Spin bowling is divided into four different categories, depending on the particular physical technique used. There is virtually no overlap between the two basic bio mechanical techniques of wrist spin and finger spin.
1. Off break – Right-handed with finger spin technique. (e.g. Muttiah Muralitharan, Ravichandran Ashwin)
2. Left-arm orthodox spin – Left-handed with finger spin technique. (e.g. Daniel Vettori, Shakib Al Hasan)
3. Leg break – Right-handed with wrist spin technique. (e.g. Shane Warne)
4. Left-arm unorthodox spin – Left-handed with wrist spin technique. (e.g. Brad Hogg)
Depending on technique, a spin bowler uses either predominant wrist or finger motion to impart spin to the ball around a horizontal axis that is at an oblique angle to the length of the pitch.
This sort of spin means it is also possible for the Magnus effect to cause the ball to deviate sideways through the air, before it bounces. Such deviation is called drift. The combination of drift and spin can make the ball's trajectory complex, with a change of direction at the bounce.
