Jason Gillespie Hitting Top Form

By Richard Watts
May 6 2007

Jason Gillespie rarely hit the form that has brought him 259 test wickets in his first season with Yorkshire in 2006. This season things appear to be different and Yorkshire fans are seeing him returning to somewhere near his best.

In the Championship in 2006, Gillespie took only 36 wickets at an average of 33.61 and a third of those wickets came in two games.

Over the Winter playing for his native South Australia the quick bowler showed signs that he was getting back to his best with 32 wickets at 27.84. Yorkshire's game with Hampshire saw Gillespie put in some fine spells and at the end of the match he sits top of Yorkshire's bowling with 7 wickets at 16.28.

Even more of a bonus is that thanks to his unbeaten century against Surrey he also sits top of the batting averages.

Yorkshire's management are to be congratulated for re-signing the 32 year old and he looks as if he will repay their faith on the field this season. The Australian selectors have shown similar faith by retaining his Central Contract.

Darren Lehmann is a big fan of Gillespie's and said of him:

"Dizzy is one of those bowlers who tends to bowl within himself until conditions are right. Then he turns it up, and when he does, look out.

The seam of the ball as it leaves his hand is almost gun-barrel straight, and the arc he gets the ball going through when he's on song is tough to handle. It's basically working a right-handed batsman over by getting the ball passing through about roll-of-the-pad height, just on or about the off-stump (the Corridor of Uncertainty!)".

Jason Gillespie has a big part to play as in Yorkshire's quest for honours this season.