CRICKET

Off-spin

Off-spin is the most popular method of spin in cricket.

An off-break delivery turns from the off side to the leg side when bowled at a right-handed batsman.

The spin is generated by the first and second fingers of the right hand.

The more revolutions you can put on the ball, the better chance you have of getting more turn when the ball pitches.

STEP ONE

The middle joints of the index and middle fingers are well spread across the seam. The ball rests against the third finger but the thumb has little involvement.

STEP TWO

Turning the wrist and the index finger generate the spin on the ball, turning the ball in a clockwise direction.

Use your first two fingers to give the ball a good "rip" at the point of delivery.

Leg Spin

It may be one of the most difficult skills to master in cricket, but a good leg spinner will almost certainly get plenty of wickets.

Leg spin involves turning a ball off the pitch from the leg-side of a right-handed batsman, to the off-side.

It is often described as wrist spin because, unlike off spinners, the revolutions of the ball are generated by the wrist rather than the fingers.

The top joints of the index and middle fingers are across the seam, with the ball resting between a bent third finger and the thumb.

STEP TWO

As you release the ball, straighten the fingers and much of the work on the ball will be done by the third finger, turning the ball anti-clockwise.

Flick the wrist so that the palm of the hand finishes facing downwards.

Googly

The leg-spinner's prize weapon - bowled properly, a googly is almost undetectable.

A googly, or "wrong'un", is a delivery which looks like a normal leg-spinner but actually turns towards the batsmen, like an off-break, rather than away from the bat.

Unlike a normal leg-break, a googly is delivered out of the back of the hand, with the wrist 180 degrees to the ground.

STEP ONE

Hold the ball as if you're about to bowl a normal leg-break.

The top joints of the index and middle fingers should be across the seam, with the ball resting between a bent third finger and the thumb.

STEP TWO

At the point of release, the palm of your hand should be open upwards, towards the sky, with the back of your hand facing the batsman.

Your wrist should be 180 degrees to the ground, while the seam of the ball should point towards fine leg.

Again, it should be your third finger which does most of the work, turning the ball anti-clockwise on release.

You'll probably find it goes horribly wrong the first few times you give the googly a try, but don't give up.

As the old saying goes, practice makes perfect. Use a tennis ball to help improve the flexibility of your wrist.

Doosra

In Hindi and Urdu, doosra means "second" or "other".

Put simply, the it is the off-spinner's version of the googly.

Over the past five years, the world's top off-spinners have developed the doosra to baffle batsmen.

It looks very similar to a normal off-break, but rather than spin towards the bat, it goes the other way like a leg-break.

The doosra is bowled from the back of the hand with a lot of top-spin, but the wrist still moves in a clockwise direction.

It is a very difficult skill to master so you'll need plenty of practice if you want to learn how to do it.

However, its validity has been called into question because of the number of off-spinners who have been reported to the International Cricket Council for suspect actions bowling the doosra.

Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan, India's Harbhajan Singh and Pakistan's Shoaib Malik have all had to have their actions cleared by the ICC's Human Movement Specialist panel.

Sceptics claim the doosra cannot be bowled with a legitimate bowling action because it is physically impossible to do with a straight arm.

As with all spinners, variation is very important. So remember to change your flight and pace when you're bowling.