How an English woman accidentally invented overarm bowling

Apr 26, 2016 at 4:53 PM

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How an English woman accidentally invented overarm bowling

In the beginning, all bowlers in the cricket history used to deliver the ball underarm. It’s true, to the modern mind this will conjure up images of children’s games, but in reality, the best bowlers could impart great spin on the ball, and also deliver it at quite a lethal pace.

During the early part of the 19th century, the balance between a batsman and a bowler swung drastically in favour of the batsman, even though poor pitches maintained the scores downward. To counter this imbalance, bowlers then started searching for something to redress the balance.

And finally there was a way – it came through natural evolution rather than any conscious decision – the emergence of round-arm bowling with the ball delivered at or below shoulder height, revolutionised the art of bowling.

The popular story claims that this revolutionized bowling action came about when Christina Willes, sister of Kent cricketer John Willes, was bowling at him in their garden, and not being able to bowl underarm due to the voluminous skirts which were the fashion of that time, she suddenly raised her arm higher than usual.

More likely, it came through persistent experimentation, and Hambledon’s Tom Walker is widely said as being at the forefront of such innovative bowling action. This idea was later backed by the testimony of “Silver Billy” Beldham, who insisted that Willes didn’t invent the style, but actually “revived what was forgotten or new to the young folk” and that “jerking” as it was earlier known had engulfed cricket in the 1780s until outlawed by the Hambledon club.

However, majority of the cricket pundits believe it was Willes who championed the style, and in 1816 the Laws had to be changed to ban round-arm bowling because until then anything other than underarm were not illegal but was certainly regarded ungentlemanly  and according to the new rule umpires were allowed to call no-ball for anyone breaching the law.

On July 15, 1822, Willes bowled round-arm for Kent in a match against MCC at Lords and was subsequently no-balled. Willes burst into anger, threw the ball down, mounted his horse, and rode away, ironically never to play in a major match again. But intentionally or unintentionally, he had started something new, and through the 1820s, round-arm bowling became more prevalent.

By 1826 Sussex, the unofficial champions actually built their cricketing empire on two round-arm bowlers – James Broadbridge and William Lillywhite. But confusion started to increase among players and spectators over what was allowed. On several occasions, it was left to the field umpires, and objections from batsmen facing the round-arm bowlers were common that time.

In 1828, MCC had no other choice but to modify the Laws again. They allowed the bowler to raise the arm to elbow height, but round-farmers continued the new trend, as did the ever growing confusion. Seven years later, after admitting defeat, MCC finally rewrote the Laws to allow round-arm deliveries.

No sooner had that debate surrounding round-arm been ended, the bowling arms began to rise above shoulder height, and in 1845 MCC yet again decided to change the Laws in order to give the umpires more power, as it was mentioned that umpire’s decision was final. Just as had been the case with round-arm, over-arm bowling became more widespread, helped by a number of umpires doing little to prevent it.

The controversy became large on August 26, 1862, when Surrey was playing against All England at The Oval and Edgar Willsher intentionally bowled overarm and interestingly was no-balled six times in a row by umpire John Lillywhite. The irony remains that Lillywhite was the son of the man who around four decades ago led the mission to change the Laws. Willsher and his eight teammates in the England team just walked off and play ended for the day.

Maybe sensing that the tide had turned dramatically, MCC decided to change the Laws in time for the 1864 season, allowing the bowler to do anything other than throwing the ball. But things didn’t change overnight, and round-arm bowlers continued to march on in first-class cricket well into the 20th century, as did the occasional more underarm.

In the modern days of cricket, round-arm bowlers have constantly hit the headlines. Be it Lasith Malinga for his inch-perfect yorkers or Mitchell Johnson for his natural aggression or even the retired Jeff Thompson for the terror he inspired in batsmen. Apart from the infamous underarm delivery bowled by Trevor Chappell, modern cricket has been strictly about overarm bowling since most of us can remember.

But how can we forget, it was first invented on a hot English afternoon when Christina Willes thought bowling roundarm will solve her problem and that moment of crazy brilliance ultimately changed the face of the game forever?

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