Confused by all the funny terms in cricket? - Learn the jargon of cricket.
Could not find what you are looking for? Please contact the Webmaster if you believe that you can add additional jargon to this Page.
Agricultural shot
Uncultured shot: "Heave", Hoick", Smear" - hit with a flat (horizontal) bat.
All at sea
A batsman who is regularly being beaten is said to be "all at sea".
Appeal
When the fielding side think they have taken the wicket they appeal to the umpire (howzat?) The umpire will not always agree, but no appeal means no wicket.
Arm ball
A delivery from a spinner that does not turn but goes straight on. Good spinners can bowl an arm ball without any change in their action.
Average
Batting average is calculated by dividing the number of runs a batsman has scored by the number of times he has been out. A bowler's average sees the number of runs scored against a bowler divided by the number of wickets taken.
Bails
Two wooden bails sit across the top of the three stumps at each end of the pitch. At least one bail has to be knocked off for the wicket to be deemed broken.
Bat-and-pad
When the ball hits both the bat and pad. A batsman can be caught out even if the ball hits the pad first and then hits the bat.
Beamer
Head-high delivery that does not bounce; "H to H" (hand to head).
Being hit square
Implies the bowling is too short and the fielding side stands a good chance of loosing.
Bending his back
An effort ball by a fast bowler being bowled with some extra pace.
Belter
A pitch that offers no assistance to the bowlers and is ideal to bat on.
Big on you
A ball that comes to the batsman/fielder faster than expected.
Bosey
A googly (a leg-spin delivery that turns into the right-hand batsman).
Bound
A bowler's jump in the air just prior to delivery.
Bowl at the death
Bowling in the final overs in a limited overs match.
Bumper
Bouncer, a ball that is bowled short at that comes through to the batsman head height.
Boundary
The perimeter of the pitch. A ball struck to the boundary along the ground is worth four runs or if it carries all the way over the boundary without bouncing then a six is scored.
Bunny
A batsman who is regularly dismissed by the same bowler.
Caned
A bowler taking punishment; "taking stick"; being hammered.
Carry
The distance that the ball travels to the wicketkeeper.
Channel
A good line approximately 25 cm outside the off stump.
Chassis
A skipping movement by a batsman going down the wicket; a similar sideways movement by a wicketkeeper.
Check drive
The batsman drives without following through over the front shoulder.
Cherry
The new ball.
Chinaman
Left arm wrist-spinner's standard delivery into the right hand batsman.
Chinese cut
Attempted cut shot that just misses the stumps and goes down to fine leg.
Closing the face
The batsman's hand causes the face of the bat to be turned to leg side.
Coffin
The large rectangular cricketer's kit container.
Coil
The bowler's "rock-back" / "gather" just prior to delivery.
Complete cricketer
A cricketer who has all the qualities of of a class player.
Cows corner
The deep mid-field fielding position.
Cruising
Easily achieving the required target.
Dab
Play the ball softly into gaps. Also called a "nurdle".
Dead ball
A ball which, in the opinion of the umpire, is no longer playable, e.g. if the hall lodges in a batsman's clothing or gear.
Declaration
If a team is feel they have scored enough runs they bring their own innings to an early end by making a declaration.
Deep, the
An area in the outfield far from the bat.
Did not trouble the scorers
A polite way of saying a batsman is out for a duck (nil).
Dolly
A very easy catch.
Dot ball
A delivery whereby no runs are scored. Much valued in limited overs cricket, it represents a dot in the scorer's book.
Duck
The dreaded score in cricket. A batsman who fails to score a run is said to have got a duck.
Duckham/Lewis
A system which computes scores in rain-affected limited-overs games.
Farm the bowling
An established batsman maintains the strike whilst protecting a lower-order batsman.
Feet in the toilet
A batsman plays without moving his feet (neither playing backward or forward, being caught on the crease).
Fifer (five-for)
Five wickets by a bowler, e.g. five for twenty runs - roughly equivalent to a batsman scoring a century.
First class cricket
Matches of three days or longer.
Flipper
A delivery bowled by a leg-spinner that is snapped between the thumb and second finger and hastens straight into the batsman.
Follow on
If a team is 200 runs or more behind after the first innings of a Test then they can be asked to follow-on. This means the team going straight back into bat. The follow-on target is reduced to 150 in a four day game and 100 in a three day match.
Full toss
A delivery that reaches a batsman without bouncing.
Furniture
The wickets, especially when a batsman is bowled, as in the phrase "disturbing the furniture".
Gardening
A batsman clearing any loose dirt, etc. off the pitch. Also, to pat down imaginary obstacles to detract from a good delivery from a bowler.
Golden duck
Being out first ball without scoring.
Golden duck
Being out first ball without scoring.
Good length delivery
Basically it involves pitching the ball just out of the maximum reach forward of a batsman, leaving him unsure whether to play the ball off the front or the back foot.
Good/bad call
Good/bad umpiring decision.
Good/had shout
Good/bad appeal.
Got the wood on him
Able to dictate to an opposing player.
Greeting a batsman
Usually a bouncer to a batsman who is new at the crease.
Half century
A score of 50 or more by an individual batsman.
Half-cock
The batsman plays neither well forward nor back.
Hat trick
A bowler takes a hat-trick if he removes three batsmen in three successive deliveries. The three deliveries may run in sequence or could be the last two balls of a bowler's over and then the first ball of his next over.
High front elbow
Indicates the batsman is using his top hand in playing his shots - playing with "high hands".
Hit his straps
A player finding excellent form.
Hold the ball back
Slower delivery.
Howzat
This is the question asked by a fielding team to the umpire when they think that they may have got a member of the batting team out.
In a heap
A side bowled out for a small score.
Inside out
The face of the bat is unintentionally turned by the bottom hand to the off side.
"It's red and round"
A remark by a bowler to batsman who is regularly playing and missing.
Jack
A number-eleven batsman.
Jack back
A hall that nips or cuts back off the pitch; "track back".
Juicy
A delivery that is easily dispatched or a pitch with life in it.
Kiss the deck
A delivery which does not hit the pitch hard; "goes through the top".
LBW
Stands for leg before wicket. The umpire will consider giving a batsman out lbw if he believes that the ball would have hit the stumps if it had not been obstructed by the batter's pads.
Leading edge
The batsman plays too soon, causing the ball to hit the edge of the bat.
Lid (or pot)
Helmet.
Line
The direction the ball travels after leaving the bowler's hand.
Long hop
A short delivery that is easy for a batsman to hit away.
Loosener
First ball of a bowler's new spell where little effrt is used.
Maiden Over
An over from which no runs are scored.
Makers name (show the)
The face of the bat is seen throughout the shot indicating the batsman is playing straight.
Maiden Over
An over from which no runs are scored.
Maximum
Six runs.
Middle Order
Often the major run scorers in the team, batting from positions three to six or seven, depending on the number of specialist batsmen in the team.
Military medium
A bowler who delivers gentle medium pace.
Milk the bowling
The batsmen are able to score at will.
Neck and crop
A batsman who is completely beaten and bowled "all ends up".
Negative defensive tactics
To restrict the scoring, usually the bowler comes round the wicket with more players on the leg side. Umpires can now no-ball such tactics.
Nelson
A superstitious score — one hundred and eleven in South Africa and eighty-seven in Australia (13 less than 100). A superstitious team usually raise their feet when 111 is reached. The term comes from the mistaken believe that Nelson had one eye, one arm and one leg. He had both legs.
Net player
A player who does well in the nets but struggles in matches.
Nibble
A faint touch, "feather".
Nightwatchman
A lower order batsman sent in at the end of a day to see out the remaining time, rather than risk losing a more important batsman.
On the up
A ball, short of a length, that is driven on the front foot.
Open the face
The face of the bat is deliberately turned to guide the ball to the off side.
Opened up
A batsman is forced to play in an uncontrolled, disorganised manner to a particular delivery and is usually well beaten.
Openers
The two batsmen who start the innings for a team.
Over pitched
A delivery that is easy for a batsman to hit within a comfortable stride forward from the popping crease.
Pads
Worn to protect the legs of the batsman from being hit by the ball.
Pair
A batsman who gets a duck in both innings of a two innings match is said to have got a pair.
Partnership
The number of runs scored between two batsmen during the time they are at the wicket together.
Peach (of a delivery)
Fine delivery; "Corker"'; "Good nut"; " Jaffa " (after the orange).
Pinned
A batsman hit by a quick delivery has been "pinned"
Pitch
The closely mown area in the centre of the field where the major action takes place.
Playing from square leg
The batsman is scared .
Popping crease
The batting crease.
Putting the screws on it
An extremely hard-hit delivery; "going big"; "throw the kitchen sink at it".
Pyjama cricket
Named after the coloured gear worn in one-day and day/night limited-overs games.
Pitch
The closely mown area in the centre of the field where the major action takes place.
Return crease
The crease at right angles to the bowling and popping creases
Roll the fingers
Usually for a slower delivery the fingers are moved across the seam as the ball is released.
Royal pair
Two first-ball dismissals in succession; "a pair of spectacles" is two ducks in a row.
Run(s)
Each time the batsmen change ends a run is scored and added to the total.
Run out
A player can be run out if the wicket at one end of the pitch is broken while a batsman is out of his ground.
Run rate
This is the rate at which a team score their runs. It is calculated by the total number of runs divided by the number of overs.
Run the ball down
Deflect the ball to third man.
Sandshoe crusher
An express yorker that hits batsmen on the feet.
Shimmy
"Dance" down the wicket as the bowler delivers. A shimmy is also an American Ragtime dance with "much shaking of the hips and shoulders".
Shocker
A bad umpiring decision.
Short/back of a length
A delivery which forces the batsman onto the back foot.
Skyline
A graph (vertical rectangles) showing the relative scoring of two teams in a One-Day International. Previously known as "a Manhattan ", the name was changed as a mark of respect for those who lost their lives in the New York World Trade Centre disaster on September 11, 2001 .
Sledge
Comments that are made by the opposition to upset the concentration of a player ("as subtle as a sledgehammer").
Square up
A batsman is forced to play chest-on to a delivery.
Snaffle
Take a sharp chance.
Sniff the leather
A batsman's head is as close to the point of impact as possible — playing "under the eyes".
Snow on it
A ball hit very high in the air.
Soft dismissal
Geting a batsman out easily (typically through a batsman's error)
Soft hands
Playing with the bottom hand just touching the handle of the bat to lessen the impact - the ball does not travel quickly from the bat.
Spar
Play and miss; "waft".
Standing tall
A batsman uses his full height to deal with a delivery.
Steeple
A delivery that rises sharply.
Stonewall
Stubborn defence by a batsman.
Stump
The wickets at each end of the pitch are made up of three wooden stumps.
Stumped
A batsman can be stumped if in attempting a shot he leaves the popping crease and the wicketkeeper is able to gather the ball and remove the bails before the batsman regains his ground.
Suicidal Run
An impossible run which usually results in a run-out.
Sweep the length
Sweeping a half-volley.
Sweeper
A fielder who provides additional cover on the boundary.
Sweet spot
The part of the bat that has maximum hitting power; "the meat".
Tailender
The last few batsmen in a team who are not noted for their run scoring ability are known as tailenders.
Test
Test matches are played over two innings matches played over five days.
Throat ball
A short-pitched fast delivery aimed at the batsman's throat. Also known as "chin music" because of aggressive West Indian bowling.
Tickle
A delivery that is delicately played to fine leg.
Ton
Another way of saying that an individual batsman has scored a century.
Uppercut
A delivery which is deliberately cut over the slips.
The "V"
The area between mid-on and mid-off.
Wicket maiden
A maiden over that has also seen a bowler take a wicket.
Whip off the toes
Standing tall, head and eyes over the point of impact, the ball is played late with the bottom hand guiding the ball on the leg side.
Yorker
A delivery that pitches right at the feet or bat of the batsman.
Zooter
A leg-spinner's variation that does not spin much and dips into a right-hand batsman. So named by Shane Warne and coach Terry Jenner, probably to confuse opposing batsmen.