Spin Bowling : No. 1 trick for victory in Subcontinent?
September 28, 2023/
Hello Hello ! World Cup is back in India to dazzle itself more that it will dazzle the crowds. And we are back with another insightful aspect of world cups that were played in the sub continent. Our special focus here is the impact of spinners in the world cup as a whole and specially the most critical games of semis and finals across the 3 world cups that have taken place here.
You may wonder why so? After all, there is hardly any focus on genuine spinners these days in the age of batting domination and batsmen friendly rules and pitches. Just be with and us and by the end of it you should be gunning for spinners equally and will definitely keep an eye on them in the coming world cup.
Okay, to start off, it is surprising that there is not enough talk about spin this time around even when the world cup is to be held in the land of spin. If one country could ever boast of being a world class spinner factory it was India. So this is how we are going to go about it to find out if spinners do make sense or they are just an accessory to the whole thing.
1987 World Cup – Top Wicket Takers for top 4 teams
Most Wickets for Australia
Bowler
Mts
Inns
Overs
Mdns
Runs
Wkt
BBI
Econ
CJ McDermott
8
8
73.0
3
341
18
5/44
4.67
SR Waugh
8
8
63.3
4
288
11
2/36
4.53
SP O’Donnell
7
7
60.4
6
261
9
4/39
4.30
AR Border
8
5
32.0
–
166
6
2/27
5.18
BA Reid
8
8
68.0
7
303
6
2/38
4.45
Source: Espncricinfo
Most Wickets for Pakistan
Bowler
Mts
Inns
Overs
Mdns
Runs
Wkt
BBI
Econ
Imran Khan
7
6
49.5
6
222
17
4/37
4.45
Abdul Qadir
7
7
68.0
2
242
12
4/31
3.55
Wasim Akram
7
7
63.2
1
295
7
3/45
4.65
Saleem Jaffar
5
5
39.4
–
210
5
3/30
5.29
Tauseef Ahmed
6
6
60.0
4
230
5
1/35
3.83
Source: Espncricinfo
Most Wickets for England
Bowler
Mts
Inns
Overs
Mdns
Runs
Wkt
BBI
Econ
EE Hemmings
6
6
59.3
4
274
13
4/52
4.60
PAJ DeFreitas
8
8
69.1
12
283
12
3/28
4.09
NA Foster
7
7
70.0
1
313
9
3/47
4.47
JE Emburey
8
8
79.0
4
295
6
2/26
3.73
GC Small
8
8
68.0
2
331
6
2/47
4.86
Source: Espncricinfo
Most Wickets for India
Bowler
Mts
Inns
Overs
Mdns
Runs
Wkt
BBI
Econ
Maninder Singh
7
7
70.0
1
280
14
3/21
4.00
M Prabhakar
7
7
59.0
4
235
9
4/19
3.98
RJ Shastri
7
7
68.2
1
274
7
2/45
4.00
C Sharma
4
4
36.1
2
170
6
3/51
4.70
M Azharuddin
7
7
23.5
–
109
5
3/19
4.57
Source: Espncricinfo
1987 World Cup – Australia vs Pakistan Semi Final – Insights
Australia Bowling Card in the Semi Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Craig McDermott
10
0
44
5
4.40
Bruce Reid
10
2
41
2
4.10
Steve Waugh
9
1
51
1
5.66
Simon O’Donnell
10
1
45
0
4.50
Tim May
6
0
36
0
6.00
Allan Border
4
0
26
1
6.50
Players in bold bowled spin
Pakistan Bowling Card in the Semi Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Imran Khan
10
1
36
3
3.60
Saleem Jaffar
6
0
57
0
9.50
Wasim Akram
10
0
54
0
5.40
Abdul Qadir
10
0
39
0
3.90
Tauseef Ahmed
10
1
39
1
3.90
Saleem Malik
4
0
22
1
5.50
Players in bold bowled spin
Insights
The front line pacers on both sides did well which you expect. Bowlers like Imran Khan and McDermott you expect to perform no matter what the conditions. And remember, this is the time when there was always something for the bowlers early on.
On Australia’s side, spin was not their strength and hence they played more on their strength of pace attack which proved successful for them. Also the two spin bowling options Australia would have had a tough time because Pakistan players were known to be great players of spin.
Even then, the part time spinner in Border managed to pick out Imran Khan which proved to be very helpful and despite being part time it made a substantial impact on the result.
Even Border, being the intelligent captain who actually started the Australia domination during this time, realized the need to bowl spinners in Indian conditions so much so that he was Australia’s 4th highest wicket taker taking 6 in 5 inns, 3 out of those in SF and Finals.
Australia played Pakistan spinners carefully because they knew apart from Imran Khan there wasn’t much in the pace attack and other pacers were taken apart.
Even for Pakistan, part time spinner in Saleem Malik was able to nab the in form David Boon. Imran Khan also realised that part time spinner was more effective than his pace partner. Ultimately, the pace unit easily gave away 20 extra runs which cost Pakistan the match.
For Pakistan, Abdul Qadir was their 2nd highest wicket taker in the tournament and Tauseef Ahmedin top 5.
It is evident here that spinners played a substantial role in the match. Border picking up Imran easily dented Pak’s chances of scoring the needed extra runs and Pakistan pace (except for Imran Khan) unit giving away vital extra runs.
1987 World Cup – India vs England Semi Final – Insights
India Bowling Card in the Semi Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Kapil Dev
10
1
38
2
3.80
Manoj Prabhakar
9
1
40
0
4.44
Maninder Singh
10
0
54
3
5.40
Chetan Sharma
9
0
41
1
4.55
Ravi Shastri
10
0
49
0
4.90
Azharuddin
2
0
13
0
6.50
Players in bold bowled spin
England Bowling Card in the Semi Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Phil DeFreitas
7
0
37
1
5.28
Gladstone Small
6
0
40
1
3.66
John Emburey
10
1
54
1
3.50
Neil Foster
10
0
41
3
4.70
Eddie Hemmings
9.3
1
49
4
5.47
Graham Gooch
3
0
13
0
5.33
Players in bold bowled spin
Insights
Not many surprises here. Even for a team like England who were not particularly known for their spinners, still spinners managed to scalp 5 out the total 10 Indian wickets to fall. This is even more telling because Indians play spin well especially in home conditions.
From India’s side also, spinners clearly were the standout. Bowlers like Kapil Dev you are expected to perform, being the greats they were. Maninder Singh’s 3 wickets were of batsman in the top 4 who were going great guns and helped India keep England’s score in check even though 250+ in those days was a great score.
Hemmings ran through India’s middle order who were all set to make an impact and take India home but were stopped short.
Ultimately this game became the battle of the spinners.
Overall, for England, Hemmings was their highest wicket taker with Emburey in top 4 for England
India had Maninder Singh as the highest, Ravi Shastri at 3rd and even Azhar at 5 in the list of wicket takers.
1987 World Cup – Australia vs England Final – Insights
England Bowling Card in the Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Phil DeFreitas
6
1
34
0
5.66
Gladstone Small
6
0
33
0
5.50
Neil Foster
10
0
38
1
3.80
Eddie Hemmings
10
1
48
2
4.80
John Emburey
10
0
44
0
4.40
Graham Gooch
8
1
42
1
5.25
Players in bold bowled spin
Australia Bowling Card in the Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Criag McDermott
10
1
51
1
5.10
Bruce Reid
10
0
43
0
4.30
Steve Waugh
9
0
37
2
4.11
Simon O’Donnell
10
1
35
1
3.50
Tim May
4
0
27
0
6.75
Allan Border
7
0
38
2
5.42
Players in bold bowled spin
Insights
As far as spin contribution is concerned, the story in the final was not much different. For Engalnd, Hemmings was the standout scalping both Boon and Jones
For Australia, it was even more telling with Border picking up 2 wickets. Only Steve Waugh had better returns picking up 2 at a better economy. One of Borders wickets was Mike Gatting at 41 who was set and hence this wicket was mighty crucial as Australia managed to edge out England by mere 7 runs.
1987 World Cup – Spin Bowling’s Impact Summary
Apart from Australia, all other top 3 teams had prominent full time spinners.
Even for Australia, a part time spinner in Border was able to make a substantial impact on the results that went in Australia’s favor in the knockouts.
For India, Pakistan and England, it was clearly the impact of spinners that had a big impact on the results.
Apart from Australia, other 3 teams had spinners as their top or 2nd highest wicket takers in the tournament.
Safe to say spin played a major part.
Specifically for Australia, they relied on their traditional strength of pace bowling which is sensible to do if you do not have specialists for other craft, as a genuine good pace bowlers stand a much better chance than a non skilled spinner. Even then, Borders bowling and captaincy on how and when to use his spin made all the difference for them.
1996 World Cup – Top Wicket Takers for top 4 teams
Most Wickets for Australia
Bowler
Mts
Inns
Overs
Mdns
Runs
Wkt
BBI
Econ
Damien Fleming
6
6
45.2
3
221
12
5/36
4.87
Shane Warne
7
7
68.3
3
263
12
4/34
3.83
Glen McGrath
7
7
62.2
10
258
6
2/30
4.13
Players in bold bowled spin
Most Wickets for West Indies
Bowler
Mts
Inns
Overs
Mdns
Runs
Wkt
BBI
Econ
Roger Harper
6
6
58.0
6
219
12
4/47
3.77
Curtly Ambrose
6
6
56.3
9
170
10
3/28
3.00
Courtney Walsh
6
6
55.3
9
210
7
3/46
3.78
Players in bold bowled spin
Most Wickets for India
Bowler
Mts
Inns
Overs
Mdns
Runs
Wkt
BBI
Econ
Anil Kumble
7
7
69.4
3
281
15
3/28
4.03
Raju
4
4
40.0
4
158
8
3/30
3.95
Srinath
7
7
65.4
3
293
8
3/34
4.46
Players in bold bowled spin
Most Wickets for Sri Lanka
Bowler
Mts
Inns
Overs
Mdns
Runs
Wkt
BBI
Econ
Muralidharan
6
6
57.1
3
216
7
2/37
3.77
Jayasuriya
6
6
51.0
1
231
7
3/12
4.52
Vaas
6
6
49.0
6
193
6
2/30
3.93
Players in bold bowled spin
1996 World Cup – Australia vs West Indies Semi Final – Insights
West Indies Bowling Card in the Semi Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Curtly Ambrose
10
1
26
2
2.60
Ian Bishop
10
1
35
2
3.50
Courtney Walsh
10
1
33
0
3.30
Ottis Gibson
2
0
13
0
6.50
Roger Harper
9
0
47
1
5.22
Jimmy Adams
9
0
42
0
4.66
Players in bold bowled spin
Australia Bowling Card in the Semi Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Glenn McGrath
10
2
30
2
3.00
Damien Fleming
8.3
0
48
2
5.64
Shane Warne
9
0
36
4
4.00
Mark Waugh
4
0
16
0
4.00
Steve Waugh
7
0
30
1
4.28
Paul Rieffel
5
0
13
0
2.60
Michael Bevan
4
1
12
0
3.00
Stuart Law
2
0
13
0
6.50
Players in bold bowled spin
Insights
A semifinal which began Australia’s future dominance of a team which could win from any situation in big matches. If there was any match Australia was set to lose but turned it around it was this. And at the forefront of this was the magical Warne. The figures leave no doubt as to who had the most impact on the match. It was genuine, wily, crafty, skillful legspinner. The pacers upfront did well for both sides.
For West Indies, their bowlers did well to restrict Australia especially the deadly trio of Walsh, Ambrose and Bishop but it was lack of spin penetration in the middle which might have cost them the match as they would have restricted Australia to even lower.
Their spinner in Roger Harper was an average spinner at best and still was WI’s highest wicket taker in the tournament ahead of Ambrose and Walsh. Imagine what a genuine skillful bowler would have done. He was instrumental in taking WI to semis even though he could not make any substantial impact in the semis.
Warne was the highest wicket taker for Australia in the tournament.
1996 World Cup – India vs Sri Lanka Semi Final – Insights
India Bowling Card in the Semi Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Javagal Srinath
7
1
34
3
4.85
Anil Kumble
10
0
51
1
5.10
Venkatesh Prasad
8
0
50
1
6.25
Aashish Kapoor
10
0
40
0
4.00
Ajay Jadeja
5
0
31
0
6.20
Sachin Tendulkar
10
1
34
2
3.40
Players in bold bowled spin
Sri Lanka Bowling Card in the Semi Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Pramodya Wickramasinghe
5
0
24
0
4.80
Chaminda Vaas
6
1
23
1
3.83
Muthiah Muralidaran
7.1
0
29
1
4.04
Kumar Dharmasena
7
0
24
1
3.42
Sanath Jayasuriya
7
1
12
3
1.71
Aravinda de Silva
2
0
3
1
1.50
Players in bold bowled spin
Insights
Looking at probably the most heartbreaking match in Indian cricket as an Indian is tough work. Srinath got the early breakthroughs but the first turning point of the match was the amazing assault of Aravinda on Kumble. Kumble giving away runs at 5+ econ was unheard of. Kumble in fact was the overall highest wicket taker in the tournament. It was this phase that later turned out to be the match defining one and SL posting a very good total in a SF.
The importance of spin is also evident in the bowling figures of Sachin who bowled all full 10 overs at great economy picking up 2 wickets which actually helped in pulling SL back a little. Apart from the initial success, pacers struggled to make an impact.
Story continued in the India’s innings, where spinners simply ran through the batting line up once Sachin got out.
Another SF dictated by spin and also, more importantly, dictated by batters who bowled spin.
Kumble and Raju were the highest wicket takers for India while Murali and Jayasuriya were highest wicket takers for SL in the whole tournament.
1996 World Cup – Australia vs Sri Lanka Final – Insights
Sri Lanka Bowling Card in the Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Pramodya Wickramasinghe
7
0
38
0
5.42
Chaminda Vaas
6
1
30
1
5.00
Muthiah Muralidaran
10
0
31
1
3.10
Kumar Dharmasena
10
0
47
1
4.70
Sanath Jayasuriya
8
0
43
1
5.37
Aravinda de Silva
9
0
42
3
4.66
Players in bold bowled spin
Australia Bowling Card in the Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Glenn McGrath
8.2
1
28
0
3.36
Damien Fleming
6
0
43
1
7.16
Shane Warne
10
0
58
0
5.80
Paul Rieffel
10
0
49
1
4.90
Mark Waugh
6
0
35
0
5.83
Steve Waugh
3
0
15
0
5.00
Michael Bevan
3
0
12
0
4.00
Players in bold bowled spin
Insights
SL mostly triumphed on the strength of their batting by revolutionizing the first 15 overs while batting. Their top wicket takers in the tournament (spinners) were no where close to the wickets taken by bowlers of other teams, but come the knockouts, the spinners had a huge impact.
In the final again, Sri Lankan spinners got Australia in control with Aravinda picking up 3 to restrict Australia.
Australia bowlers could not do much, firstly because SL played spin remarkably well and just like they took apart Kumble in SF, they dismantled Warne in the final. Again goes to show the impact of playing spin well and bowling spin well yet again.
1996 World Cup – Spin Bowling’s Impact Summary
Top wicket takers of all top 4 teams were spinners.
The spinners had a telling impact on all 3 knockout matches.
Even more profound impact was spin bowling by batsman like Aravinda and Sachin.
2011 World Cup – Top Wicket Takers for top 4 teams
Most Wickets for India
Bowler
Mts
Inns
Overs
Mdns
Runs
Wkt
BBI
Econ
Zaheer Khan
9
9
81.3
4
394
21
3/20
4.83
Yuvraj Singh
9
9
75.0
2
377
15
5/31
5.02
Munaf Patel
8
8
65.5
1
353
11
4/48
5.36
Players in bold bowled spin
Most Wickets for Pakistan
Bowler
Mts
Inns
Overs
Mdns
Runs
Wkt
BBI
Econ
Shahid Afridi
8
8
74.3
4
270
21
5/16
3.62
Umar Gul
8
8
60.3
5
272
14
3/30
4.49
Wahab Riaz
5
5
33.5
0
158
8
5/46
4.66
Players in bold bowled spin
Most Wickets for New Zealand
Bowler
Mts
Inns
Overs
Mdns
Runs
Wkt
BBI
Econ
Tim Southee
8
8
72.2
9
312
18
3/31
4.31
Jacob Oram
6
6
49.5
6
221
12
4/39
4.43
Nathan Mccullum
8
8
50.4
1
241
8
3/24
4.82
Players in bold bowled spin
Most Wickets for Sri Lanka
Bowler
Mts
Inns
Overs
Mdns
Runs
Wkt
BBI
Econ
Muralidharan
9
8
71.0
1
291
15
4/25
4.09
Malinga
7
6
48.4
0
270
13
6/38
5.54
Dilshan
9
7
31.0
2
126
8
4/4
4.06
Players in bold bowled spin
2011 World Cup – India vs Pakistan Semi Final – Insights
Pakistan Bowling Card in the Semi Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Umar Gul
8
0
69
0
8.62
Abdul Razzaq
2
0
14
0
7.00
Wahab Riaz
10
0
46
5
4.60
Saeed Ajmal
10
0
44
2
4.40
Shahid Afridi
10
0
45
0
4.50
Mohammad Hafeez
10
0
34
1
3.40
Players in bold bowled spin
India Bowling Card in the Semi Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Zaheer Khan
9.5
0
58
2
5.89
Ashish Nehra
10
0
33
2
3.30
Munaf Patel
10
1
40
2
4.00
Harbhajan Singh
10
0
43
2
4.30
Yuvraj Singh
10
1
57
2
5.70
Players in bold bowled spin
Insights
Nothing remarkable in this semi final in terms of spin contribution. Riaz was the standout bowler from Pakistan and if there was ever a balanced bowling card, it has to be India’s.
2011 World Cup – New Zealand vs Sri Lanka Semi Final – Insights
Sri Lanka Bowling Card in the Semi Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Lasith Malinga
9
0
55
3
6.11
Rangana Herath
9
1
31
1
3.44
Angelo Mathews
6
0
27
0
4.50
Ajantha Mendis
9.5
0
35
3
3.55
Muthiah Muralidaran
10
1
42
2
4.20
Tillakaratne Dilshan
5
0
22
1
4.44
Players in bold bowled spin
New Zealand Bowling Card in the Semi Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Nathan McCullum
6
0
33
0
5.50
Tim Southee
10
1
57
3
5.70
Daniel Vettori
10
0
36
1
3.60
Jacob Oram
8
1
29
0
3.62
Andy McKay
9.5
1
37
1
3.76
Scott Styris
2
0
12
0
6.00
Jesse Ryder
2
0
14
0
7.00
Players in bold bowled spin
Insights
Sri Lanka had 4 spinners. 3 frontline and 1 part timer in Dilshan, all of whom contributed immensely to stop NZ in their tracks to a low total which made SL batsmen’s job so much easier.
NZ had two spinners but only Vettori could be counted as a frontline world class spinner, who actually did a very good job. Maybe another skillful spinner would have helped NZ.
2011 World Cup – India vs Sri Lanka Final – Insights
India Bowling Card in the Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Zaheer Khan
10
3
60
2
6.00
Sreesanth
8
0
52
0
6.50
Munaf Patel
9
01
41
0
4.55
Harbhajan Singh
10
0
50
1
5.00
Yuvraj Singh
10
0
49
2
4.90
Sachin Tendulkar
2
0
12
0
6.00
Virat Kohli
1
0
6
0
6.00
Players in bold bowled spin
Sri Lanka Bowling Card in the Final
Bowler
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Econ
Lasith Malinga
9
0
42
2
4.66
Kulasekara
8.2
0
64
0
7.68
Thisara Perara
9
0
55
1
6.11
Suraj Randiv
9
0
43
0
4.77
Tillakaratne Dilshan
5
0
27
1
5.40
Muthiah Muralidaran
8
0
39
0
4.87
Players in bold bowled spin
Insights
The final was in all essence a battle of the batting line ups. Nothing very remarkable happened on the bowling front for both the teams.
One interesting highlight still was the use of 3 spinners while bowling and all of them on both sides doing a more than decent job where pacers were quite on the expensive side.
So even if not a match winning one but, spinners did have an impact in keeping the score down than what it would have been otherwise.
2011 World Cup – Spin Bowling’s Impact Summary
For Pakistan and Sri Lanka, clearly the most valuable bowler was a spinner in this tournament for them.
For India, Yuvraj Singh was the second highest wicket taker.
For these 3 teams, even though the contribution was not that remarkable in the knock-outs but their consistent performance throughout the tournament otherwise indicates their importance.
Pacers did quite well in the tournament as well and hence we can say that it was equally balanced. But, the teams who did not do that well had one thing common. They were short of world class spinners.
Final Thoughts
As far as World Cups in the subcontinent are concerned, we have clearly seen that the spinners have had a telling impact throughout the tournament and in the ever more important semi final and final matches.
Out of the 9 such matches, there is only one instance where pacers have done substantially better and one match where there was nothing much to analyse as the 2011 final was predominantly a batting game, all other matches were crucially impacted by genuine skilled spinners and even more so with batsman who could bowl more than decent spin.
It is evident from these matches at least, that a batsman who can bowl spin is far more valuable than a bowler who can score some 10-15 runs down the order.
There is an argument to be made that the game has changed since then and pitches are more batting friendly etc. but even then time and again we see even in the shortest format of the game that the game is impacted by one good spell by a good spinner. As far the data we have till now, it is clear that having genuine spinners is in the XI is must especially for World Cups in the sub-continent.
Given this finding, does it make sense for India Squad to only have one genuine spinner in Kuldeep Yadav? Should we be not looking at another genuine spinner in the squad at least if not the XI?
Our Prediction: Spinners will again make a substantial impact in the tournament and especially in the semis and finals.
What is in store for spinners in 2023?
1987 WC happened in Oct-Nov while 1996 and 2011 happened in Mar-Apr. 2023 WC again going to happen in Oct-Nov
Dew can play a big factor during this time of the year. This time of the year the impact of dew is lesser in India as compared to the Mar- Apr season so spinners might be effective.
Spinners generally face difficulty in dewy conditions and teams can ponder about their bowling combination wrt number of spinners in the XI.
The apex body has asked the curators to leave as much grass as possible on the pitches to ensure that seamers stay in the game. The presence of grass will make most of the teams pick more seamers in the playing XI.
The ICC has also taken a big call on the boundary size to ensure a balance between bat and ball. The ICC has suggested that stadiums should have the maximum possible boundary size. As per the report, the venues have been told to maintain boundary sizes of around 70 metres at the minimum
Above factors can dictate captains and coaches decisions to play more/less spinners in the XI.
