5 reasons why spinners bowl with the new ball

#2 To take pace off the ball during the powerplay overs in ODIs and T20s

Mohammad Hafeez of Pakistan used to bowl regularly with the new ball in limited-overs cricket

The new ball is used more regularly by the spinners in limited-overs cricket in comparison to the longest format. In ODIs and T20Is, though, the pitch is not always a factor in captains opting to give the slower bowlers a run-in with the brand new white ball.

During the powerplay overs in both ODI and T20I cricket, the batsmen prefer to face the quick bowlers as the ball comes on to the bat nicely and they can make full use of the fielding restrictions. However, with a spinner operating, they are forced to hit the ball harder due to lesser pace on the ball thereby creating an opportunity for the bowling side.

Former New Zealand captain Martin Crowe was perhaps the first skipper to use this tactic when he let off-spinner Dipak Patel open the bowling. Pakistani all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez, who is presently banned from bowling his off-spin, regularly bowled with the new ball in limited-overs cricket.