Spin: flight, drift and variation

Setup

1. Tie a light rope between two poles across the pitch, about a third of the way down from the bowling end, at roughly the batter's eye height.
2. Mark a length box a little fuller than a seamer's good length, on the line of off stump to a right-hander.
3. A keeper stands up to the stumps wearing a helmet with a faceguard. Add a batter in full kit for the later stages.
4. Spinners warm up their shoulders, wrists and spinning fingers first. Check fingers for blisters or splits before you start.

How it runs

1. Revs first: from a few metres, each spinner spins the ball to a partner, then bowls at half distance, listening for the ball to fizz and watching the seam rotate.
2. Flight over the rope: an over each where the ball must go over the rope and still land in the box. 1 point for over the rope, 1 for the box.
3. Pace and trajectory: an over of alternating balls, one flighted over the rope, one quicker and flatter under it, both landing in or just past the box.
4. Variation: each bowler adds one variation they own (arm ball, top-spinner, googly, slider, carrom ball) and bowls it only when the coach signals.
5. Six-ball plan: with a batter in, the bowler tells the coach the plan for the over, bowls it, and the keeper says what they saw: drift, dip, turn and which ball the batter read.

Coaching points

• Spin it hard. Revolutions give you drift and dip; without them, flight just gives the batter time.
• Flight comes from releasing the ball upwards, not from bowling slower. Keep a strong, quick arm.
• The finger spinner's ball drifts away from the right-hander and turns back in; the wrist spinner's tends to drift in and turn away. Use the drift to beat the edge.
• Keep a repeatable run-up and finish: a strong front leg, a full rotation of the body and the bowling hand finishing past your opposite hip.
• Vary one thing at a time: pace, height, release point on the crease, or the variation ball. Keep the stock ball as your base.
• Every delivery must be legal: the arm must not straighten as you bowl, including on any variation. Ask a coach to film it from side-on if you are unsure.

Common mistakes

• Pushing the ball flat to avoid being hit, which takes away drift and dip.
• Slowing the arm down to flight it, so the ball floats with no spin.
• Bowling the variation so often that it becomes the stock ball.
• Bowling through a split finger or a sore shoulder. Rest it and tape or treat the skin.