Different Types of Off-Spin Bowling Variations | Explained

In the sport of cricket, there are 2 types of bowlers — pacers and spinners. Among the spinners, off-spinners have been an important cog in a team.

Many teams have had the services of some of the finest off-spinners who bamboozled batters with their extreme spin-bowling skills. These bowlers possessed different off-spin bowling variations to counter the batters.

In this article, we’ll look at the types of off-spin bowling variations.

Off Break

This delivery is like the stock ball or the bread and butter of an off-spinner. The off-break delivery turns from off side to leg side for a right-hand batter.

This means that the ball will turn towards the right-hander while it will turn away from the left-hand batter.

The ball is gripped between their index and middle fingers, and they use the index finger to generate the turn from the ball.

Arm Ball

The arm ball doesn’t turn and is bowled straight without rolling the fingers over the ball. This delivery surprises the batter, who would have been expecting the ball to turn.

Also Read | What is Chinaman Bowling in Cricket?

Doosra

Pakistan’s Saqlain Mushtaq introduced the cricketing world to his invention — Doosra. The variation is the exact opposite of the off-break delivery.

The doosra is pretty much similar to how a leg spinner bowls their leg break. That means the ball will turn from leg side to off side for a right-hand batter. 

So, for the right-hand batter, the delivery will turn away, while for the left-hand batter, the ball will turn towards them.

The doosra is a potent weapon in the off-spinner’s arsenal. However, a few prominent bowlers, like Mushtaq, Muthiah Muralidaran, and Harbhajan Singh, mastered it well.

Also Read | What is the Difference Between a Googly and a Doosra in Cricket?

Carrom Ball

You must have played Carrom at some point, and the variation also derives its name based on how you flick the disc on the Carrom board.

Similarly, an off-spinner also flicks the ball by gripping the ball between the thumb and middle finger. The carrom ball turns based on how the bowler grips it, with the ball either going straight or turning towards the off side or leg side.

Sri Lanka’s Ajantha Mendis and India’s Ravichandran Ashwin are well-known exponents of the carrom ball.