Open main menu
Home
Random
Recent changes
Special pages
Community portal
Preferences
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Incubator escapee wiki
Search
User menu
Talk
Dark mode
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Editing
Leg spin
(section)
Warning:
You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you
log in
or
create an account
, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
Anti-spam check. Do
not
fill this in!
==Comparison with other types of bowling== A [[left arm|left-handed]] [[bowler (cricket)|bowler]] who bowls with the same (wrist spin) action as a leg spinner is known as a [[left-arm unorthodox spin]] bowler. The ball itself spins in the opposite direction. The same kind of trajectory, which spins from right to left on pitching, when performed by a left-arm [[Bowler (cricket)|bowler]] is known as [[left-arm orthodox spin]] bowling.<ref>{{cite web |title=How to bowl leg spin |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/cricket/skills/4173750.stm |website=BBC |access-date=17 May 2019 |date=23 August 2005}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Learn to bowl leg spin |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sportacademy/hi/sa/cricket/skills/newsid_3208000/3208899.stm |website=BBC |access-date=17 May 2019 |date=30 October 2003}}</ref> As with all spinners, leg spinners bowl the ball far more slowly (70–90 km/h or 45–55 mph) than [[fast bowling|fast bowlers]]. The fastest leg spinners will sometimes top 100 km/h (60 mph). While very difficult to bowl accurately, good leg spin is considered one of the most threatening types of bowling to bat against for a right-handed batter, since the flight and sharp turn make the ball's movement extremely hard to read, and the turn away from the right-handed batter is more dangerous than the turn into the right-handed batter generated by an [[off spin]]ner. Any miscalculation can result in an outside edge off the bat and a catch going to the [[wicket-keeper]] or [[slip (cricket)|slip]] fielders. Alternatively, for a ball aimed outside the leg stump, the breaking may be so sharp that the ball goes behind a right-handed batter and hits the stumps – the batter is then said (informally) to be "bowled around his or her legs". A left-handed batter has less difficulty facing leg spin bowling, because the ball moves in towards the batter's body, meaning the batter's legs are usually in the path of the ball if it misses the bat or takes an edge. This makes it difficult for the bowler to get the batter out bowled or caught from a leg break. '''Leg spin:''' Some sources make the term 'leg spin' synonymous with leg break,<ref>{{cite web |title=ESPN glossary of cricket terms |url=https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/21322339/a-glossary-cricket-terms |website=ESPN |access-date=11 July 2020 |date=17 April 2007 |quote=Leg-break/spin - When the ball pitches and turns from leg to off for a right-hander.}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Spin |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/skills/4173750.stm |website=BBC |date=23 August 2005 |access-date=11 July 2020 |quote=Leg spin involves turning a ball off the pitch from the leg-side of a right-handed batter, to the off-side.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Leg-spin |url=http://www.westyorkshirecricket.co.uk/spin/4520260514 |website=The West Yorkshire Cricket website |access-date=23 July 2020 |quote=Leg spin involves turning a ball off the pitch from the leg-side of a right-handed batter, to the off-side. |archive-date=23 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200723221719/http://www.westyorkshirecricket.co.uk/spin/4520260514 |url-status=dead }}</ref> implying that other deliveries bowled by a leg spinner do not count as 'leg spin'. However, other sources use the term 'leg spin' more widely, to include all deliveries bowled by a leg spinner, including non-leg break deliveries.<ref>{{cite web |date=31 January 2020 |title=Bowling leg-spin with Adil Rashid |url=https://www.wisden.com/cricket-news/bowling-leg-spin-with-adil-rashid |access-date=1 April 2025 |website=wisden.com |quote=I’ve got four deliveries: the leg-break, the top-spinner, the googly (also known as the wrong’un) and the slider. Which deliveries the bowler bowls depends on the situation on the ball and the pitch.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=R Ashwin, now a legspinner too? |url=https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/21852700/r-ashwin-now-legspinner-too |website=ESPN |access-date=25 July 2020 |date=23 December 2017 |quote=The ESPNcricinfo style sheet makes a fine distinction between legbreak and legspin. Legbreak is a delivery, legspin is an art form of which legbreak is a part. Legbreak is a delivery that turns away from a right-hand batter, legspin is the whole set: legbreaks, wrong'uns, topspinners, sliders, flippers; zooters, if you believe Shane Warne.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Shane Warne Masterclass: Australia great talks leg-spin in The Zone |url=https://www.skysports.com/cricket/news/12123/10311478/shane-warne-masterclass-australia-great-talks-leg-spin-in-the-zone |website=skysports.com |access-date=23 July 2020 |date=12 June 2016 |quote=Shane Warne lit up a drizzly Lord's when he entered The Zone to deliver a masterclass on the art of leg spin... Warne went into huge detail on the pace leg-spinners should bowl at and when to bowl your variations, including the wrong 'un and flipper.}}</ref> [[File:2018.01.05.14.02.58-Mason Crane debut-0001 (38876759834).jpg|thumb|220px|[[Mason Crane]] bowling a leg break during the [[2017–18 Ashes series]]]] '''Leg break:''' In the definition of a leg break, some sources actually include the bowler being a leg spinner,<ref>{{cite web |title=Leg-break |url=https://www.yourdictionary.com/leg-break |website=yourdictionary.com |access-date=23 July 2020 |quote=(cricket) a normal ball bowled by a leg spin bowler, moving from leg to off (for a right-handed batter).}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Glossary of Cricket terms |url=https://www.888sport.com/blog/glossary-sports-terms/glossary-cricket-terms#L |website=888sport.com |access-date=23 July 2020 |quote=Leg break - A spin bowling delivery bowled by a leg spinner that turns from the leg side to the offside of a right-handed batter.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Leg Break |url=https://www.definitions.net/definition/leg%20break |website=definitions.net |access-date=25 July 2020 |quote=leg break (Noun) a normal ball bowled by a leg spin bowler, moving from leg to off (for a right-handed batter).}}</ref> which implies that only leg spinners can bowl leg breaks; all leg breaks are bowled by leg spinners. Other sources do not include the bowler being a leg spinner in the definition of a leg break, and say a leg break is simply a delivery that spins from the legside to the offside,<ref>{{cite web |title=Leg-break |url=https://www.dictionary.com/browse/leg-break |website=dictionary.com |access-date=23 July 2020 |quote=a ball deviating to the off side from the leg side when bowled.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Leg break |url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/leg-break |website=Collins |access-date=23 July 2020 |quote=a bowled ball that spins from leg to off on pitching.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Leg-break |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leg-break |website=Merriam-Webster |access-date=23 July 2020 |quote=a bowled ball in cricket that breaks from the leg side to the off side.}}</ref> and so can also be bowled by other types of bowler.<ref>{{cite web |title=Dananjaya – the offspinner picking wickets with leg-breaks and googlies |url=https://www.icc-cricket.com/news/459975 |website=ICC |access-date=23 July 2020 |date=25 August 2017 |quote=When asked about what sort of a bowler he was, Dananjaya’s response was: "I am an offspinner. My wicket-taking balls are leg-spin and the googly."}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=9 May 2020 |title=Sonny Ramadhin: A self-taught bowler of remarkable merit – Almanack |url=https://www.wisden.com/wisden-cricketers-almanack/sonny-ramadhin-a-self-taught-bowler-of-remarkable-merit-almanack |access-date=1 April 2025 |website=Wisden |quote=His orthodox attack was the off-break... His variations, which kept the batsmen on tenterhooks, were the leg-break and plain straight ball.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Off-spinner with leg-breaks is like a multi-lingual: Sachin Tendulkar |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/sports/off-spinner-with-leg-breaks-is-like-a-multi-lingual-sachin-tendulkar/articleshow/63893732.cms |website=economictimes |access-date=25 July 2020 |date=24 April 2018 |quote=An off-spinner who can bowl leg-breaks is like a multi-lingual, said Sachin Tendulkar.}}</ref><ref name="Ashwin">{{cite web |title=Ashwin set to bowl leggies in IPL |url=https://www.cricket.com.au/news/india-spinner-ravichandran-ashwin-bowling-leg-spin-chennai-ipl-odi-team-chahal-kuldeep/2018-02-07 |website=cricket.com.au |access-date=23 July 2020 |date=7 February 2018 |quote="I am just trying to build my armoury," Ashwin said after bowling leggies in a domestic 50-over match in Chennai on Monday. "I used to bowl good leg-breaks with my off-spin action when I was playing league cricket in Chennai."}}</ref> In this case, leg breaks are (only) mostly bowled by leg spinners.<ref>{{cite web |title=Leg Break |url=https://www.sportspundit.com/cricket/terms/137-leg-break |website=sportspundit.com |access-date=25 July 2020 |quote=A leg break is a kind of delivery bowled usually by leg spinners.}}</ref> '''Leg spinner:''' The term leg spinner can be used to mean either the bowler<ref>{{cite web |date=20 May 2020 |title=How does a leg-spinner get a stress fracture? |url=https://www.wisden.com/cricket-news/how-does-a-leg-spinner-get-a-stress-fracture-mason-crane |access-date=1 April 2025 |website=Wisden |quote=Mason Crane, the Hampshire leg-spinner}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The Cricket World Cup's greatest leg-spinners |url=https://www.icc-cricket.com/news/847693 |website=ICC |access-date=7 August 2020 |date=30 September 2018 |quote=we look back at the top leg-spinners to have graced the ICC Cricket World Cup}}</ref> or the leg break delivery.<ref>{{cite web |date=10 June 2014 |title=England And The Leg-Spinner: A Terribly Awkward Romance |url=https://www.wisden.com/cricket-features/england-and-the-leg-spinner-a-terribly-awkward-romance-2 |access-date=1 April 2025 |website=Wisden |quote=Then there was Eric Hollies. Doing Bradman with a googly was no fluke; the week before he’d bowled him with a regulation leg-spinner but noticed The Don couldn’t pick the wrong ’un.}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Learn Warne's five spin deliveries |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sportacademy/hi/sa/cricket/video_masterclasses/newsid_4738000/4738611.stm |website=BBC |date=2 August 2005 |access-date=7 August 2020 |quote=Leg-spinners have five different balls in their armoury: Leg-spinner Top-spinner Googly Slider Flipper}}</ref> '''Leggie:''' The term leggie can also be used to mean either the bowler<ref>{{cite web |title=Ben Stokes the hero again as England secure thrilling last-gasp Test victory in Cape Town to level South Africa series |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/cricket/2020/01/07/south-africa-v-england-second-test-day-five-live-score-latest/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/cricket/2020/01/07/south-africa-v-england-second-test-day-five-live-score-latest/ |archive-date=11 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |website=Daily Telegraph |access-date=8 January 2020 |date=7 January 2020 |quote=Well that wasn't the way I expected him to pick up the wicket, but that's why you throw the ball to your leggie.}}{{cbignore}}</ref> or the leg break delivery.<ref>{{cite web |title=The doosra ain't the only game in town |url=https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/18771982/ashley-mallett-offspinner-variations |website=ESPN |access-date=26 July 2020 |date=27 February 2017 |quote=And indeed, I never bowled another leggie in international cricket... Having bowled offies and leggies as a kid.}}</ref>
Edit summary
(Briefly describe your changes)
By publishing changes, you agree to the
Terms of Use
, and you irrevocably agree to release your contribution under the
CC BY-SA 4.0 License
and the
GFDL
. You agree that a hyperlink or URL is sufficient attribution under the Creative Commons license.
Cancel
Editing help
(opens in new window)