Now, 41 Tests and 97 one-day internationals later, he is Sri Lanka's key bowler in both forms of the game, a magician with a rubbery wrist and a naturally bent bowling arm who could turn the ball off marble. Saqlain Mushtaq's wicket-taking for Surrey and wonderful variety of delivery have caused many to laud him as the master of his craft, but he has yet to emulate Muralitharan's performances in Test cricket - 187 victims at four and a half per match. Nor does the Pakistani spin the ball as much.

So how does Murali, as his team-mates know him, get so much spin? The disbelievers protest that no one can do so without chucking, for which Muralitharan was called by Darrell Hair in the Melbourne Test of 1995-96 and again, more infamously 10 days later, by Ross Emerson in a Brisbane World Series match. But this cynicism infuriates Dav Whatmore, then coach of Sri Lanka and now of Lancashire.

``If you study his action - and I mean closely - you'll be amazed,'' promises Whatmore. ``His wrist rotation is unmatched in the history of the game. That's the area which generates all the spin that is imparted. With most off-spinners, you'll find that the ball starts off rotating quickly, but by the time it reaches the other end, its revs are right down. Not so in his case that's why you fancy him to spin it on any surface.''

Whatmore admits that it was a ``shattering'' experience for Muralitharan first to be no-balled in front of 55,000 people and later by Emerson even when he resorted to leg-breaks. Whatmore still does not rule out conspiracy theories, and points to the fact that not only did ICC clear Muralitharan but so did an independent inquiry by the University of Western Australia. In that, he was filmed from six different angles at 1,000 frames per second.

Peter Willey, one of the English panel of Test umpires, recently told Whatmore that he was perfectly happy with Muralitharan's action. ``That action should be applauded and developed,'' professes Whatmore. ``It nearly rotates through 60 per cent. Why do you want to stop a person performing a skill like that?''

To protect South African and English batsmen for a start. ``They'll have problems with him - in both the one-days and the Test, that's for sure,'' predicts Whatmore. ``It's very difficult to hit the rotating ball.''

Australia found that out in the last World Cup final when Muralitharan, who has an overall one-day economy rate of four an over, conceded just 31 from his 10 overs. That was on a turning pitch, but on surfaces here there is no sign that he is any less effective. Indeed, he took 18 wickets last month against Glamorgan and Leicestershire, and as many as 102 of his 129 one-day international victims have been claimed outside Sri Lanka.

Muralitharan says that he prefers a pitch to offer bounce rather than turn. ``I can get more bat-pad catches and lbws if it hurries on,'' he says. Thanks to his wrist rotation, he can extract extraordinary bounce for a man of his height.

Jon Dakin, who made a fifty against him for Leicestershire, recalls with awe one ball Muralitharan bowled. ``It was almost long-hop length and I was shaping to pull it, when it suddenly jumped at me and I was forced to play it defensively in front of my chest.''

Muralitharan's other great strength is his variety. He bowls a quicker ball that Dakin describes as almost medium pace, and a top-spinner that Whatmore rates very highly. ``And I think you'll find he's developed the Saqlain Mushtaq delivery and that he's got wickets with it - the one that mysteriously goes towards first slip with no discernible change of action.'' Batsmen beware.

SSource :: Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk)

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