The Bowling Match

When a team opens its bowling, (the opponents are simultaneously opening their batting), they put their fast bowlers first. Two fast bowlers open the bowling. They bowl for about 6 overs each.  Since the ball is initially hard, it does not spin much.

The fast bowler's job is to get as many early wickets (batsmen out) as possible and make inroads into the opposing line-up. This would severely put the opposition into trouble. The bowlers use their arsenal of speed, swing, seam and cutters in use.

After 12-15 overs the spinners come to bowl. Spinners like the soft ball as it turns more. Usually the fast bowlers bowl the initial 15 overs, then the spinners and medium pace bowlers come between the 15 and 30 overs to bowl.

After that the initial seamers return at the 30 to 50th overs to complete their quota of 10 overs. There is no fixed rule as to when a bowler can bowl, as long as he bowls a max 10 overs and NO 2 consecutive overs. It is up to the captain to make this decision.

Objectives

The main objective of the bowler is to take wickets. Usually the batting order is such that the best players bat first. If you take wickets, it exposes the not-so-good batsmen. This results in the opposition score being kept low.

The second objective of the bowler is to keep his economy rate low. Economy rate is the number of runs scored of his bowling per over he bowls. If he succeeds in keeping the economy rate below 3 an over for say 4 of his overs, this would create some pressure on the batsman to score runs. Then two things can happen: A 6 or some 4's are hit, to ease the pressure; or the batsman plays a rash stroke, thus getting out.

The third objective of a bowler, is to limit the number of wides and no-balls he bowls.

Line & Length

The bowler must bowl a tight line and length. The best line would be pitching the ball just outside the off stump. On the TV, this would mean that the ball passes between the batsman's bat and body.

The ideal length to bowl is the good length balls, which bounce around the batsman's waist level. At this height, it is difficult for the batsman's to free his arms to hit the ball. But bowlers should also mix the length, ie. vary the bounce so that the batsman doesn't get settled. A bouncer (above the head) can unsettle the batsman.

The bowler can also bowl a surprise speed ball, at a slower/faster speed than he normally bowls. Such surprises often result in a wicket falling.

Bowling First

If the team is bowling first, taking wickets helps in slowing the opposition get a huge score. As the batsmen are looking to put up a decent total, the bowlers must bowl accurately. The best line the bowlers bowl is that the ball passes just outside the off-stump.

After the 15 overs are up, the game slows down a bit. There aren't too many boundaries hit. After the 35^th over, the batsman are again looking to hit out, so here the most experienced bowlers bowl. The last 15 overs are known as the SLOG or DEATH overs. As the batsman is looking to hit as many big hits as possible, bowlers get hit around. This is also the most productive part of the game for the bowlers as wickets tumble here.

Bowling Second

If the batsmen have scored above 250 runs, the bowlers have a good total to defend. They try and be as miserly as possible in letting runs being scored. Taking wickets is crucial to win the match, as the more wickets the opposition have in hand (not out batsmen), greater chances of the batsmen scoring runs rapidly.  If the bowlers are defending less than 200 runs, wicket taking is imperative to win the match.

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