The doosra is not an illegal delivery, insists Saqlain

Shahid Hashmi 07:00 16/09/2014
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  • Defending the doosra: Saqlain.

    Saqlain Mushtaq yesterday de­fended the controversial “doosra” delivery he invented, which has come under renewed scrutiny since fellow Pakistani Saaed Ajmal’s chucking ban last week. The doosra, which means “the second one” in Urdu, turns from legside to offside – the opposite direction to orthodox off breaks. It is bowled from the back of the hand with a lot of top-spin, though the bowler’s wrist still moves in a clockwise direction, making it difficult for a batsman to pick.

    Saqlain is credited with its inven­tion but the delivery has come to be regarded with deep suspicion by many, particularly in Australia and England, where critics charge that doosra bowlers bend their arm be­yond the permissible 15 degree limit.

    Saqlain, who took 208 Test and 288 one-day wickets, insists the nay­sayers are wrong. “Who says doosra is illegal?” he asked. “It can easily be delivered within the allowed rules. It is not an easy delivery to bowl but if a bowler becomes expert he doesn’t transgress limits.”

    “You need to have strong muscles to bowl a doosra, then fitness mat­ters, also grip, rhythm and follow through. If just one of these things is missing then you get out of limits.”

    Saqlain, who comes from a hum­ble background, recalled he dis­covered the delivery while playing cricket with a table tennis ball.

    “I used to play with my brother and cousin at the roof of my house in Lahore and tried the doosra with a table tennis ball,” he said. “I got very excited when the ball turned the other way.”

    “I tried and tried and perfected it and when I used to go to play club matches I would baffle the batsmen with doosra, and on winning match­es I was rewarded with sumptuous lunches and dinners. And from there I broke into the Pakistan team.”

    Saqlain will arrive in Lahore next week to start remedial work on Aj­mal’s action. “I am quite hopeful of helping him. I am not giving any guarantees but will see his reports and footage and then try my best.”

    Ajmal said yesterday he was focused on his comeback. “I am sit­ting in front of you without any ten­sion, whatever happened was disap­pointing but I am focused on staging a strong comeback,” he said.

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