Movement variability in elbow and wrist kinematics of new ball outswing bowling in cricket fast bowlers

This study investigated between-bowler movement variability of wrist and elbow kinematics during new ball swing bowling. A 3D motion analysis system captured the bowling action and ball trajectory of 11 pre-elite and elite fast bowlers delivering outswing. Kinematics were normalised to 100% of the delivery stride between back foot contact and ball release. A statistical parametric mapping approach using one-way ANOVAs investigated inter-individual movement variability. Significant differences were found in all kinematic parameters except for wrist radial/ulnar deviation angular velocity with bowlers using small amounts in either direction at the beginning of the phase. This study highlights that high-level athletic performance can be achieved using different movement variations and future research should include individual analyses of fast bowlers.