South African pacer Kwena Maphaka has stunned the cricketing world with his ability to generate incredible speeds while still in his teens. His action could hold the key to how – he ticks more than a few crucial biomechanical boxes. Read more here.
After the first T20I between South Africa and Pakistan on Tuesday (December 10), a screenshot from the match broadcast did the rounds on social media; a list of the fastest deliveries bowled in the match.
Perched atop it was South Africa's left-arm pacer Kwena Maphaka – no mean feat when Haris Rauf and Shaheen Shah Afridi were bowling in the same match. Maphaka clocked 151.6 kmph; regularly bowls in excess of 145 kmph; and picked up the wicket of Babar Azam in the first T20I – all at the age of 18.
Imagine being 18 and that fast 🤌💨 #SAvPAK pic.twitter.com/0L2lhj6MEJ
— naeemah (@NaeemahBenjamin) December 10, 2024
Maphaka is far from the finished article, but his ability to consistently bowl at high speeds has helped fast-track him throughout his career. He represented South Africa at two U19 World Cups, aged 15 and 17, and is the senior side's youngest-ever player in the T20I format. He stands a chance of accomplishing the same in ODIs and Tests later this month.
A clip of Maphaka's performance in a first-class match also emerged on Thursday, in which he – there is no other word for it – terrorised the opposition batters.
But how exactly does it all work? How does Maphaka generate such extreme pace, and... could he get even quicker?
In its most basic form, fast bowling is a simple phenomenon. Bowlers generate momentum through their run up, before suddenly bringing their lower half to a halt at the bowling crease. Their top half carries on, causing a natural bending of the back and allowing them to almost slingshot the ball forwards.
Maphaka's speed doesn't come from any extraordinary strength. He is of a fairly regular build, and not much taller than average either. His run up is not overly long or quick – he bounds in and gradually ramps up as he gets closer to the crease, like most other pacers.
It's in his delivery stride, after his jump, that Maphaka ticks a few significant biomechanical boxes. The first comes as he lands on his left (back) foot.
Fast bowlers are generally advised to keep their back-foot contact with the ground to a minimum. The longer the back foot stays on the ground, the more momentum is lost.
Maphaka's body orientation as he lands on the back foot means he rarely has to think consciously about this. As he hits the turf, his torso, and entire upper body, are leaning forward, in front of his back leg.
His upper body weight going forwards at this instant effectively serves to drag his back foot off the ground far quicker than a bowler who may be upright or even leaning back at the same instant in their action. This reduces the contact time with the ground, making sure he loses less momentum.
The second is at his landing at the crease, or front foot contact. Maphaka lands with a straightened knee, something coaches refer to as a braced front leg (i.e., the knee joint is "locked" or "braced"). This is desirable in order to generate speed, as it ensures a smooth transfer of momentum from the ground up through the bowler's body. Bowlers with bent front knees can end up interrupting that flow, and losing out slightly on speed.
This in itself is not unique. Many fast bowlers have this, but on occasion will end up bending the knee just after landing and before release, in order to alleviate the physical stress caused by a straight-leg landing.
Maphaka, on the other hand, manages to keep his leg straight throughout, even bending it ever so slightly backwards as he completes delivering the ball. It's impossible to know from just observation, but this may be down to him being born with the natural ability to hyperextend that joint.
This has the effect of not only ensuring the smooth momentum transfer, but also giving him a more stable base on which to propel his upper body forwards.
The third, and perhaps most extreme, contributor to his searing pace is Maphaka's shoulder position when he lands at the bowling crease.
According to a 2012 study funded by the ECB and carried out by Worthington et al, there is evidence that "delaying the onset of arm circumduction (larger shoulder angle at front foot contact) enables bowlers to release the ball at faster speeds.
"A larger shoulder angle at FFC gives a larger range of motion at the shoulder over which to generate ball speed and may also allow greater torques to be exerted about the shoulder."
In simpler terms, the more a bowler can bend their shoulder behind them when they land, the more likely they are to release the ball quicker. This is because their shoulder has to rotate more quickly to cover a larger arc in the time between landing and release – adding momentum to the ball.
At front foot contact, Maphaka's shoulder is drawn back in quite extraordinary fashion – it's almost like a contortionist putting on an exhibition of human flexibility.
A rough estimate of the angle Maphaka's bowling arm creates with the horizontal would be about 25 to 30 degrees. In the fraction of a second between landing and release, his arm will generate an incredible amount of force as it swings from here, up to the point of release.
What does the future look like?
Raw pace is always exhilarating to watch – and Maphaka is no different. The way he's able to do it at this age is fascinating, and it's frightening to think that in the years to come, he will likely put on more weight and develop more muscle. Combine that with the multiple aspects of his action that help him generate such pace, and he could really show us what the human body is capable of, shattering more than a few records and speed guns along the way.
He's also likely to mature as a bowler, and harness his skills in a more effective fashion. This aspect of bowling can be taught – pace cannot, which makes his gift at this age so exciting.
Like any fast bowler, Maphaka also runs the risk of injury, and his workload will need to be carefully monitored. Fortunately, Cricket South Africa have been right on top of that – Maphaka was given a CSA-issued logbook at the age of 16, in which he is meant to record deliveries bowled in the nets and in matches, allowing coaches and support staff to monitor him closely.
He will also be part of the Rajasthan Royals for the next three IPL seasons, and has a contract with their sister franchise, Paarl Royals, in SA20. The Royals group has become something of a talent factory of late, with Yashasvi Jaiswal and Dhruv Jurel just two of the young players to have benefitted from the talent development system. Joined-up thinking across the shared ownership should help keep the player and coaches on the same page as well.
The world is at Kwena Maphaka's feet, and much is in his favour at this point in time. How high can he go?
Images and footage credit: YouTube / @WindiesCricket
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