Friday, March 8, 2002 It doesn't surprise me that Sachin Tendulkar struggled against Ray Price's left-arm spin in the Test series against Zimbabwe.

For starters, the wickets at Napgur and Delhi were not conducive for strokeplay. Price deserves credit too: he wasn't overawed by Tendulkar's reputation, and bowled very few bad balls. At the end of the day, good bowling is good bowling, no matter who the batsman is.

However, their encounter has only strengthened a theory of mine – that right-hand batsmen of short stature have problems against left-arm spin. Even Sir Donald Bradman, I daresay, could be used to elaborate this hypothesis. The bowler who dismissed the Don the most number of times (eight) in Test cricket was Hedley Verity, a left-arm spinner.

The small-built Sunil Gavaskar was another who didn't have it easy against left-arm spinners. He was famously Derek Underwood's bunny - he lost his wicket to Underwood 12 times - and in his book, Idols, Gavaskar talks about how he dreaded facing the left-arm spin of Rajinder Goel in domestic cricket. Javed Miandad, a wonderful player of spin, too had his share of problems against Dilip Doshi, who liked to attack him on and middle and leg.

I have a few thoughts to explain this phenomenon. Obviously, the small reach of short batsmen automatically poses a problem. The other factor is that the left-arm spinner drifts the ball into the right-handed batsman in the air. This creates a blind spot on the line of middle and leg, which becomes far more pronounced for a shorter batsman.

Of course, Tendulkar has mastered Shane Warne, who spins the ball in the same direction as the slow left-armers. However, there is a subtle difference between playing left-arm spinners and legspinners. The finger-spinner has the natural arm-ball that comes into the right-hander. And the arm-ball is harder to detect than a googly. I know it from experience: there have been times I have bowled the armer without intending to do so. If the bowler himself doesn't know what's happening, how will the batsman?

Tendulkar also seems to be less fit than he used to be. I get the impression that he gets physically tired very quickly nowadays. As it is, his game is not about grafting. He plays on instinct, and thrives on tracks where the ball comes onto the bat. Pitches such as the ones at Nagpur and Delhi, suited a Gavaskar or a Miandad much more.

It is amazing to note the absence of a left-arm spinner in India's own team for about a year now. Not only are they a must for any balanced attack, the batsmen, too, would benefit by playing them regularly in the nets. India have in Murali Kartik, Rahul Sanghvi, and particularly Sunil Joshi – you have to be special to take six wickets for five runs in a one-dayer – three outstanding bowlers, but all have been treated shabbily.

I learn that the Indian captain feels left-arm spinners aren't effective bowling to left-hand batsmen. If it were upto him, I would have never bowled to Clive Lloyd or Garfield Sobers. And this is a man who lost his wicket to a left-arm spinner in five successive international innings in the last month or so.

Bishan Bedi, who took 266 wickets for India in 67 Tests between 1966 and 1979, was talking to Rahul Bhattacharya.

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