Glenn McGrath is bewildered by the lack of yorkers in one-day cricket.
The World Cup started with a predictable glut of runs as pundits point to bat sizes, ground sizes and fielding restrictions in explaining the trend of ballooning totals.
McGrath agreed the latter had a lot to answer for.
“You can only have four out. It means scores are going to be higher,” said McGrath, the leading wicket-taker in World Cup history with 71 scalps.
However the metronome, whose accuracy with the white ball helped Australia win the one-day tournament in 1999, 2003 and 2007, feels there is more to it than that.
Six teams at the World Cup have already posted totals of at least 300.
Australia compiled an imposing total of 9-342 last Saturday, but only after England leaked 76 runs in the final six overs.
England butchered their death bowling, dropping it short and mucking up their lines as Glenn Maxwell and Brad Haddin scored easily and quickly.
McGrath felt it represented a trend around the world and called on more pacemen to opt for the tried-and-tested yorker during the tournament.
“It still comes down to execution,” McGrath said.
“The final 10 overs – if you can bowl good yorkers at will and pretty much hit them, you’re going to be successful.
“It seems that because people have brought the ramp in, bowling yorkers at the death is a dying art. Which just bewilders me.
“New shots have come in and things like that, but I feel like I could have combated that.”
McGrath also questioned the need for a crackdown on sledging and on-field behaviour, saying for the most part umpires controlled the situation and players knew what they could get away with.
“If you replay an incident 27 times, it looks worse than it is,” McGrath said.
“I’ve never thought sledging is a big issue.
“It’s something that being Australian, you’re very up front about. You don’t try to hide it or go about it in sneaky ways.
“It’s one thing other teams have always felt they could have a go at us about, because we did pretty well in all other areas.”
ak
Roar Guru
Fast bowling itself is a dying art. I have written an article on THE ROAR on that some time back.
Jo M
Guest
That's exactly what my son said also. He is/has been known for his inswinging yorker since he was probably 11 or 12 years old, but he says they aren't that easy to bowl and if you don't get it 100% it is 4 or 6 depending on what ground you are playing on and that is what he tells people who tell him to bowl it more often.
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
Yep! That's it in a nutshell. If you get it dead right it's a great ball if the batsman isn't looking to ramp you, but these days more and more batsmen are, and if you don't get it dead right, more batsmen are adept at smashing low full-tosses and very full half-volleys than in the past. In McGrath's time the low full-toss was commonplace, deemed hard to hit. Bowlers would aim at yorkers but prefer to err on the side of the low full-toss. These days batsmen have got much better at hitting low full-tosses out of the park, thus reducing the margin for error drastically, even for batsmen who aren't going to try and ramp you. And with just 4 men outside the circle, it's harder to protect all round, meaning that the field you set is often advertising what you are going to try and bowl. You can try and change that up but it's perilous. Bowling a ball that goes against the field may catch the batsman by surprise if they read the field and set up for a certain type of bowling, but if not it just become a bad ball because you don't have protection in the right area of the field.
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
Starc has a pretty decent yorker. Though he probably still needs to bowl it more.
Another Pom in Oz
Guest
Trouble is, if you don't get it right it's either a juicy overpitched full toss or if underdone an even juicier half-volley. Then there's the danger of the ramp shot...
jameswm
Guest
Starc. With reverse inswing at 145kmh.
Targa
Guest
I agree. Apart from Malinga and Southee who has got a decent yorker?
Elma Dudd
Guest
Ahhhh pigeon , who could argue with him on anything he's pointed out there ... What a legend!