Cricket Glossary: 50+ Must-Know Terms for Every Fan

Ever sat down to watch a cricket match, captivated by the drama, only to feel completely lost when the commentators start talking about “silly mid-off,” a “googly,” or a “maiden over”? You’re not alone! Cricket, with its rich history and unique charm, comes with a vocabulary that can seem like a secret language to the uninitiated.

But don’t worry, you don’t need to be a seasoned veteran to understand the nuances of this incredible sport. This comprehensive glossary is your ultimate guide to deciphering cricket’s most common and intriguing terms. We’ve compiled over 50 essential words and phrases that every fan, from casual observer to aspiring expert, should know. By the end of this article, you’ll not only understand what’s happening on the field but also appreciate the depth and strategy that make cricket so compelling.

So, grab a cuppa (or an iced tea!), get comfortable, and let’s demystify the wonderful world of cricket jargon!

The Cricket Field and Basic Equipment

Let’s start with the very basics – what’s on the field and what do players use?

1. Pitch: The central strip of the cricket field between the two sets of wickets, where the main action (bowling and batting) takes place. It’s usually 22 yards (20.12 meters) long.
2. Wicket: This term has multiple meanings:
   • The set of three wooden stumps with two bails on top, at each end of the pitch.
   • The act of dismissing a batsman (e.g., “The bowler took a wicket”).
   • The pitch itself (e.g., “It’s a tricky wicket to bat on”).
3. Stumps: The three vertical wooden posts that form part of the wicket.
4. Bails: The two small wooden pieces that sit horizontally in grooves on top of the stumps. If they are dislodged, the batsman might be out.
5. Crease: White lines painted on the pitch. There are four main creases at each end:
   • Popping Crease: The line the batsman must be behind to be safe (for run-outs/stumpings) and where the bowler must deliver from (front foot).
   • Bowling Crease: The line through the stumps from which the bowler delivers.
   • Return Crease: Lines at 90 degrees to the bowling crease, marking the bowler’s allowable side-to-side movement.
6. Boundary: The perimeter of the cricket field, usually marked by a rope.
   • Four: When the ball hits the ground and then reaches or crosses the boundary rope. Scores 4 runs.
   • Six: When the ball clears the boundary rope on the full (without touching the ground). Scores 6 runs.
7. Bat: The flat-fronted wooden implement used by batsmen to hit the ball.
8. Ball: The hard, cork-cored ball, usually red in Test and ODI cricket, or white in day-night limited-overs matches.

Batting Terms

These terms describe the actions and outcomes related to the batsmen.

9. Batsman (or Batter): The player whose primary role is to hit the bowled ball and score runs.
10. Striker: The batsman who is currently facing the bowler.
11. Non-Striker: The batsman at the opposite end of the pitch from the striker.
12. Run: The basic unit of scoring. Scored by batsmen running between the wickets after hitting the ball, or by hitting a boundary.
13. Innings: A period during which one team bats and the other fields. In Test cricket, each team usually gets two innings. In limited-overs cricket (ODI, T20), each team gets one innings.
14. Score: The total number of runs a team has accumulated.
15. Partnership: The number of runs scored by two batsmen while they are both at the crease.
16. Century (or Ton): When a batsman scores 100 runs in a single innings. A “half-century” is 50 runs.
17. Duck: When a batsman is dismissed without scoring any runs (0 runs).
    • Golden Duck: Dismissed on the very first ball they face.
    • Diamond Duck: Dismissed without facing a single legal ball (e.g., run out at the non-striker’s end).
    • King Pair: Dismissed for a golden duck in both innings of a two-innings match.
18. Pair: Dismissed for 0 runs in both innings of a two-innings match (looks like spectacles).
19. Strike Rate: For a batsman, it’s the number of runs scored per 100 balls faced (e.g., a strike rate of 120 means 120 runs for every 100 balls). Higher is usually better in limited-overs cricket.
20. Average: For a batsman, total runs scored divided by the number of times they have been dismissed. Higher is better.
21. Shot: The act of hitting the ball with the bat. Examples include:
    • Drive (Cover, On, Straight): An elegant shot played with a straight bat along the ground.
    • Cut: A shot played square (sideways) of the wicket on the off-side.
    • Pull: A shot played square of the wicket on the leg-side, often to a short ball.
    • Hook: A powerful shot played to a short ball, often over the boundary, similar to a pull but more aggressive and typically played when the ball is chest height or above.
    • Sweep: A shot played on one knee to a spinning ball, sweeping across the line.
    • Defensive Shot: A shot played purely to stop the ball from hitting the wicket, without attempting to score runs.
22. Not Out: A batsman is still at the crease and has not been dismissed. Also, the umpire’s decision when an appeal for a dismissal is rejected.
23. Carry the Bat: When an opening batsman stays at the crease and remains “not out” throughout the entire innings, while all other batsmen are dismissed.

Bowling Terms

These terms describe the actions and types of deliveries bowled by the bowlers.

24. Bowler: The player who delivers the ball to the batsman.
25. Over: A set of six consecutive legal deliveries bowled by one bowler. After an over, a different bowler bowls from the opposite end.
26. Maiden Over: An over in which the bowler concedes no runs (including extras). A sign of excellent control.
27. Wicket-taker: A bowler who frequently gets batsmen out.
28. Economy Rate: For a bowler, the average number of runs conceded per over. Lower is better, especially in limited-overs cricket.
29. Line and Length: The two main aspects of a delivery:
    • Line: The horizontal path of the ball (e.g., outside off-stump, on the stumps, down leg-side).
    • Length: Where the ball pitches on the pitch (e.g., full, good length, short, bouncer).
30. Types of Deliveries:
    • Pace Bowling (or Fast Bowling): Bowlers who deliver the ball at high speed, relying on pace, swing, and seam movement.
      • Bouncer: A short-pitched delivery that bounces high, often aimed at the batsman’s chest or head, designed to intimidate or surprise.
      • Yorker: A full-pitched delivery that lands right at the batsman’s feet or the base of the stumps, very difficult to hit and often results in wickets.
      • Inswinger/Outswinger: A ball that curves in the air towards/away from the batsman due to air resistance.
      • Seam Delivery: A ball that deviates off the pitch after landing on its raised seam.
      • Cutter (Off-cutter/Leg-cutter): A slower delivery bowled by a fast bowler that spins off the pitch due to a change in grip, behaving somewhat like a spinner.
    • Spin Bowling: Bowlers who impart rotation on the ball to make it deviate sideways after hitting the pitch.
      • Off-Spin: A ball bowled by a right-arm spinner that spins from left to right (away from a right-handed batsman’s off-stump).
      • Leg-Spin: A ball bowled by a right-arm spinner that spins from right to left (into a right-handed batsman’s leg-stump).
      • Googly (or Wrong ‘Un): A deceptive leg-spin delivery that spins the opposite way (into a right-handed batsman’s off-stump), appearing like an off-break.
      • Doosra: An off-spin delivery that spins the opposite way (away from a right-handed batsman’s off-stump), appearing like a leg-break.
      • Chinaman: A left-arm unorthodox spin bowler’s delivery that spins into a right-handed batsman.
      • Carrom Ball: A delivery flicked with the middle finger and thumb, causing it to spin like a carrom board striker.
31. No-Ball: An illegal delivery, resulting in a run for the batting team and a “Free Hit” on the next ball (where the batsman cannot be dismissed by most means). Common reasons include:
    • Front-foot No-ball: The bowler oversteps the popping crease during delivery.
    • Beamers: A full toss (non-bouncing ball) delivered above the batsman’s waist.
32. Wide: A delivery bowled too far away from the batsman to be hit, resulting in an extra run for the batting team, and the ball has to be re-bowled.

Dismissals (How a Batsman Gets Out)

There are 10 ways a batsman can be dismissed. Here are the most common ones:

33. Bowled: The bowler bowls the ball and it directly hits and dislodges the bails from the stumps.
34. Caught: A fielder catches the ball after it has been hit by the bat (or glove attached to the bat), before it bounces on the ground.
35. LBW (Leg Before Wicket): The batsman is out if the ball, in the umpire’s opinion, would have hit the stumps but was intercepted by the batsman’s leg or body, and certain other conditions are met (e.g., ball pitching in line, hitting in line with stumps).
36. Run Out: A batsman is out if a fielder breaks the wicket with the ball (or a direct throw) while the batsman is out of their ground (crease) attempting a run.
37. Stumped: Similar to a run-out, but initiated by the wicket-keeper when the batsman steps out of their crease (usually to hit a ball) and misses it, and the wicket-keeper quickly dislodges the bails.
38. Hit Wicket: A batsman is out if they accidentally dislodge the bails with their bat or body while playing a shot or setting off for a run.
39. Hit the Ball Twice: A rare dismissal if a batsman deliberately hits the ball a second time to prevent it from hitting their wicket after initially playing it.
40. Obstructing the Field: If a batsman deliberately interferes with a fielder who is attempting to field the ball.
41. Timed Out: If a new batsman takes too long (usually 3 minutes) to arrive at the crease after a wicket has fallen.
42. Handled the Ball (Now Obstructing the Field): Formerly a separate dismissal, where a batsman deliberately handled the ball without the permission of the fielding side. Now covered under Obstructing the Field.

Fielding Terms

These relate to the players positioned around the field to stop runs and take wickets.

43. Fielder: Any player on the fielding side (excluding the bowler and wicket-keeper) who is positioned to catch balls or stop runs.
44. Wicket-keeper: The specialized fielder who squats directly behind the stumps, responsible for catching balls, taking stumpings, and assisting in run-outs.
45. Slips (First, Second, Third): Fielders positioned behind the wicket-keeper on the off-side, typically to catch edges from the bat.
46. Gully: A fielding position slightly squarer than the slips.
47. Point: A fielding position square of the wicket on the off-side.
48. Cover (Extra Cover, Deep Cover): Fielders positioned on the off-side between point and mid-off.
49. Mid-Off / Mid-On: Fielders positioned straight down the ground, on either side of the bowler’s wicket.
50. Mid-Wicket: A fielding position on the leg-side, roughly opposite cover.
51. Square Leg / Fine Leg: Fielders positioned on the leg-side, square to the wicket.
52. Long On / Long Off: Fielders positioned near the boundary straight down the ground.
53. Third Man: A fielding position behind the wicket-keeper on the off-side boundary.
54. Silly Point / Silly Mid-Off / Silly Mid-On: Extremely close-in fielding positions, requiring courage, to catch bat-pad catches (where the ball hits the bat then the pad).
55. Overthrow: Extra runs scored when a fielder throws the ball and misses the target, allowing the batsmen to run further.

Match Play and General Terms

Terms that describe the overall flow and context of the game.

56. Declaration: In Test cricket, when a captain decides to end their team’s innings before all 10 batsmen are out, usually to gain time to bowl out the opposition.
57. Follow-On: In Test cricket, if the team batting second scores significantly fewer runs than the first team in their initial innings, they may be forced to bat again immediately (follow-on) without the opposition having another turn at bat.
58. Session: A period of play in Test cricket (e.g., morning, afternoon, evening session).
59. Drinks Break: A short pause in play, usually during a session, for players to rehydrate.
60. Rain Delay: When play is stopped due to rain.
61. Light: When play is stopped due to bad light conditions, making it unsafe to continue.
62. All-Rounder: A player who excels at both batting and bowling (and often fielding).
63. Match Referee: An independent official who oversees the conduct of the game and can impose penalties for breaches of the Code of Conduct.
64. Umpire: The on-field officials who enforce the Laws of Cricket and make decisions on dismissals, runs, etc.
65. Third Umpire: An off-field umpire who assists the on-field umpires by reviewing decisions using replays and technology (part of DRS).
66. DRS (Decision Review System): A technology-based system allowing teams or umpires to review controversial decisions. (See our dedicated article for more!)
67. Super Over: A tie-breaking method used in limited-overs cricket when a match ends in a tie. Each team bats for one extra over. (Also has its own dedicated article!)
68. Net Run Rate (NRR): Used in limited-overs tournaments to rank teams that have the same number of points. It’s essentially the average runs scored per over minus the average runs conceded per over.
69. Pitch Report: An analysis of the pitch condition before a match, often predicting how it will play (e.g., “flat” for batting, “green” for seam bowling, “turning” for spin).

Conclusion: You’re Now a Cricket Connoisseur!

Congratulations! You’ve just navigated through over 50 essential cricket terms. While the game’s jargon might initially seem daunting, understanding these fundamental words and phrases is the key to unlocking a much deeper appreciation for cricket.

Now, when you hear a commentator excitedly discuss a “golden duck,” a “perfect yorker,” or a “fielder at silly point,” you won’t just hear words – you’ll visualize the action, understand the strategy, and feel the tension or triumph of the moment.

Cricket is a sport of subtle complexities, dramatic swings, and enduring beauty. With this glossary in hand, you’re now much better equipped to follow the game, impress your friends, and truly immerse yourself in the glorious uncertainties of cricket. So, go forth, watch some cricket, and enjoy every single ball with newfound understanding!