Wrist spin is a style of bowling in the sport of cricket. It refers to the mechanical technique and specific hand movements associated with imparting a particular direction of spin to the cricket ball. The other spinning technique, usually used to spin the ball in the opposite direction, is finger spin.
Wrist spin is bowled by releasing the ball from the back of the hand, so that it passes over the little finger. Done by a right-handed bowler, this imparts an anticlockwise rotation to the ball, as seen from the bowler's perspective; a left-handed wrist spinner rotates the ball clockwise.
Although the biomechanical details of wrist spin are the same for right- and left-handed bowlers, such bowlers are often discussed separately, as the direction in which the ball deviates as it bounces on the cricket pitch is different:
* Right-handed wrist spin is more commonly known as leg spin.
* Left-handed wrist spin is more commonly known as left-arm unorthodox spin or left-arm chinaman.
Notable wrist spinners are Shane Warne, Abdul Qadir, Danish Kaneria, Anil Kumble and Richie Benaud (all leg spinners).
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