CHENNAI: Bowling the slower ball in the death overs of a T20 innings is loaded with risk. If you are targeting the full and dipping variety outside the batter's arc, it's even tougher. Get it wrong by millimetres and you are going to be watching the ball thrown back to you by fans in the stands. It's one of several occupational hazards of bowling in this format. But if you have mastered that art, it's almost like a drug as you watch the dipping ball go underneath the swishing bat for a dot ball.
It's what Lungi Ngidi has mastered over the last few years. In the back end of West Indies's innings in Ahmedabad on Thursday afternoon, Ngidi had the onerous task of sending down the 19th over to a rampaging Romario Shepherd and Jason Holder. They had already displayed their brute power and outstanding hand-eye co-ordination to help them recover from a perilous 7/83 to a respectable 7/163 with two overs remaining. But on a good batting wicket, they needed at least 200 to seriously challenge the Proteas.
Ngidi, though, had other ideas. Having already displayed his various variations earlier in the innings, he landed that dipping slower ball under the batter's bat thrice in as many balls. Shepherd found a streaky boundary but Ngidi bowled five dots. And as many as you could planned for those slower balls, it's very hard to get under them. You have to judge the length, set yourself up, get under the ball and generate enough power to clear the boundary. It's why it's the hardest shot to nail in the game.
It's how Ngidi has become one of the most feared bowlers in this format. What makes it even more of a challenge is the variation in his speeds. On a good day, he can bowl 140 clicks, with change of pace deliveries dipping down to the 115 kph mark.
He explained the art behind his craft to a few journalists after the India-South Africa game in Ahmedabad a few nights ago. The too long; didn't read version is Chennai Super Kings, 2018 and Dwayne Bravo. After the pacer impressed for the national team, he was purchased by the franchise ahead of the 2018 season. But Ngidi wasn't the first choice overseas bowler (they had both Imran Tahir and Dwayne Bravo). So Ngidi spent a lot of time honing his skills in the nets. That's when he decided to pick the West Indian's mind with respect to the slower ball. And the king of deception was more than welcoming in sharing a few tricks of the trade.
"I was at the IPL with (Dwayne) Bravo," he said. "That IPL, it's the only thing I worked on. I didn't play much so I got time to practice it." The then young Ngidi realised the importance of that moment so it's not like he went back to South Africa and forgot about it. Days after going back home, he would be at the nets, practicing it. "
In due course, he became the master of bowling the ball at the same speed but landing it in three different areas of the pitch. "When I got back to South Africa, I just tried to perfect that ball," the 29-year-old said. "It took a while, but over the years, I've realised using different lengths — slower-ball yorker, on length or slower-ball bouncer. So it's three different lengths with the same ball and the batter has got to guess which one's coming next."
And going by what's transpired so far at the World Cup, batters have failed to hit in the death. He has bowled four overs in the phase and he has picked two wickets, bowled 12 dots and only conceded two boundaries. If he can continue to reproduce this form in the business end of the competition, the Proteas know they will make a very strong claim to lay their hands on the Cup, especially with Aiden Markram in murderous form.
