The Cricketer vs the Merlyn by BOLA

The Cricketer team headed down to the MCC Cricket Academy at Lord’s to try out the four bowling machines on offer from BOLA

Merlyn by BOLA was dreamt up in the mid-2000s in some desperation. England had gone almost 18 years without winning an Ashes series – and the batsmen were routinely flummoxed by the extravagant turn generated by Shane Warne.

The ECB contacted Henry Pryor, who had invented a machine to replicate spin bowling, to bridge the English knowledge gap. Soon the Merlyns, co-produced between Pryor and Nye Williams from BOLA, were being shipped out to the shires. Every player on every county staff can now hone their game with one. And given that they report back for pre-season training some time before Christmas, many of them are probably at it right now.

“I honestly believe the reason England are better than playing spin than they have ever been is down to Merlyn,” says James Taylor, who was regarded as one of England’s finest players of spin before being forced into retirement in spring 2016.

The Merlyn has been updated for 2017. The new model has an LED a simulation of a spinner releasing the ball – so the batsmen has a better idea of when the ball is being sent down – accompanied by a bleep.

While Merlyn cannot recreate the complexity of a bowler’s wrist or hand position, this does force the batsman to watch the drift, the seam and the revolutions as the ball comes down – crucial aspects of playing spin.

And the Merlyn is superior to a human in some respects – it puts more revs on the ball, and it can switch between leg-spin, off-spin or left‑arm. Facing Merlyn for 15 minutes or so, you do find yourself grooving your head and feet position.

All things I should have been doing as a young lad, but clearly wasn’t.