A spinner’s bouncers being one of the major talking points across an IPL season might be unusual, but in 2026, it’s not surprising. As batting has evolved, bowlers have had to respond in kind. For spinners, Krunal Pandya is leading the charge.
Last year, it was discussed in these pages how Pandya had been one of IPL’s best defensive spinners for a decade but had largely flown under the radar. RCB’s first-ever title win - where Pandya played a significant role throughout the season, including picking up 2-17 while defending 190 in the final - has put some much-deserved spotlight on him. A spotlight he seems to be enjoying.
While keeping the runs down has always been his forte, for the first time in 11 IPL seasons, Pandya has a bowling strike rate under 15. From RCB’s first five games in 2026, he has taken seven wickets, conceding 9.17 runs per over when other bowlers have been 16.3 per cent more expensive in the same five games. Pandya is now combining the best of both worlds, thanks largely to his ever-expanding bag of tricks.
The bouncer has been in Pandya’s armoury for a while, but he only started using it regularly since last year. A helmet-less Venkatesh Iyer was treated with some chin music in the season-opener, setting the tone for what was to come. Pandya bowled or attempted at least 12 bouncers through IPL 2025, taking two wickets off them: those of Deepak Chahar and Will Jacks. This season, he has already bowled or attempted at least 16 bouncers and has one wicket - that of Shimron Hetmyer - to show for it.
In an interview with ESPNcricinfo before the start of IPL 2026, Pandya explained his rationale for his conscious shift: “I did bowl bouncers before as well, but not more than a couple in previous seasons. But this IPL [2025], I was very clear that I wanted to use that as a weapon. And it actually comes from a thought process [about] how cricket is evolving, how batsmanship overall is evolving, where the margin [of error] is so small, so as a bowler you have to keep adding new things, new varieties, in your bowling and [seeing] how you can be one step ahead. So it was not that I just turned up and I bowled a bouncer. It was a very well thought-out plan that I had made getting into the IPL, where I wanted to use that ball. At the start of the season I told our spin-bowling coach, Malolan [Rangarajan], that I want to get a wicket on my bouncer and that's my goal this year.”
Pandya has not only had success with the fast-bowler-like short balls that take batters by surprise. He has also developed a slingy, side-armer, à la Kedar Jadhav and Riyan Parag, which he delivers with a collapsed action. But unlike Jadhav and Parag, Pandya is able to impart a lot of pace on his side-arm balls, which is both extremely difficult to execute from that height, and just as difficult to line-up. Even beyond the side-armers and bouncers, his quicker balls have gone consistently beyond the 110 kph mark this season, amounting to nearly one-third of all his deliveries.
And while his length, speed, and trajectory variations have been the talk of the town, Pandya’s stock ball has quietly become a more potent wicket-taking option. The knowledge that some funky new trick might be coming soon has led batters to take more risks off his stock ball, which has resulted in an increase in economy rate from 7.6 to 9.9, but also a significant drop in strike rate from 19.6 to 12.6.
What can batters do to counter Krunal’s variations?
The trade-off with bowling multiple types of deliveries is that while it increases the surprise quotient, it also usually reduces accuracy because it becomes naturally hard to master multiple variations. Different types of deliveries also almost always require a change in some part of the bowler’s action, presenting opportunities for batters to pick up cues and anticipate what’s coming. The most elite bowlers are either adept at minimising these cues when using their variations, or, like in the case of Pandya’s RCB-teammate Josh Hazlewood, bluff the batters by giving false cues.
As far as Pandya’s variations go, he bowls two different types of short balls/bouncers: one with a similar load-up as his stock delivery, and another where his leading arm doesn’t go as far back in the load-up as it normally does. Let’s call the former ‘Type 1 bouncer’ and the latter ‘Type 2 bouncer’.
At this stage, it’s next to impossible for the batter to guess that a Type 1 bouncer might be coming based on the visual cues. But a difference in the position of Pandya’s leading arm could be an indication of an incoming Type 2 bouncer.
As he gets further into his bowling stride, Pandya presents another opportunity for the batter to pick up on the variation. His front leg does not go as far across to the left as it does when he’s about to bowl a stock ball. Luckily for the batter, this is true across both types of bouncers.
Essentially, the unstretched front leg is a result of him trying to rush through his action to generate the pace required for the bouncer. So even if the batter has missed specific cues like the position of his leading arm or front leg, a discernible change in the general swiftness with which Pandya is rushing through his action should give them an indication.
Pandya doesn't finish his follow-through with a complete rotation of the front-arm when bowling the bouncer either, but by then, it’s already too late for the batter. Either they would have picked up cues earlier in his action and adjusted accordingly, or would have to react after the ball has been delivered. Even in the former case, perfect execution would be tough because the trajectory of Pandya’s bouncers are different from that of a traditional fast-bowler’s. And it shows in the numbers: only one of his attempted bouncers so far has been hit for a controlled six - by LSG’s Ayush Badoni, who got inside the line of the ball and hooked it over the ropes. Ayush Mhatre also hit a six off Pandya’s bouncer, but that came off a top-edge.
Beyond the changes in his action, there are also a few patterns to Pandya’s usage of the short ball. Cricviz data shows at least 18 of his 29 attempted short balls/bouncers since IPL 2025 have been against left-handers. The natural angle across the lefties from round the wicket makes it an attractive option for the bowler. Pandya also has the tendency to bowl a bouncer first-up to a new batter, particularly if he has taken a wicket off the previous ball. Two of his three wickets off bouncers/attempted bouncers have succeeded wicket-taking deliveries.
While Pandya claimed that there was no pattern to his usage of the short ball in his interview with ESPNcricinfo, dishing out a variation like this, bowled 20 per cent quicker than what the new batter is expecting, is a smart move in theory, and has so far been effective in practice.
With the side-arm ball, the visual cues for the batter come very early, as Pandya collapses his midriff to effectively shorten his height. That should prepare them for a quicker one, often upwards of 110 kph. But Pandya has the ability to get back up in his delivery stride and bowl from close to his usual height. To add to that, he has shown the ability to bowl different lengths, lines, and angles while delivering from a lower release point, making it extremely difficult for batters to identify a pattern and get on top of his variations. For now, the best they can do is hope he errs in the process of experimentation, or react quickly enough after the ball is released and make use of the pace on offer.
This does not mean that Pandya has become invincible, though. He bowled only five overs across the first two games this season and conceded 62 runs. Even in RCB's fifth game, against LSG, he conceded 23 runs off his first 10 balls. His (relatively) slower stock ball has become the bait now, particularly on flatter surfaces which offer no hold or turn, as that offers something predictable for batters to latch onto. That, in essence, is the trade-off with having a range like that.
Krunal Pandya’s variations have given him an edge few spinners currently possess. But they also come with a clock. For now, batters are reacting, but with more sample size and closer scrutiny, they will soon start anticipating. When they do, the onus will be back on Pandya to find the next set of variations before the current ones stop working. And knowing the street-smart cricketer that he is, he is unlikely to stand still for long.
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