The ManicaPost
Audrey F Kamba On The Point —
LAST week, I did a recap of some of the terms we use in the game of cricket. This week I will continue defining some of the terms for the benefit of the followers of the game of cricket.
Leg Before Wicket – describing the method of getting out in which the bowler bowls a ball that would hit the striker’s wicket, but it hits the striker instead without first hitting his bat; abbreviated LBW.
Maiden – an over in which no runs are scored.
Middle Order – the batsmen who normally bat in roughly positions five to seven in the batting order.
Nelson – a score of 111 runs either by a single batsman or the total for the side.
Night watchman – a batsman sent in to bat above his normal batting position at the fall of
a wicket a short time before the end of a day’s play, as a tactic to protect better batsmen from having to begin their innings just before the end of play and then have to begin again the next day.
Off Break – the standard type of ball bowled by an off spin bowler, which spins from the off to the leg to a right-handed batsman.
Opener – a batsman who specializes in batting at position one or two in the batting order, a batsman who normally opens an innings.
Out – the state of a batsman having his innings ended by the fielding team and having to leave the field.
Out-swing – swing of the ball through the air outwards away from the batsman.
Pitch – the prepared rectangle of grass in the center of a cricket field, which has a wicket at each end and along which the bowler bowls the ball to the batsman.
Popping Crease – the white line marked on the pitch in front of each wicket, delineating the border between safe and unsafe territory for the batsmen when they take runs, and also the region where a bowler’s front foot must land in order to bowl a legal delivery; also referred to simply as the crease.
Retire Hurt – (of a batsman) to stop batting because of an injury sustained while batting and allow the next batsman in the batting order to bat.
Run – the unit of scoring; the act of the batsmen scoring a run, by running between the wickets.
Sandshoe Crusher – a yorker bowled directly at the batsman’s feet, often with in-swing; a ball that actually hits the batsman on a foot.
Seamer – bowler who is skilled in or specializes in seaming the ball.
Short Of A Length – (of a ball) pitching short of a good length.
Silly Point – fielding position on the off side, square of the striker’s wicket and very close to the batsman, a static position designed to catch the ball from a misplaced block or other defensive shot, a fielder fielding in the silly point position.
Snick – a small deflection of the cricket ball off the edge of the striker’s bat, usually not deviating much from the ball’s trajectory, and often to the wicket-keeper for a catch.
Square Leg – fielding position on the leg side, square of the striker’s wicket, a position designed to either catch the ball from a misplaced pull shot, or to prevent runs from pull shots and defensive strokes square on the leg side.
Sticky Wicket – a pitch containing a lot of moisture, usually from exposure to rain, more commonly encountered historically before pitches were covered in bad weather, and on which the ball bounces unpredictably, making it very difficult to bat.
Strike Bowler – a bowler included in a side specifically for his ability to take wickets, as opposed to being economical in terms of conceding runs.
Stumped – describing the method of getting out in which the batsman steps out of his crease to play a ball, misses it, and the wicket-keeper collects the ball and breaks his wicket before he returns to his crease.
Sweeper – a batsman who is skilled at or frequently plays sweep shots; a field position in the deep outfield near the boundary, designed to cover a lot of territory and prevent runs.
Tea – the 20-minute break between the second and third sessions of play during a first class cricket match.
Test Nation – one of the officially recognised nations who play Test cricket; currently one of
England, Australia, South Africa, West Indies, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka,
Zimbabwe and Bangladesh.
Toss – the coin toss that occurs at the beginning of a cricket match to determine which side will bat first.
Turn – sideways movement of the ball in its trajectory towards the batsman, caused when the ball bounces on the pitch, by the rotation of the ball; to get the ball to move sideways.
Twelfth Man – the first designated substitute player for a cricket side, who will field if another player is injured.
Walk – (of a batsman) to walk off the field as if given out, when the fielding team appeals but before the umpire rules the batsman out, usually done as a matter of sportsmanship when the batsman knows he is out.
Wrong ‘Un – a googly.
Yorker – a ball bowled so as to bounce on the pitch on or near the batsman’s popping crease.
Aubrey Kamba can be contacted on 0778712404.
