Bowlers please tell me; what is exactly so scary about bowling around the wicket?

I've played club cricket and kept wicket for over 20 summers. I've watched dozens if not hundreds of bowlers from the prime position behind the stumps yet only a few have bowled round the wicket.

And those that have are mostly left arm spinners.

This article is part 1 of a 2 part series. To go to part 2 click here

Is there anything more demoralising on the cricket field than the opposition building a big partnership?

It seems no matter what anyone tries, 2 batsman have got themselves set and are going about the business of scoring runs with scant regard for the 11 men trying their hardest to break their grip.

Imagine a typical dot ball.

Perhaps you are thinking of the opening batsman shouldering arms to a ball outside off stump. Maybe you picture a workmanlike off-spinner having a good length ball pushed back with a textbook forward defensive.

The dot is the DNA of cricket. It happens when nothing else happens. It's part of the unique rhythm of the game. The bit that people who don't understand it scratch their heads and say "this is boring".

This is a guest article by Laurie Ward from The Complete Cricketer Academy in Cape Town, South Africa.

Different conditions and match situations require different lengths of bowling.

To be a good bowler you need to know when to make a change to your length, and how to make it.

Everyone agrees: You can't set a field for bad bowling.

Like a lot of one-line advice, it's more of a guideline because there are always exceptions. It's the cricketing equivalent of "I before E, except after C".

It doesn't matter if you bowl occasional leg spin or you open for a Premier League team; you want to bowl a good length.

Consist accuracy is one of the non-negotiable Laws of bowling success.

In the past coaches have always stuck to the mantra of 'putting the batsman in 2 minds'.

Picture the scene; you are playing in a English declaration game. The weather is set fair and after batting first you have enjoyed an excellent tea.

The opposition start well, but lose a flurry of quick wickets. With 6 over to go 22 runs are needed but numbers 10 and 11 are at the wicket.

So they shut up shop, batting out to save the draw.

Some say bowling is a 'god given' skill. Those rare few with the talent for it are the only ones who can succeed.

Bowling ability isn't bestowed by a higher power at birth. It's the result of 5 simple things, all within the reach of anyone wanting to be successful with the ball.

Recently I arrived early for a net session and a young left arm seamer was there alone bowling at the stumps.

I watched him for a few minutes and his length seemed to vary quite a bit. As I knew him quite well I wandered up and asked him where he was aiming to pitch the ball.

 This is part of a series on how to exploit batsman's weaknesses. To see the other weaknesses click here.

Talk to any school cricketer about gripping the bat and Vs and he will know what you mean. Everyone knows how to grip a cricket bat.

But players of all ages still get the top hand position wrong.