Ambidextrous Bowlers

 

In cricket, we have seen cricketers with multiple talents. Some bowlers like Andrew Symonds and Sachin Tendulkar could ball both spin and gentle medium pace. This often left doubts in opponent batsmen’s minds. But times have changed and the cricketing minds are always in search of new plans and ideas. From early times we have seen ambidextrous cricketers. They used to bat with one hand and ball with the other. Players like Saurav Ganguly, Thisara Perera, James Anderson, Stuart Broad, and Kagiso Rabada used to ball with the right hand, but bat with the left. There were some like Zaheer Khan who bowled with his left hand but batted right-handed. But now we are witnessing some other talents in bowlers, who can bowl with both of their hands. This bunch of ambidextrous bowlers may become a boon to their respective teams in the future.

Kamindu Mendis

The Srilankan is primarily a left-handed batsman who plays for Srilanka in all three formats of the game. He has played 16 T20s, 9 ODIs, and 4 Test matches. In as many test matches he has scored 3 centuries and 2 half centuries. He has picked 5 wickets in all formats combined.

Long before he was called up to the national team, Kamindu Mendis was well-known for his special ball-handling abilities. With both arms, he bowls finger spin with precision and skill. Coaches have been impressed by his potential as a bowler who can spin the ball away from both left- and right-handers and use multiple lines of attack against the same batsman in the T20 era.

Kamindu Mendis

Saim Ayub

 Saim Ayub made his PSL debut in 2021 for Quetta Gladiators at the age of 18. He was a highly cherished talent for his consistency and quick run-making capabilities. He averaged 41 in First class career and 26 in T20s. His strike rate was 144 in T20s. But it was not smooth sailing for him in the international arena. He made 309 runs in 23 T20Is with an average of 14.71 and a strike rate of 122. These figures didn’t do justice to his talent showcased in the domestic format. Saim Ayub is an ambidextrous bowler who could bowl right arm medium pace and . But he is only a part-time bowler and has only 1 Test wicket and 2 first-class wickets.

Saim Ayub Bowling in Test Match

Akshay Karnewar

 He is an Indian first-class domestic cricketer who can bowl right-arm off-break and left-arm orthodox spin. He was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore for INR 10 lakh in the 2016 IPL auction. He is also a handy batsman and has scored 695 runs at an average of 34.75. He plays for Vidharbha.

Akshay Karnewar

Nivethan Radhakrishnan

Nivethan Radhakrishnan is an Indian-born Australian cricketer. He is an all-rounder who bats left-handed and possesses the ability to bowl both right-arm and left-arm spin. In 2017 he played for Karaikudi Kaalai in Tamil Nadu Premier League. In 2018 he played for Dindigul Dragons in the tournament. His breakthrough came in 2019 when he played for an Australian Under-16 team in Dubai against Pakistan. In 2020, he received the Bill O'Reilly Medal and also obtained the Basil Sellers Scholarship. He signed his first professional deal with the Tasmanian Tigers in 2021. He was included in Australia's squad for the West Indies 2022 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup in December 2021. On February 18, 2022, he made his Sheffield Shield debut for Tasmania in the 2021–2022 season.

Nivethan Radhakrishnan

 

Yasir Jan

 Throughout its history in cricket, Pakistan has produced several exceptionally talented fast bowlers. The Lahore Qalandars of the Pakistan Super League carried out a talent search in 2016 and discovered Yasir Jan, a 21-year-old fast who can bowl with both arms and generate significant pace with either. Jan is genuinely exceptional. Yasir has agreed to a 10-year developmental contract with Qalandars. However, things have not gone as smoothly for the newcomer. 2018 saw him suffer an injury while bowling, which hampered his career. After his recuperation, he received funding to travel to the UK in 2019 to participate in a Derbyshire club cricket season. After giving some excellent performances in Pakistan, he was given sponsorship to tour Australia in 2020. He experienced a disappointing stress fracture in his lower back at that time.

Yasir Jan