Googly masters have batters in a spin

"Everyone knows that Piyush Chawla is coming, he's gonna bowl a wrong one but still I end up getting wickets on wrong ones, so I am more than happy doing that" - spinner Piyush Chawla had declared after a fine bowling performance for Mumbai Indians during the last Indian Premier League season.

- Sanjjeev K Samyal

Adam Zampa could well be making the same statement now, given that he is doing exactly what Chawla does best - bamboozling the batters with the wrong ones at the ongoing World Cup.

After a tough start, the Australia leg-spinner is having quite an impact in the ICC tournament, jumping to the top of the wicket-takers list with 13, including three back-to-back fourwicket hauls (4/47 vs Sri Lanka at Lucknow, 4/53 vs Pakistan at Bengaluru and 4/8 vs Netherlands in Delhi).

Afghanistan's Rashid Khan is another from the same tribe. In the two stunning upset wins that Afghanistan have managed, against England and Pakistan, Rashid has played his part. He had a spell of 9.3-1-37-3 (ER 3.89) helping bowl out England for 215. Pakistan batters didn't take a chance against him and he built the pressure with figures of 10-041-0 (ER 4.10).

Their remarkable performances have brought the focus on this fascinating art as we see the resurgence of the googly bowler, a guy who lives and breathes the wrong ones. The craft termed as leg-break googly is almost like a sixth style of spin bowling after the Off-spinner, Left-arm spin, Leg-spinner, Chinaman bowler and Mystery bowler.

The art