Those who read my previous post will know that I combined feeding my 14 month old son this morning with watching the Bangladesh-India test match.
When I tuned in the volatile Sreesanth was bowling a regular series of no-balls. Coming from a man who once cried when Harbhajan gave him a slap, I was not unduly surprised.
Sreesanth is also a fast bowler and it is understandable that from time to time a bowler who is steaming in will occasionally overstep.
Spinners on the other hand have no real excuse. A few steps and a couple of skips at a leisurely pace should not result in a slow bowler bowling a no-ball.
Amit Mishra obviously does not agree. Although he eventually took four Bangladeshi wickets, he also managed to bowl five no-balls in only sixteen overs.
Did he adjust his run up after the first, second or even third no ball? No of course, he didn't. He just carried on his merry way and managed to bowl a fourth and a fifth much to the chagrin of his normally cool as a cucumber skipper Virender Sehwag.
And then I remembered that I have recently seen another 'spinner' with the same problem. Nathan Hauritz.
You would have thought that his competition with Paul Harris to not be the most shit spinner in test cricket would have meant that the last thing Hauritz would want to do would be to bowl a regular supply of no balls.
Apparently not. Every time I watch him bowl he continually bowls no balls in pretty much every spell.
To be fair he has seen off Harris with some aplomb and unaccountably has managed to take 29 wickets in the six tests against the West Indies and Pakistan. Maybe he is better than everyone thinks including himself? Time will tell.
Anyway, I reckon there should be a new rule - if a spinner bowls a no ball it should result in a free hit and a forfeit of a pint of beer to their exasperated skipper. That would certainly be good for the crowds and the after match entertainment, as well as preventing spinners like Hauritz and Mishra from being so damn lazy.
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