Bowling a Heavy Ball - Is this a thing?

[subshakerz]

Growing while watching cricket, I would frequently here of certain bowlers who 'ball a heavy ball' and was wondering, is this an actual physical phenomenon or just a mental impression of the batsmen? Because there are certain bowlers who hit the deck like Shoaib or Flintoff and the ball seems to be pacier than it seems, or rear up from a length. Compared to bowlers like Waqar or Steyn who have pace but the ball seems to slide along the pitch.

 

[Saj]

To me this related to a bowler who bowled deliveries that were quicker than what the batsman expected.

In addition they hit the bat harder than what the batsman though.

So, really someone who could be a yard quicker when they wanted to.

 

[happydavy]

I think its to do with height and action of the bowler and not something that one can control or master. You can ask a steyn or a flintoff or akhtar to pitch the ball 3 feet in front of stumps at the maximum speed they can generate. All they can try to do is to hit that spot with the ball in the least amount of time possible, beyond that they can't have any control on the ball. For taller bowlers who generate more speed from shoulders than the run-up like Flintoff, will end up bowling deliveries that would rise further than a Steyn or Mohammad Sami.

 

[AamirWarraich]

This is definitely a thing. Late in their careers people like Wasim, Waqar, McGrath, Anderson all bowled in 130s yet these deliveries always seemed much quicker to the batsmen.
It's why many great bowlers bowling between 125-135 were so much deadlier than guys who can bowl 145 but without the "heavy" ball.

 

[ElRaja]

people said kallis bowled a heavy ball, i always felt that was because he was a bit quicker than a batting all rounder was expected to be, also because he had a really strong physique he got balls to bounce off just back of a good length hitting the bat higher than expected.

if u miss the middle of the bat the ball seems "heavier" when pitched back of a length. i always thought it was to do with bowlers who bowl unexpected back of a length balls with decent pace.

 

[jeeteshssaxena]

According to me, bowling a heavy ball means that the vertical component of ball's velocity or in simpler terms the speed at which the bowler bangs the ball on the ground is higher as compared to the others which makes it difficult to play drives or flicks.

Now obviously the vertical speed won't contribute to the actual time taken by the ball to reach the batsman(coz horizontal speed determines that) but because of the steepness or rise of the ball approaching the batsman, he finds it difficult to play.

Cut and pull shots are the most effective against these type of bowler, examples include Kallis for sure, Most tall bowlers like Ambrose, Mcgrath, Johnson, Hazelwood, Stuart Clarke, Joel Garner etc.

I don't think that there are many subcontinent bowlers who bowl a heavy ball, coz our bowlers usually kiss the surface instead of banging it but Jasprit Bumrah definitely bowls a heavy ball, from Pakistan I can't really think of an example as of now but maybe Shabbir was one(not sure though).

 

[jeeteshssaxena]

Another thing about these heavy ball bowlers is that most of them don't look aesthetically pleasing

 

[FastBowlingAllrounder]

According to me, bowling a heavy ball means that the vertical component of ball's velocity or in simpler terms the speed at which the bowler bangs the ball on the ground is higher as compared to the others which makes it difficult to play drives or flicks.

Now obviously the vertical speed won't contribute to the actual time taken by the ball to reach the batsman(coz horizontal speed determines that) but because of the steepness or rise of the ball approaching the batsman, he finds it difficult to play.

Cut and pull shots are the most effective against these type of bowler, examples include Kallis for sure, Most tall bowlers like Ambrose, Mcgrath, Johnson, Hazelwood, Stuart Clarke, Joel Garner etc.

I don't think that there are many subcontinent bowlers who bowl a heavy ball, coz our bowlers usually kiss the surface instead of banging it but Jasprit Bumrah definitely bowls a heavy ball, from Pakistan I can't really think of an example as of now but maybe Shabbir was one(not sure though).

To add to that, a lot of them seem to get their wickets from the classic Test match top of off line with the batsman knicking off or hitting off stump. They aren't really swing bowlers, more seam bowlers.

 

[TheNightWatchman]

Another thing about these heavy ball bowlers is that most of them don't look aesthetically pleasing

Shane Bond, Imran Khan have some of the best bowling actions of all time.

 

[Chief Destroyer]

High arm actions that are shoulder heavy with the wrist snapping on top to get the ball to rise steeply.

 

[jeeteshssaxena]

Shane Bond, Imran Khan have some of the best bowling actions of all time.

From what I have seen of Shane Bond , he generally tried to pitch the ball up , I am not sure if I would categorize him as a heavy ball bowler.
I find nothing pleasing in Imran Khan's action, just normal run of the mill action

 

[subshakerz]

From what I have seen of Shane Bond , he generally tried to pitch the ball up , I am not sure if I would categorize him as a heavy ball bowler.
I find nothing pleasing in Imran Khan's action, just normal run of the mill action

Really? Imran Khan had a really elegant action, with that leap and side on delivery.

 

[SpiritOf1903]

Stokes

 

[Yk313]

Hitting the deck hard (thudding into it) and getting bounce from a length. If you play / have played cricket on turf for a while, you will know the difference in bowlers who are quicker in the air and those who rush you because of the bounce.

 

[Nado_]

Hitting the deck hard (thudding into it) and getting bounce from a length. If you play / have played cricket on turf for a while, you will know the difference in bowlers who are quicker in the air and those who rush you because of the bounce.

Bang on , you took the words right out of my mouth

 

[Mohsin Kazmi]

There are always some bowlers who hit the bat harder than the others even though they are slower through the air than the others. one more thing, this has nothing to with the height. It's all about the action and wrists of particular bowlers

 

[NauV]

Its all about how the batsman perceives the delivery after having played it . . and it comes from the simple nuance of understanding how much the ball loses speed upon hitting the surface . . .

Typically, heavy bowlers are bowlers who use their shoulders to bang the ball in as opposed to bowlers who you use their wrist to generate pace . .

Bowling a heavy ball is also different from quick arm actions . . . Quick arm actions mean the ball speed is quicker than you imagine . . quick arm actions are also typically "skiddy" bowlers who deliver balls that "kiss" the surface . . Because the ball kisses the surface, it loses "less" speed and hence is at the batsman before he knows it. Bowlers who bang the ball in have to generate pace through their shoulders . . however, since the ball is banged in, the batsman expects the ball to loses more speed . . but bowler who are able to generate greater vertical speed due to their shoulder work are on to the batter a lot quicker . . hence you would have heard the phrase "got on to him a lot quicker than he expected" while a batter is attempting to hook or pull . .

In the recent past, Mitchell Johnson, Neil Wagner, Morne Morkel are examples of bowlers who bowl a heavy ball . .