Cricket Terminologies

PINCH HITTER :- In cricket, pinch hitter is the usual term for a batsman (not a substitute, unlike in baseball) promoted up the batting order in order to score quick runs.

APPEAL :- In the sport of cricket, an appeal is the act of a player on the fielding team asking an umpire for a decision regarding whether a batsman is out or not. According to the Laws of Cricket, an umpire may not rule a batsman out unless the fielding side appeals.

BEAMER :- In the terminology of the game of cricket, a beamer (less commonly beam ball) is a type of delivery in which the ball (bowled at a fast pace), without bouncing, passes above the batsman's waist height.

YORKER :- A bowling delivery that generally passes under the bat near a batsman's toes. Also known as a sandshoe crusher.

LEG BREAK :- A delivery from a spin bowler, which turns off the surface of the wicket from the leg side to the off side.

NIGHT WATCHMAN :- A batsman who is generally a tail-ender and comes in towards the end of the day's play in order to protect better batsmen.

CHINAMAN BALL :- A delivery by a left arm spinner, which to a right hand batsman appears as if it will spin from off to leg but it spins in the opposite direction. The delivery was devised by a West Indian player of Chinese Descent, hence the name.

CHUCKER :- A bowler, who the umpire has determined, does not deliver the ball in a legal manner.

GOLDEN DUCK :- A term that is used when a batsman is dismissed by the very first ball he faces without scoring.

BOWL OUT :- A bowl-out (sometimes termed a bowl-off) is used in various forms of limited overs cricket to decide a match that would otherwise end in a tie. The procedure is similar to a penalty shootout in association football. Five bowlers from each side deliver one ball each at an unguarded wicket. If each team has hit the same number of wickets after the first five balls per side, the bowling continues and is decided by sudden death.

DOOSRA :- The bowler delivers the ball with the same finger action as a normal off break but cocks the wrist so that the back of the hand faces the batsman. This gives the ball spin in the opposite direction to that for an off break, causing it to spin from the leg side to the off side to a right-handed batsman.

FOLLOW ON :- Follow-on is a term used in the sport of cricket to describe a situation where the team that bats second is forced to take its second batting innings immediately after its first, because the team was not able to get close enough (within 200 runs for a five-day match) to the score achieved by the first team batting in the first inning.

MENTAL DISINTEGRATION :- The term is believed to have been first used by Australian Captain Steve Waugh, to describe the art of sledging.

SLEDGE :- To use either abusive or offensive words againstan opponent. The Aussies refer to this practice as "MENTAL DISINTEGRATION". The term sledge was a shortened term taken from the Australian saying "As Subtle As A Sledgehammer".

STREAKER :- A slang used to describe a person runs across the cricket field naked.

  WALK :- Generally used by a batsman to indicate his acceptance of a dismissal without waiting for the decision of an umpire. The physical act of walking away from the stumps was once the usual practice, but is now very uncommon.

FLIPPER :- A delivery used by a leg spin bowler, which appears to the batsman in a flatter and faster delivery than the normal leg spin delivery. Australia's Richie Benaud devised this delivery.

FRENCH CUT :- An attempt at a cut, shot or drive that hits the bottom or inside edge of the bat and goes into the area behind square leg.

GARDENING :- The term is used when a batsman pats down with the tip of his bat either loose areas of pitch or pieces of the playing surface that have come apart.

AGRICULTURAL SHOT :- A batting stroke, which is anything other than standard or copybook.

ARTIFICIAL PITCH :- A pitch with a surface made from conrete, covered with matting or constructed from synthetic truf. Regulation pitches are produced from rolled turf.

BACK UP :- Refers to the batsman at the bowling end who leaves his crease after the bowler has released the ball in prepartion fro making a run.

BAGGY GREEN :- The name given to the cap worn by the Australian players. It refers to the baggy, oversized appearance of the cap.

BUMP BALL :- A ball that cannons into the ground immediately after leaving the bat. To the fieldsmen and spectators, It appear to have come directly of the bat.

CRUMBLE :- It refers to the state of the pitch, usually late in a game after experiencing considerable wear. A spin bowler often favours a crumbling pitch as it will allow the ball more bite and turn.

DIG :- The act of a batsman ensuring he remains at the crease for a long period, rather than attack and risk his wicket by attempting to score frequent runs.

FEATHER :- A very faint edge of a ball by the batsman, AKA a "SNICK".

GRUBBER :- A bowling delivery that stays very low after leaving the surface of the pitch.

JAFFER :- A slang used to describe a delivery bowled so well by the bowler that it is unplayable.

PICK :- In batting, it refers to the ability of the batsman to observe the type of delivery being bowled by a bowler. In bowling, it bowling, it refers to a method adopted by bowlers to lift the seam of a cricket ball to gain an unfair advantage (Cheat).

PIE THROWER :- A slang used to describe a bowler of poor quality.