Simon Hughes
Mastering the Spin
In Pakistan during the winter, Michael Atherton gave a masterclass in watching the ball right onto the bat and playing with the spin. They weren't big, dramatic shots and therefore they went largely unnoticed, but they did help him pick up singles, rotate the strike and keep the scoreboard ticking. This can be done off either the front foot or the back, as the sequences below illustrate.
The bowler, in this case Saqlain, is predominantly aiming outside off stump, trying to spin the ball into the batsman (from left to right), keeping all the close fielders interested as Atherton plays a dead bat. Knowing there's a gap away to the right of shot, he rides the spin, turning the blade at the last moment, and just plonks the ball delicately into the unguarded area past mid-wicket. There's a high degree of difficulty in these shots - if you turn the blade too early the ball may lob up for a catch.
 Back foot
Waiting until the ball is under his nose, Atherton (left) nurdles the turning ball into the leg side.
 Front foot
Atherton (left) gets out to the pitch of the off break and places the ball with the spin into the same gap.
Psychological victory
Little nudges and pushes into these available gaps intensely irritate the bowler, releasing the pressure he's trying to build up. Also, they force him to change his field. In this case (above), Atherton took so many singles playing with the spin in the square-leg area, Saqlain had to move his short leg away to plug the gap. It represented an important psychological victory for the batsman (shifting a close fielder) and was achieved with brain rather than brawn.
Copyright material reproduced under license from Macmillan Publishers Ltd. London, England
Copyright © Simon Hughes 2001
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