Ambidextrous Barsby reaping rewards of more left-arm focus

There was a time when Jemma Barsby's ability to bowl with both arms was frowned upon and discouraged.

These days, the ambidextrous Adelaide Strikers spinner is being encouraged to turn her unique skill into a genuine weapon.

Barsby, who predominately bowls right-arm off-spin, first made headlines for deploying her left-arm orthodox deliveries while playing for Brisbane Heat in WBBL|02.

It has been an ability she has only used sparingly over the years – notably bowling right-arm to Elyse Villani and left-arm to Meg Lanning in a single over during a game against the Stars last summer.

But she had her greatest success with her left-armers to date against the same team earlier this season when she bowled English import Alice Capsey.

"This was probably the first proper preseason that I've really worked on it quite a lot and it's coming out not too bad," Barsby told The Scoop podcast this week.

"It's still pretty inconsistent, but it's just now being brave to bowl it in the games and then backing myself that I can do it.

"That Alice Capsey one ... I was very nervous because obviously a lot people know I can (bowl with both arms), but I hadn't been doing it much previously ... so I just wanted to be able to show that (I can do it).

"I heard her say it was skidding through, so the next one I thought I'd slow it up a bit and thankfully I got a wicket and it took that pressure off me a bit after that."

Barsby, who started her career at Queensland and the Heat before moving to South Australia and the Strikers (via a stint with Perth Scorchers) first discovered she could bowl with her left arm in the backyard, when the frustrated youngster was desperately trying to find a way to dismiss her older brother, Corey

Her father, Trevor Barsby, who played more than 100 Sheffield Shield matches for Queensland and coached their men's team from 2008-10, noticed what she was doing.

"I could never get him out so I'd always go into Mum and Dad crying being like, 'he's not letting me bat, I can't get him out'," Barsby laughed about her brother who played two List A games for Queensland in 2011.

"One day, I don't know what came across me, but I thought I'd bowl with my other arm.

"Dad was out on the balcony and saw me do it and he was like, 'Did you just bowl with your other arm? Do it again'.

"So I knew from a young age I was able to do it."

But as Barsby rapidly progressed through the pathways, a journey that saw her make her debut for Queensland at just 15 years of age, her ambidextrous abilities were discouraged, with some coaches insisting she focus on her dominant right arm.

"I got a lot of like criticism from coaches growing up, so I put it away for a few years," Barsby said.

"Then one of the Queensland Fire coaches I had backed me to do it.

"He said, 'I trust you, I back you to do it. We want you to work on it. It's an amazing skill'.

"So I started to (use it again) and then coming across to the Scorpions and the Strikers, (coaches) Luke Williams and Jude Coleman and the coaching staff had been massive supporters of me doing it."

Barsby would prefer it if she didn't have to tell the umpire or the batters what she was doing, which would add an element of surprise when she strode in to bowl.

But as she begins deploying her left-arm orthodox with increasing regularity, she knows she will need to up her game as opposition batters begin planning for both her skills.

"The more I do it now, they're going to know what to expect," she said.

"So the next challenge for me now is to keep getting it better and ways to keep getting on top of the batters.

"We discuss it in our preview meetings … we go through all the batters and see what their weaknesses are, and it depends on the situation in the game as well.

"Then when I'm out there it's talking with Tahlia McGrath or Megan Schutt on when to do it and they've both been very supportive."

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