A yorker is the most potent weapon in the bowling arsenal of a bowler. If executed with perfection, it not only stops the flow of runs but also helps in picking wickets, primarily as lbw or bowled. Just like every other thing has its advantages and disadvantages, the luxury of a yorker also comes with it’s own demerits. If the bowler misses his length by the smallest of fraction while attempting a yorker, it can turn into a juicy full-toss or an over-pitched delivery which will indeed mark easy pickings for the batsman. Thus, a yorker is rightly called a ‘double-edged sword’ which can very well come to haunt the bowler.
Rather than bowling it first hand during the actual game, bowlers can practice and master the art during the tiring net sessions, keeping them in proper stead before going into the vital encounter. World cricket has seen some amazing bowlers execute the art with near perfection. In the below piece, we look at 5 current limited-overs bowlers, who nail the yorker with perfection:
1. Jasprit Bumrah
Known as a ‘yorker specialist’, it is the same art that has helped him in rising through the ranks and become the vital cog in the Indian lineup across all the formats.
The man perfected the art under the auspicious presence and guidance of Lasith Malinga, his team-mate at the Mumbai Indians. Using the traditional shoe technique to mark the spot to be hit, Bumrah has nailed the yorkers with perfection and made a light work of opposition stumps.
The dismissals of KL Rahul and Dhawan at the recently concluded IPL, where the bowler rattled the stumps with his express pace and the yorker length, were an evident illustration of the impeccability with respect to executing yorker.
While we normally don’t see the length being bowled in the multi-day format, Bumrah can just spring a surprise by executing the yorker length and demolishing opposition stumps in the gruelling series to follow.
2. Mitchell Starc
The left-arm pacer from Australia is known for hitting the blockhole at a menacingly brisk pace and doing the shattering work for the opposition. His athletic body and fitness help him to master both the art and perform it on a consistent basis.
There is no better sight in world cricket than watching a confident and aggressive Starc steaming into bowl and executing the yorker length with absolute sublimity. In recent times, he hasn’t been able to exemplify a similar performance with the ball and is seen shelling out plenty of full tosses and freebies.
In the view of the skipper and selectors, it is just that phase that every bowler goes through and it is a matter of a single performance that Starc will be back at his best.
The management does trust him and consider him an integral member of the fearsome pace attack. He will definitely find his lost rhythm and come out as a better form of himself, nailing the yorkers and all the variations and leading the illustrious pace attack for Australia.
3. Jofra Archer
This tall, deceptively quick Barbados-born Englishman is the country’s best find till date, who can do no wrong with the ball at the moment. His presence has added the X-factor to the England bowling attack which was lacking a few years ago and the very reason they couldn’t go the distance at the ICC tournaments.
When it comes to yorkers, Archer pulls it off with aplomb and lands it perfectly at the block hole. It is his pace that does the trick as batsmen more often than not are late in reacting to the ball. The bat doesn’t come down at the right time and hence, the stumps are send flying.
4. Kagiso Rabada
This naturally gifted athlete from South Africa is rightly turning heads with his mind-boggling performances and execution of different skills at the highest level.
We saw Rabada bowling the yorkers while plying his trade for DC at the recently concluded IPL. The pacer bowled it flawlessly during the backend of the innings and made it tough for the batsmen to score hefty runs at the death.
Most of the times, it is nailed in front of the stumps, but Rabada also tries to frustrate and entice the batsman by bowling it wide off-stump. His ability to hit the blockhole and bowl other variations made the job easier for skipper Iyer, who just had to provide the requisite field and hope for wickets.
5. Thangarasu Natarajan
The left-armer from Tamil Nadu is enjoying a dream phase in his cricketing career, where everything asked for is coming true. It is the same golden delivery that has earned him a place in India’s limited-overs side on the tour of Australia. He did perform well in the whole tour.
Natarajan bowled the highest number of yorkers at IPL 2020 and played a key role in Sunrisers’s astonishing turnaround in the latter half of the tournament. Not gifted with express pace, Natarajan fills the void with his immaculate line and length and the ability to bowl the yorker on a consistent basis.
The wicket of modern-day genius, de Villiers to a perfectly nailed yorker in the Eliminator clash against RCB in IPL 2020 was the highlight of his show at this year’s IPL. Inspite of the pressure and tension playing for the country in front of a jam-packed crowd.
Natarajan has left a stellar impact in his debut series down under and India’s long quest for a seaming left-arm bowler has been finally put to rest. With age and experience, the yorker will become even more sharp and dreadful, probably getting its name changed from the ‘yorker’ to ‘Natarajan’ delivery.
