No-Balls and Free Hits Explained
A no-ball is an illegal delivery in cricket. The batting side gets one extra run, the ball does not count as one of the six in the over, and the batter cannot be out in most of the usual ways. In one-day and T20 cricket, every no-ball is followed by a free hit: the next delivery, off which the batter can only be dismissed by a run-out or a handful of rare methods. That is the short version of how no ball and free hit rules work.
The longer version is more interesting. There are more ways to bowl a no-ball than most fans realise, the free hit has quirks that catch out even seasoned commentators, and the technology used to police the front line has changed the way bowlers think about their run-up. This guide covers all of it.
Key facts
- A no-ball costs the bowling side a one-run penalty, plus any runs the batters score off it.
- The delivery must be bowled again, so a no-ball never counts as one of the six legal balls in an over.
- Off a no-ball, the striker can only be out run out, hit the ball twice or obstructing the field.
- In ODIs and T20 internationals, every no-ball (not just a front-foot one) is followed by a free hit.
- Free hits do not exist in Test cricket.
- In international cricket, the third umpire now calls front-foot no-balls using replays.
What is a no-ball in cricket?
A no-ball is any delivery that breaks the Laws on how the ball must be bowled. The Laws of Cricket, written and maintained by the MCC, deal with it in Law 21, and the International Cricket Council (ICC) adds its own playing conditions for international matches. Most domestic competitions follow the ICC versions closely.
When the umpire spots one, they call “No ball” and hold one arm out horizontally. The scorers record it, the ball still stays live, and the batters can run, hit boundaries or be run out just as they would off any other ball. The bowler simply has to bowl it again.
The key thing to understand is that the no-ball is a punishment. The bowler has gained an advantage, or done something unsafe, and the batting side is compensated with a run, an extra ball and protection from most dismissals. In white-ball cricket they also get the free hit, which is where the real sting is.
The different types of no-ball
Ask a casual fan what a no-ball is and they’ll say “overstepping”. That is the most common type by a distance, but it’s far from the only one. Here are the ways a bowler can be no-balled.
Front-foot no-ball
At the moment the bowler’s front foot lands in the delivery stride, some part of it must be behind the popping crease. That’s the white line four feet in front of the stumps. The foot can be on the line, grounded or raised, and still be legal. What it cannot be is entirely beyond the line. If not a sliver of the heel is behind the back edge of the crease line, it’s a no-ball.
This catches people out. A foot touching the line is fine. A foot hovering over the line, with no part grounded behind it, is not, because the Law asks whether part of the foot is behind the line, not whether it is touching it.
Back-foot no-ball
The back foot must land within, and not touching, the return crease, the line running at right angles to the popping crease on either side of the stumps. Bowlers who drift wide in their delivery stride occasionally land the back foot on or outside that line. It’s rare, but it happens, usually with bowlers trying to change their angle from wide of the crease.
Height no-balls: beamers and bouncers
A full toss that passes, or would have passed, above the batter’s waist height when standing upright at the crease is a no-ball. These are known as beamers, and they’re genuinely dangerous because the batter has no bounce to judge.
If the umpire considers a beamer dangerous, the bowler gets a first and final warning. A second one in the same innings means the bowler is removed from the attack and cannot bowl again in that innings. A beamer bowled deliberately leads to immediate removal.
Bouncers have their own limits. In Test and one-day international cricket, a bowler may bowl two short-pitched deliveries per over that pass above shoulder height. In T20 internationals the limit is one. Go over the limit and it’s a no-ball. Some franchise leagues set their own number; the IPL, for example, allowed two bouncers an over from the 2024 season.
Illegal action and other delivery faults
A bowler who throws the ball (straightening the elbow beyond the permitted tolerance) can be called for a no-ball by either umpire. In practice, suspect actions are now mostly handled through reports and testing after the match, but the on-field call still exists.
Several less common faults also produce a no-ball:
- The bowler changes their mode of delivery (for example, from over the wicket to round the wicket, or right-arm to left-arm) without telling the umpire.
- The ball bounces more than once, or rolls along the ground, before reaching the popping crease.
- The ball pitches wholly or partly off the pitch.
- The bowler breaks the non-striker’s wicket during the delivery stride.
- An underarm delivery is bowled when it hasn’t been agreed beforehand. (Underarm bowling is banned in international cricket, a direct legacy of Trevor Chappell’s delivery against New Zealand in 1981.)
Fielding no-balls
This one surprises people. A no-ball can be caused by the fielding side, not the bowler. If more than two fielders are behind square on the leg side at the moment of delivery, it’s a no-ball. The same applies if the wicketkeeper moves in front of the stumps before the ball reaches the bat or passes the stumps.
In limited-overs cricket, breaking the fielding restrictions also brings a no-ball. If the captain has five fielders outside the 30-yard circle when only four are allowed, the umpire will call it, and the batting side gets a free hit too. It is an easy mistake to make in a frantic death over, and an expensive one.
How a no-ball is scored
The scoring is simple once you see it laid out. The bowling side concedes a one-run penalty, which is added to the team total as an extra. Whatever happens on top of that is added as normal.
| What happens off the no-ball | Runs to batting side | How it is recorded |
|---|---|---|
| Batter blocks, no run taken | 1 | 1 no-ball extra, charged to the bowler |
| Batter hits a four | 5 | 4 to the batter, 1 no-ball extra |
| Batter hits a six | 7 | 6 to the batter, 1 no-ball extra |
| Batters run two after the ball misses the bat | 3 | All 3 recorded as no-ball extras |
| Ball misses everything and runs away for four | 5 | All 5 recorded as no-ball extras |
A couple of points are worth spelling out. Runs off the bat go to the batter’s individual score as normal. And every no-ball run counts against the bowler’s figures, which is why bowlers hate them. A spell of 4-0-30-2 can look a lot worse when five or six of those runs came from overstepping.
The no-ball also counts as a ball faced by the batter, even though it doesn’t count in the over. That matters for strike-rate obsessives in T20 cricket.
How can a batter be out off a no-ball?
Off a no-ball, the striker cannot be bowled, caught, lbw, stumped or out hit wicket. The only ways a batter can be dismissed are:
- Run out
- Hit the ball twice
- Obstructing the field (which now also covers what used to be called handled the ball)
The non-striker can also be run out, including by the bowler at the non-striker’s end before the ball is delivered. That dismissal, sometimes known as a “Mankad”, now sits under the run-out Law rather than the unfair play Law.
One of the most famous no-balls in recent memory shows the stakes. In the 2017 Champions Trophy final at The Oval, Pakistan’s Fakhar Zaman edged Jasprit Bumrah behind when he had just three. Replays showed Bumrah had overstepped. Fakhar went on to make 114, and Pakistan won the final comfortably.
The 2025 change on catches and no-balls
Here’s a subtle one. Before 2025, if a catch was referred to the third umpire and the delivery turned out to be a no-ball, the question of whether the catch was clean didn’t really matter. The batter was not out either way.
Under ICC playing conditions introduced in 2025 (from the start of the 2025-27 World Test Championship cycle, and from July 2025 in white-ball internationals), the third umpire still checks whether the catch was taken cleanly. If it was, the batting side gets only the no-ball penalty. If it wasn’t, they keep any runs completed. It stops batters profiting from runs scampered while the fielding side thought they’d taken a wicket.
What is a free hit?
A free hit is the delivery that follows a no-ball in limited-overs cricket. On that ball, the batter can only be dismissed in the same ways as off a no-ball: run out, hit the ball twice or obstructing the field. They can’t be bowled, caught, lbw or stumped.
Because the risk is so low, batters swing hard. A free hit in the last overs of a T20 is often worth a boundary, sometimes a six. It turns a single mistake by the bowler into a two-ball penalty, which is precisely the point.
When the free hit was introduced
The ICC brought in the free hit for one-day internationals in 2007, at first only for front-foot no-balls. T20 internationals used it from the beginning. In 2015 it was extended to every type of no-ball in both formats, so a beamer, a third bouncer or a fielding restriction breach now all give the batter a free hit too.
Free hits have never been used in Test cricket. The thinking is that Tests are a longer contest between bat and ball, and the no-ball penalty and lost delivery are seen as enough.
Free hit rules in detail
There are a few rules that govern the free hit delivery itself:
- The field stays put. If the same batter is on strike for the free hit, the fielders cannot change position, except where a new bowler is brought on or a fielder was in an illegal spot. If the batters have crossed and the other batter is now on strike, the captain may reset the field.
- The free hit carries over. If the free hit itself is a wide or a no-ball, the next delivery is also a free hit. It keeps going until a legal ball is bowled.
- The umpire signals it. After calling the no-ball, the umpire makes a circling motion with one raised hand to show that the next ball is a free hit.
- The ball is live. Hitting the stumps on a free hit does not make the ball dead. The batters can still run.
Kohli, Nawaz and the three byes
That last point produced one of the great arguments of the 2022 T20 World Cup. In the final over of India against Pakistan at the MCG in October 2022, Mohammad Nawaz bowled a waist-high full toss to Virat Kohli, which was called a no-ball. On the free hit that followed, Kohli was bowled. The ball deflected off the stumps towards third man, and Kohli and Dinesh Karthik ran three.
Pakistan’s players protested, believing the ball should have been dead once it hit the stumps. It wasn’t. Under the Laws, the ball becomes dead when a batter is out, and Kohli couldn’t be out bowled on a free hit, so the ball stayed in play. India won off the final ball, and the three runs mattered enormously.
The ICC tidied up the wording in 2023 so that runs scored on a free hit after the ball hits the stumps are clearly counted. The principle hasn’t changed: on a free hit, the stumps are not a stopping point.
Who calls a no-ball? Umpires and technology
On the field, the bowler’s end umpire is responsible for front-foot and back-foot no-balls, height no-balls and most other faults. The square leg umpire watches for the number of fielders behind square, the wicketkeeper’s position and, in white-ball cricket, often the bouncer count and fielding restrictions.
The front line was always the hardest call. An umpire has a fraction of a second to look down at the bowler’s foot, then up to watch for an lbw or an edge. Mistakes were inevitable, and missed no-balls became a regular talking point, especially when a batter was given out off one.
So the ICC moved the decision upstairs. The third umpire was given responsibility for front-foot no-balls after trials, and the system was used across a full ICC event for the first time at the 2020 Women’s T20 World Cup. The TV umpire watches a replay of every delivery and tells the on-field umpire if it was a no-ball. Now standard in international cricket, it’s also used in major franchise tournaments.
It means the on-field umpire rarely calls front-foot no-balls live any more. The call often comes a few seconds after the ball, which is why you’ll see a batter walking off, only to be called back. The upside is accuracy. The downside is that the free hit can arrive a moment after the crowd has already celebrated a wicket.
Deliberate no-balls and the spot-fixing scandal
It would be strange to write a full guide to no-balls without mentioning the darkest episode linked to them. During the 2010 Lord’s Test between England and Pakistan, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif bowled deliberate no-balls at prearranged moments as part of a spot-fixing scheme involving their captain Salman Butt.
All three were banned by the ICC and later convicted in a London court. The case is part of the reason anti-corruption units watch no-balls closely, and why a bowler who suddenly oversteps by a huge distance can draw suspicion. Amir served his ban and returned to international cricket in 2016.
Common mistakes and myths about no-balls and free hits
“If your foot is on the line, it’s a no-ball”
Wrong. The foot can be on the line. It’s only a no-ball if no part of the front foot is behind the popping crease, grounded or raised. Plenty of fans still shout for a no-ball when the heel is clearly on the line.
“The ball is dead if it hits the stumps on a free hit”
Also wrong, as Kohli’s three byes showed. The batter isn’t out, so the ball isn’t dead. They can keep running.
“You can’t be out at all off a free hit”
You can be run out, and that does happen, usually when batters get greedy chasing an extra run. Hit the ball twice and obstructing the field also still apply.
“A free hit only follows a foot-fault”
That was true from 2007 to 2015 in ODIs, but not any more. Every no-ball in international white-ball cricket, of any kind, brings a free hit.
No-ball and free hit rules by format
The rules differ slightly from format to format. Here’s how they line up in international cricket.
| Rule | Tests | ODIs | T20Is |
|---|---|---|---|
| No-ball penalty | 1 run | 1 run | 1 run |
| Free hit after a no-ball | No | Yes, all no-balls | Yes, all no-balls |
| Bouncers per over above shoulder height | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Fielding restriction breach is a no-ball | Not applicable | Yes | Yes |
| Front-foot no-balls called by third umpire | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Domestic competitions can vary. Some leagues have used different bouncer limits or extra penalties, so it’s always worth checking the playing conditions for the tournament you’re watching.
Frequently asked questions
How many runs is a no-ball worth?
One run is added as a penalty, plus any runs scored off the delivery. If the batter hits a six off a no-ball, the batting side gets seven.
Can you be stumped off a no-ball?
No. Stumping is one of the dismissals that cannot happen off a no-ball or a free hit. A batter who wanders out of the crease can, however, be run out if the fielding side breaks the stumps while they are out of their ground and attempting a run.
Is there a free hit in Test cricket?
No. Free hits are used only in limited-overs cricket, meaning ODIs, T20 internationals and most domestic white-ball leagues.
Can the fielding side change the field for a free hit?
Only if the batters have changed ends, so a different batter is on strike, or if a new bowler comes on. If the same batter faces the free hit, the field must stay as it was.
What happens if the free hit is a wide?
The wide is added to the score and the free hit carries over to the next delivery. The same applies if the free hit is a no-ball.
Who decides front-foot no-balls in international cricket?
The third umpire. They check replays of every delivery and tell the on-field umpire if the bowler has overstepped, so the call can come a few seconds after the ball.
No-balls and free hits are a small part of the Laws with a big effect on results, especially in the short formats. If you want to see how fine the margins are, our T20 World Cup winners list shows how tight the biggest matches can be, and our classic highlights collection has plenty of those moments on video. For the latest fixtures, tables and talking points, head to the cricket hub, and the full Laws are on the MCC website.
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