,000 revolutions per minute. Swann does keep it simple. His stock delivery is the off-spinner, and he uses the arm ball as a surprise weapon. On occasions, he also uses the flat-spinner delivery, which he calls it as a “flying saucer delivery.”

As Swann is deadly accurate, and used to bowling from around the wicket, left-handed batsmen find him very difficult to play. Just have a look at his record, as 101 of his victims have been left-handers. Pakistan’s left-handed opening batsman, Farhat will testify for it, as he got out to a brute of a delivery from Swann at Edgbaston in 2010. The delivery from Swann dipped towards the leg stump, before gripping and turning monstrously past the lunging batsman, to uproot the off stump. Farhat trudged back to the pavilion with a bewildered look on his face.  

Former Indian spinner Erapalli Prasanna said about Swann: “The best in the world! He has subtle variations, totally different from the rest. He is not afraid to flight the ball and that is something rare in today’s cricket. He doesn’t boast of a doosra or a carrom ball, whatever it is, but his traditional style is enough to fetch him wickets.” 

Whether Graeme Swann is the best spinner in the world or not is open for debate. But when the English off-spinner, with his flight and deception, makes the batsmen dance to his spinning tunes, he is a connoisseur’s delight.

Swann’s record as an off-spinner speaks for itself. In modern times, to take 212 wickets at a strike rate of 59.9 is a phenomenal achievement, for a finger spinner. He was instrumental in making every English’s cherished dream of winning the Ashes series against Australia, become a reality in ’09 and 10/11. Swann played a key role in England’s triumph in the T20 World Cup in 09/10.  All those wickets also helped England climb to the summit of the Test rankings in 2011. In spite of so much success and glory, the man with a devilish smile, Swann remains hungry for more wickets.