8 Bowlers with the weirdest bowling actions ever

8 Bowlers with the weirdest bowling actions ever: Some bowlers take us by complete surprise. If the surprise is good enough, they also are awkward to handle for the batsmen, and if it is really something worth taking a note of, they keep doing that all the time and no matter how many times the batsmen try to read them, they keep bagging the wickets. Here are 8 such bowlers whose bowling actions made their deliveries look more complicated than rocket science! The 8 Bowlers with the weirdest bowling actions ever: 1. Paul Adams, South Africa: Paul Adams. (© Getty Images) Described as a ‘frog in a blender’ by Mike Gatting, the Protean bowler Paul Adams sure had one of the weirdest bowling actions in the world of cricket. A left arm spinner, Adams deceived many batsmen with his Chinaman which was a child’s play for him because of the natural movement of his left hand. Because of this very reason, he bagged 138 wickets in 45 test matches. Also Read – Top 10 Tallest Bowlers in International Cricket 2. Colin Croft, West Indies: Colin Croft. (© Getty Images) Known for his ‘whirling’ bowling, Colin Croft was a Caribbean fast bowler who was known for his fast deliveries that would pitch at a certain angle to right handed batsmen and the delivery would then travel sharper in the direction. For achieving this effect, Croft bowled from the edge of the box. 3. Sohail Tanvir, Pakistan: Sohail Tanvir. (Photo Source: Twitter) Sohail Tanvir created some buzz in the IPL thanks to his weird steps and the immediate body movement at the end of his run up which makes the batsman difficult to keep a hawk-eye on his hand that holds the ball. Tanvir seems to bowl while he is still running! Needless to say, it has got him a lot of wickets in a very little time. 4. Muttiah Muralitharan, Sri Lanka: Muttiah Muralitharan has one of the weirdest bowling actions. (© Getty Images) Muralitharan is the Sri Lankan spinner who went on to become a legend with his unique arsenal that never failed to surprise the batsmen. Murali’s style was weird because unlike most of the bowlers, he would bowl with his whole body facing the batsman at the time of delivering the ball (add to it his terrifying facial expressions that could make one lose his heart). It made the batsmen fall in dilemma as to how much would the ball turn. Most of the times, this mystery would remain unsolved until the ball hit the stumps or nicked and rested in Sangakarra’s gloves. 5. Abdul Qadir, Pakistan: Abdul Qadir. (Photo Source: PA Photos) Often dubbed as a cunning fox by the Indian media for his bowling that often managed to make the batsman stand in surprise at the wicket, Qadir was one of the first few bowlers from the Indian subcontinent who knew how to use the topographical conditions to his advantage. His leg spin bowling was characterized by a sudden arm movement and the doosra which would make a well set batsman flip. 6. Mike Procter, South Africa: Mike Procter. (Photo Source: The Cricketer International) One of the finest South African bowlers ever, Mike Procter had a very weird way of ending his run up. His steps would fall in the most unanticipated places which would in turn make it hard for the batsman to anticipate how would he deliver the ball. The jump also helped him pitch the ball shorter and yet get some useful swing a little after the batsman would just drop the idea of having to play a swing. That was the magic. 7. Jeff Thomson, Australia: Jeff Thomson. (Photo Source:ESPNcricinfo Ltd) The Aussie bowler was well known for his fast-as-flash action when he would come closer to the box to deliver the ball. Thomson used the conventional style of swinging his arm as much as he could towards the ground to get maximum speed. What was unusual was the acceleration he would pick up in the few final steps to jump and release the ball like a bullet. The ball generally made the batsman look in amazement, after pitching when it would rise like a swallow. 8. Shivil Kaushik, India: Shivil Kaushik. (Photo Source: BCCI) A young 20-year old bowler took the cricket world by surprise with his Chinaman bowling on his IPL debut playing for the Gujarat Lions. With an action similar to that of Paul Adams, Shivil Kaushik runs in smoothly moves his body in the direction of the cover fielder and head towards mid-off at the onset of delivering the ball. He is a back-of-the-hand bowler which comes out as a Chinaman, sometimes googly and at other times just whips through as a top spinner. He himself admits that he has no clue over where the ball would turn and go! Also Read – Top 10 fastest deliveries ever bowled in international cricket