The Mystery Ball: Facts and Background
Everything you need to know about Doosra, the mystery ball
The game of cricket has many aspects that appeal to the connoisseur's eyes.
Some people find the most appeal in the athleticism and power produced by fast bowlers.
Others adore the skill of the reverse swing, where the ball moves in ways that defy logic.
However, today, let’s focus on the off-spin bowling art, with all of its sensitivities, and how it has frequently been called the most romantic form of cricket bowling.
Technically, an off-spin bowler spins the ball away from a left-hand batsman and into a right-hand batsman.
The bowlers spin the ball with their wrists, fingers or both. Off-spin bowling is generally thought to be easier to play than leg spin bowling.
This is because off-breaks typically spin less than leg breaks and off-spinners have fewer delivery options than a leg spinner.
However, over the years, many torch-bearers have used off-spin bowling to win matches for their respective nations.
Bowlers like Murali and Ajmal have enhanced the appeal and glory of the sport in this way.
However, there is something that is even more interesting than typical off-spin bowling. It is the mystery ball, commonly known as Doosra.
In this article, find out more about the mystery ball, including plenty of facts and background information.
What is Doosra?
If you are a cricket enthusiast, you may be aware of the term ‘’Doosra.”
In simple words, this mystery ball is the most eminent variation of an off-spin bowler.
Secondly, it is also regarded as the most controversial delivery.
Similar to a googly, Doosra is a weapon for off-spinners where the ball turns in the opposite direction to a typical off-spin.
This mystery ball will turn away from a right-handed batsman's body, while it turns in towards the body of a left-handed batter.
The element of surprise is always there, which makes it one of the deadliest deliveries.
The background of the mystery ball
Doosra is an unusual delivery that gained notoriety thanks to the former Pakistani off-spinner Saqlain Mushtaq.
More than 20 years ago, during the series against Australia in Sharjah, he used it for the first time.
Saqlain Mushtaq had no idea that the mysterious ball, which was named Doosra in the 1990s, would spark such intense debate and even alter the course of cricket history.
According to legend, Javed Miandad, the Pakistani coach at the time Saqlain was honing his delivery in the nets, would periodically tell him to "ball the Doosra" to deliver his distinctive delivery.
So, a ball called Doosra emerged from this place. The best batsmen were mesmerised when Saqlain started revealing it in international cricket.
They anticipated that ball would approach them like an orthodox off-spinner, but the right-handed batsmen saw it move away from them.
Saqlain spent many seasons playing for Surrey and held the top bowling position in each of them.
He was equally devastating in international cricket. In Hobart, he once enthralled a formidable Australian batting order while taking six wickets in the process.
Who invented the Doosra?
Saqlain Mushtaq, a well-known off-spinner from Pakistan, created Doosra in the 1990s.
Muttiah Muralitharan, Johan Botha, Harbhajan Singh, Saeed Ajmal and Shoaib Malik are other international bowlers who are capable of delivering the mystery ball.
The left-handed off-spinners including Monty Panesar, Moeen Ali and Ranjana Herath also mastered this art.
When Doosra wasn't yet established, spin bowlers would employ straight bowls in addition to their skill to mislead the batsman.
This means that a right-handed batsman facing a right-arm off-spinner is used to predict a straight or a typical off-spin bowl.
The batsman is more perplexed now that Doosra has been introduced, since he is unsure whether the bowl will be a straight one, an off-spinner or a Doosra.
What is the technique behind a Doosra?
By locking the wrist and using the index and ring fingers instead of the customary index and middle fingers, the bowler moves the ball with the same wrist motion.
For a right-handed batsman, this causes the ball to turn in the opposite direction from that of an off break, from the leg side to the offside.
Doosra should be pitched on the center and off stump lines to increase its viability because, if a right-hander is facing the ball, the ball will move away from the batsman after being thrown.
A skilled Doosra bowler will frequently give a ball some flight to encourage a batsman to step out of the wrinkle.
The batter thinks the ball might be a standard off-spin and steps out of the safety of the crease, losing his wicket to stumping or simply overlooks to edge it to a defender inside the 30-yard circle.
Is it legal to bowl a Doosra?
This delivery cannot be bowled with a straight arm, so there is always a controversy revolving around it.
The delivery was prohibited from being bowled by some bowlers, including Muttiah Muralitharan, Harbhajan Singh, Saeed Ajmal, Johan Botha and Shoaib Malik.
All because the ICC ruled that their bowling actions were not legal.
A bowler may only bend their arm at the elbow joint by a maximum of 15 degrees while bowling, per cricket rules.
While bowling the Doosra, the cricketers mentioned earlier went over this limit.
It is noteworthy that Saqlain Mushtaq, the bowler who made the Doosra popular, received no punishment!
Conclusion
Off-spin bowling of the highest calibre is a delight to watch due to the fascination people have with good flight and drift, which appeals to the eyes, unlike any other bowling technique.
Simply put, it is magical. Off-spin bowling, which has poetry and romanticism unmatched in any other aspect of cricket, is even more interesting because of Doosra.
The deadly combination of such beauty and deception has been the ultimate weapon of all off-spinners.
They deceive the batters into a false sense of security, beating them both in the air and off the wicket as well.
May the flighters and drifters bring more glory to the game of cricket and never cease to astound us with their art and magic!
