Cricket Terms Explained: A to Z Glossary of 100+ Cricket Words

Cricket has its own language. A batter can make a duck, a bowler can bowl a maiden, a fielder can stand at silly point, and a captain can declare. This cricket glossary explains more than 100 cricket terms in plain English, from A to Z, so you can follow any commentary, scorecard or conversation in the pub.

Each definition is short. Where a term has its own full guide on Predict the Pitch, we link to it so you can go deeper.

The ten cricket terms new fans ask about most

• Over: six legal balls bowled by one bowler. More on overs.
• Wicket: the stumps and bails, the pitch itself, or the dismissal of a batter, depending on context.
• Innings: a team’s turn to bat. Always “innings”, even for one.
• LBW: leg before wicket, a way of getting out. LBW explained.
• Duck: a batter getting out for zero.
• Maiden: an over in which the bowler concedes no runs.
• Century: 100 runs by one batter in an innings.
• Extras: runs not scored off the bat, such as wides and no-balls.
• Follow-on: when a team batting second in a Test is made to bat again straight away. Follow-on explained.
• Powerplay: overs with fielding restrictions in limited-overs cricket. Powerplays explained.

A

All out: the end of an innings when ten batters are dismissed (the eleventh has no partner).

All-rounder: a player good enough to be picked for both batting and bowling.

Appeal: a fielding side asking the umpire for a dismissal, traditionally by shouting “How’s that?” (“Howzat?”). An umpire cannot give a batter out without an appeal.

Arm ball: a delivery from a finger spinner that goes straight on with the arm instead of turning.

Ashes: the Test series between England and Australia. The Ashes history.

Average (batting): runs scored divided by the number of times out.

Average (bowling): runs conceded divided by wickets taken. Lower is better. Cricket stats explained.

B

Bails: the two small pieces of wood resting on top of the stumps. At least one must fall for a batter to be bowled, stumped or run out.

Baggy green: the cap worn by Australian Test cricketers, a symbol of national pride.

Ball tampering: illegally changing the condition of the ball, for example by scratching it. A serious offence.

Beamer: a full toss that reaches the batter above waist height without bouncing. It is a no-ball and can be dangerous.

Bodyline: England’s tactic in the 1932-33 Ashes of bowling fast, short deliveries at the batter’s body with fielders packed on the leg side. It led to changes in the Laws.

Boundary: the edge of the playing area, usually marked by a rope. A ball that reaches it along the ground scores four; one that clears it on the full scores six.

Bouncer: a short, fast ball that rises towards the batter’s head or shoulders. Limits apply to how many can be bowled per over in each format.

Bowled: a dismissal where the ball hits the stumps and removes a bail.

Bye: runs taken when the ball passes the batter and the wicketkeeper without touching the bat or body. Scored as extras.

C

Carrom ball: a spinning delivery flicked out of the fingers, made famous by Ajantha Mendis and Ravichandran Ashwin.

Caught: a dismissal where a fielder catches the ball off the bat (or glove holding the bat) before it bounces.

Century: 100 runs or more by one batter in an innings. A double century is 200.

Chase: the team batting second trying to reach its target.

Concussion substitute: a like-for-like replacement for a player concussed during a match, allowed in international cricket since 2019.

Corridor of uncertainty: the line just outside off stump where a batter is unsure whether to play or leave the ball.

Cover drive: an elegant shot hit through the covers on the off side. Batting shots explained.

Crease: the white lines near each set of stumps. The popping crease marks the batter’s safe ground; the bowling and return creases govern where the bowler’s feet land.

Cutter: a seam bowler’s delivery made to deviate off the pitch by dragging the fingers across the ball.

D

Dead ball: the ball is out of play and no runs or dismissals can happen until the next delivery.

Death overs: the final overs of a limited-overs innings, usually the last four or five in a T20, when batters attack hardest.

Declaration: a captain ending their team’s innings early in a Test or first-class match, usually to give the bowlers time to win.

Dot ball: a legal delivery with no run scored, shown as a dot in the scorebook.

DRS: the Decision Review System, which lets teams challenge umpiring decisions using replays and ball-tracking. DRS explained.

Duck: a dismissal for zero. A golden duck is out first ball; a diamond duck is out without facing a ball, usually run out.

Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS): the method used to reset targets in rain-shortened limited-overs games. DLS explained.

E

Economy rate: runs conceded per over by a bowler. Lower is better.

Edge: when the ball clips the side of the bat. A thick edge travels fast; a thin edge (a “nick”) often carries to the wicketkeeper or slips.

Extras: runs not scored off the bat: byes, leg byes, wides, no-balls and penalty runs. Called “sundries” in Australia.

F

Fifty: 50 runs or more by one batter in an innings.

Five-wicket haul: five or more wickets in an innings for one bowler, also called a “five-for” or “fifer”.

Flipper: a leg-spinner’s delivery that skids on low and straight, made famous by Shane Warne.

Follow-on: in a Test, a team that trails by enough runs after the first innings can be asked to bat again immediately.

Free hit: in limited-overs cricket, the ball after a front-foot no-ball. The batter cannot be out in most ways. Free hit rules.

Full toss: a ball that reaches the batter without bouncing, usually easy to hit.

G

Golden duck: out first ball faced.

Good length: the spot on the pitch where a delivery makes the batter unsure whether to go forward or back.

Googly: a leg-spinner’s delivery that turns the “wrong” way, into a right-hander. Also called a wrong’un. Spin bowling explained.

Green top: a pitch with plenty of grass, which helps seam bowlers.

Gully: a close catching position on the off side, beyond the slips. Fielding positions.

H

Half-volley: a full delivery that bounces just in front of the batter, ideal for driving.

Hat-trick: a bowler taking wickets with three consecutive deliveries, even if they are split across overs or innings.

Hawk-Eye: the ball-tracking technology used in DRS and on television.

Hit wicket: a dismissal where the batter breaks their own stumps with the bat or body while playing a shot or setting off for a run.

Hook: an attacking shot played to a short ball at head height, swinging it round to the leg side.

I

Impact Player: the substitute rule used in the IPL, allowing a team to bring in a replacement who can bat and bowl. Impact Player rule.

Innings: a team’s or a batter’s turn to bat. Tests have up to two innings per team; limited-overs games have one.

Inswinger: a delivery that swings in the air towards the batter’s pads.

K

King pair: out first ball in both innings of a match. A plain “pair” is two ducks in one match.

Knuckle ball: a slower ball bowled with the knuckles on the ball, giving it little spin.

L

LBW (leg before wicket): a dismissal where the ball would have hit the stumps but strikes the batter’s pad or body first, subject to strict conditions.

Leg bye: runs taken when the ball deflects off the batter’s body (not the bat) while they were trying to play a shot or avoid being hit.

Leg side (on side): the half of the field behind a batter’s legs as they take their stance.

Leg spin: wrist spin that turns from leg to off for a right-handed batter.

Line and length: where a ball pitches: line is its direction, length is how far down the pitch it bounces.

Long hop: a short, slow ball that sits up to be hit. A gift for the batter.

M

Maiden: an over in which no runs are conceded by the bowler. A wicket maiden also includes a wicket.

Match referee: the official who oversees discipline and the playing conditions in international matches, separate from the umpires.

Middle order: batters who usually bat from about number four to number seven.

Mid-on and mid-off: fielding positions in front of the batter, either side of the bowler.

N

Nelson: a score of 111 (and its multiples), traditionally considered unlucky in English cricket. Umpire David Shepherd famously hopped on one leg when the score reached it.

Nightwatchman: a lower-order batter sent in late in the day’s play to protect a better batter’s wicket overnight.

No-ball: an illegal delivery, most often for overstepping the crease. It costs a run and must be bowled again.

Non-striker: the batter at the bowler’s end, not facing the delivery.

O

Off side: the half of the field a batter faces in their stance. For a right-hander, it is on the bowler’s left; for a left-hander, the bowler’s right.

Off spin: finger spin that turns from off to leg for a right-handed batter.

Opener: one of the two batters who start an innings.

Outswinger: a delivery that swings away from the batter, towards the slips.

Over: six legal deliveries from one bowler.

Overthrows: extra runs scored when a fielder’s throw goes past the stumps and nobody stops it.

P

Pair: two ducks in the same match.

Partnership: the runs scored by two batters while they are together at the crease.

Penalty runs: five runs awarded for offences such as the ball hitting a fielder’s helmet left on the field, or deliberate time-wasting.

Pink ball: the ball used in day-night Tests, easier to see under lights. Pink-ball Tests explained.

Pitch: the 22-yard strip between the two sets of stumps. Also called the wicket, track or deck. Pitch types explained.

Powerplay: overs in limited-overs cricket when only a few fielders may stand outside the 30-yard circle.

Pull: a cross-bat shot to a short ball, hit to the leg side at around waist height.

R

Required run rate: the runs per over the chasing team needs to win.

Retired hurt: a batter leaving the field injured; they can return later. “Retired out” counts as a dismissal.

Reverse sweep: a sweep played in the opposite direction, sending the ball towards the off side, usually by turning the bat face around as the shot is played.

Reverse swing: swing achieved with an older ball, which moves the opposite way to conventional swing. Swing and seam explained.

Run out: a dismissal where the fielding side breaks the stumps while a batter is out of their ground during a run. Since 2022, running out the non-striker for leaving early is covered by the run-out Law.

Run rate: the average number of runs scored per over.

S

Seam: the raised stitching around the ball. Seam bowlers aim to land it on the seam so it deviates off the pitch.

Session: one of the three periods of play in a Test day: before lunch, between lunch and tea, and after tea.

Sightscreen: the large screen behind the bowler’s arm that helps the batter see the ball.

Silly point and silly mid-on: fielding positions very close to the batter, “silly” because of the danger.

Six: a hit that clears the boundary without bouncing.

Sledging: verbal needling of opponents, usually batters. Personal abuse is against the spirit of cricket and can lead to penalties.

Slips: catching positions beside the wicketkeeper on the off side, waiting for edges.

Strike rate (batting): runs scored per 100 balls faced.

Strike rate (bowling): balls bowled per wicket taken.

Stumped: a dismissal where the wicketkeeper breaks the stumps while the batter is out of their ground and not attempting a run. Wicketkeeping explained.

Stumps: the three upright posts at each end. “Stumps” is also the end of a day’s play.

Super Over: a one-over-per-side tiebreaker used in limited-overs matches. Super Over rules.

Sweep: a shot played on one knee, sweeping the ball round to the leg side, mostly against spin.

Switch hit: a batter changing from right-handed to left-handed (or the reverse) as the bowler runs in.

T

Tail (tail-enders): the lower-order batters, usually the specialist bowlers.

Third umpire: the off-field umpire who uses replays for run outs, stumpings, boundaries and DRS reviews.

Tie: both teams finishing with exactly the same score after the match is completed. Different from a draw.

Timed out: a rare dismissal when the incoming batter is not ready to face within the time allowed by the playing conditions.

Top order: the first three or four batters in the line-up.

U

UltraEdge: sound-based technology used to detect whether the ball touched the bat. Also called Snicko.

Umpire’s call: a DRS outcome where ball-tracking is too close to overturn the on-field decision, so the original call stands.

W

Wicket: the stumps and bails; the pitch; or a dismissal (“he took a wicket”).

Wicketkeeper: the fielder behind the stumps who wears gloves and pads.

Wide: a delivery out of the batter’s reach. It costs a run and must be re-bowled.

Y

Yorker: a full delivery aimed at the batter’s feet or the base of the stumps, hard to dig out and a classic death-overs weapon.

Cricket terms by situation

You hear	It means
“He’s on a pair”	The batter made a duck in the first innings and is at risk of another.
“They’ve declared”	The batting captain has ended the innings early to try to win the match.
“Four slips and a gully”	An attacking field set for edges, usually with a new ball.
“Required rate is twelve”	The chasing side needs 12 runs per over to win.
“Umpire’s call”	A DRS review too close to change the on-field decision.
“The tail is wagging”	The lower-order batters are scoring more runs than expected.

Frequently asked questions

What does “howzat” mean in cricket?

It is a shortened “How’s that?”, the appeal fielders make to the umpire for a dismissal.

Why is it called a duck?

The zero next to a batter’s name was said to look like a duck’s egg, which was shortened to “duck”.

What is the difference between a tie and a draw?

A tie is a completed match with equal scores. A draw is a Test or first-class match that runs out of time before either side wins.

What is a “fifer”?

A five-wicket haul: a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings.

Ready to put the words into practice? Start with our guides to cricket formats, ways to get out and how to read a scorecard.

Sources: MCC Laws of Cricket and ICC playing conditions. Last checked October 2026.