Muralitharan is the star turn already

IT HAS taken Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitha-ran just two games with Lancashire - and a remarkable 24 wickets - to become the most feared bowler in county cricket.

Surrey coach Keith Medlycott breathed a sigh of relief after Muralitharan's 10 wickets at the Oval last week failed to beat the leaders and said "win or lose it's a joy to watch a real artist at work.

"I don't think I've ever seen an off-spinner who turns the ball as much as Murali. All things being equal, he must be the most dangerous bowler in the Championship. "But to describe him as a finger spinner is probably wrong, because he uses his wrist to get that much revolution on the ball, and the loop he gets is amazing. "The ball travels down the pitch and then drops vertically . It's like he's got it on a piece of string. Regardless of wickets, he's going to be very hard to score off." A deformity in Murali's right arm means he bowls with a bent elbow and he has been called for throwing in a Test and one-day international in Australia. But according to Medlycott, the kink in his action gives the Sri Lankan an unusual "drift" to his deliveries which sets batsmen yet another problem. He explained: "Most off-spinners move the ball from leg to off in the air and then spin it back, but by releasing from somewhere above his left ear, Murali drifts it the other way, and then the spin takes it on more. "It cuts out a lot of scoring shots on the offside." Surrey are expecting the return this week of their own world-class spinner Saqlain Mushtaq, and Medlycott believes the Pakistani has at least one advantage over his Sri Lankan rival. He said: "I've noticed that Murali seems to need a lot of overs to take his wickets whereas Saqlain can run through a team very quickly when he finds a bit of help. Speaking as a slow bowler myself, it's great to see world class spinners coming in to cricket over here after years and years of overseas fast bowlers. "Facing Saqlain and Murali will not only improve the technique of our batsmen but also their mental strength because if you show any fear to these guys, you're blown out of the water." MIDDLESEX'S home matches in August against Leicestershire in the Championship and Northants in the National League have been switched from Southgate to Lord's.

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