Sport | Cricket
Bowling 140kmph is an art form
Former South African pacer says he wants to teach india to bowl fast and swing it
- By D. Datta, Special to Gulf News
- Published: 00:00 January 23, 2011
- Image Credit: Supplied
- Fannie De Villiers, former South African pace bowler, makes a point during the interview in Johannesburg earlier this month.
Johannesburg: A haul of 95 one-day wickets (from 83 one-day internationals) do not really do justice to his capabilities, but Fannie de Villiers remains one of the most canny swing bowlers from South Africa in the post-apartheid era.
His nagging accuracy even forced Sunil Gavaskar to comment that De Villiers was on a par with Sir Richard Hadlee when it came to accuracy.
Now a popular TV commentator in the Protea country and a successful businessman, Gulf News tracked him down for a no-holds barred cricket discussion in his sprawling bungalow at the Centurion.
De Villiers, needless to say, was at his attacking-best. Excerpts:
GULF NEWS: Will you agree if you are offered the post of the bowling coach for India?
FANNIE DE VILLIERS: Well, I don't think I shall be able to be with them around the year, but I can definitely be a consultant for the Indian team.
I want to introduce a system through which the budding stars can start bowling 140kmph within six months.
I need to have a group of coaches through which I'll impart training regularly and they will start winning matches for India.
You are making it sound like magic...
Not exactly so. But bowling at 140kmph is an art too. You need to know the way.
The Indian fast bowlers who have bowled in this tour are talented but they do not know how to bowl real fast and swing it simultaneously.
Where do you think they are going wrong?
First of all, I do not know what purpose do Ishant Sharma's long hairs serve. If I become the bowling coach of India, the first thing I would ask him is to cut his hair short. He does not look like a cricketer to me.
You know, that's the basic thing, you need to look like a cricketer first. Batting or bowling comes after that.
What is your tip for fast bowlers to succeed on South African wickets?
You need to know how to generate pace and bounce from the wicket and should be able to bounce the batsmen out.
That's the key factor.
You need to bowl a few short-pitched deliveries and use the full-length deliveries to surprise the batsmen.
Also, bowling at 130-135kmph will not help them either. I was initially impressed with Ishant since he is tall. But, after seeing him here in the Test series, I am not impressed.
The Indians had declined to use the UDRS (Umpires Decision Review System) in the Test series. Do you think they did the right thing?
I don't think so. There will be occasions when a wrong decision can be corrected by the use of the UDRS. I know it cannot completely erase all the wrong decisions, but the percentage can be brought down.
In fact, at least 80 per cent of decisions can be corrected by using this system.
If that is the case, why did the Indian board not allow it?
They were driven by the cricketers. I don't think the cricketers should be allowed to influence the game. Life is changing always, it's going through evolutions. Cricket is no exception and the game is undergoing such an evolution right now.
There is no way you can resist the changes.
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