wicket

Information about wicket

This article is about the cricket term. For other uses, see Wicket (disambiguation).
In the sport of cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings:

Meanings of wicket

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Each wicket consists of three stumps, upright wooden poles that are hammered into the ground, topped with two wooden crosspieces, known as the bails.

Set of stumps

Primarily, the wicket is one of the two sets of three stumps and two bails at either end of the pitch. The wicket is guarded by a batsman who, with his bat, attempts to prevent the ball from hitting the wicket. A diagram detailing all the measurements of a wicket can be found in Appendix A of the Laws of cricket [1].

The origin of the word is from the standard definition of wicket as a small gate. Historically, cricket wickets had only two stumps and one bail and looked like a gate.

Dismissing a batsman

Wicket also refers to the event of a batsman getting out. The batsman is said to have lost his wicket if dismissed by a bowler, while the bowler is said to have taken his wicket. The number of wickets taken is the primary measure of a bowler's ability.

For a batsman to be dismissed by being bowled, run out, stumped or hit wicket, his wicket needs to be put down. What this means is defined by Law 28 of the Laws of cricket. The wicket is put down if a bail is completely removed from the top of the stumps, or a stump is struck out of the ground by the ball, the striker's bat, the striker's person (or by any part of his clothing or equipment becoming detached from his person), a fielder (with his hand or arm) and providing that the ball is held in the hand or hands so used, or in the hand of the arm so used. The wicket is also put down if a fielder pulls a stump out of the ground in the same manner.

If one bail is off, removing the remaining bail or striking or pulling any of the three stumps out of the ground is sufficient to put the wicket down. A fielder may remake the wicket, if necessary, in order to put it down to have an opportunity of running out a batsman.

If the umpires have agreed to dispense with bails, because, for example, it is too windy for the bails to remain on the stumps, the decision as to whether the wicket has been put down is one for the umpire concerned to decide. After a decision to play without bails, the wicket has been put down if the umpire concerned is satisfied that the wicket has been struck by the ball, by the striker's bat, person, or items of his clothing or equipment separated from his person as described above, or by a fielder with the hand holding the ball or with the arm of the hand holding the ball.

Partnership

The sequence of time over which two particular batsmen bat together, a partnership, is referred to as a specifically numbered wicket when discriminating it from other partnerships in the innings.
  • The first wicket partnership is from the start of the innings until a first batsman gets out.
  • The second wicket partnership is from when a first batsman gets out until a second batsman gets out.
  • etc...
  • The tenth wicket or last wicket partnership is from when a ninth batsman gets out until a tenth batsman gets out.

Winning by number of wickets

A team can win a match by a certain number of wickets. This means that they were batting last, and reached the winning target with a certain number of batsmen still not dismissed. A team's innings ends when ten batsmen are dismissed, so, for example, if the side scored the required number of runs to win with only three batsmen dismissed, they are said to have won by seven wickets.

The pitch

The word wicket is also sometimes used to refer to the cricket pitch itself. According to the Laws of Cricket, this usage is incorrect, but it is in common usage and commonly understood by cricket followers. This usage probably derives from the days when the outfield was kept short by grazing sheep on it and the playing surface, which was specially prepared, was protected from them by a light wicker fence around it. Since many regular grounds had resident bat-makers it is quite possible that the branches cut off from the willow wood used for the bats formed all or part of this fence. Much willow is employed in making wicker-work.

The term sticky wicket refers to a situation in which the pitch has become damp, typically due to rain or high humidity. This makes the path of the ball more unpredictable thus making the job of defending the stumps that much more difficult. The full phrase is thought to have originally been "to bat on a sticky wicket." Such pitches were commonplace at all levels of the game (i.e. up to Test Match level) until the late 1950s.

See also

A wicket is a term used in the sport of cricket with several related meanings.

It also has some non-cricket meanings:
  • "Sticky Wicket", a M*A*S*H episode
  • Wicket (retail); in banking, the place where a customer performs a transaction with a bank teller

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Cricket is a bat-and-ball sport contested by two teams, usually of eleven players each.[1] A cricket match is played on a grass field, roughly oval in shape, in the centre of which is a flat strip of ground 22 yards (20.12 m) long, called a cricket pitch.
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stump has three different meanings:

1. part of the wicket, 2. a manner of dismissing a batsman, and 3. the end of the day's play ("stumps").

Part of the wicket

The stumps are three vertical posts which support two bails.
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In the sport of cricket, a bail is one of the two smaller sticks placed on top of the three stumps to form a wicket. The bails are used to determine when the wicket is broken
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batsman in the sport of cricket is, depending on context:
  • Any player in the act of batting.
  • A player whose speciality in the game is batting.

The batting role


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A cricket bat is used by batsmen in the sport of cricket. It is usually made of willow wood.

Shape

This specialised bat is shaped something like a paddle, consisting of a padded handle
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A cricket ball is a hard, solid ball used to play cricket.

Manufacture

Cricket balls are made from a core of cork, which is layered with tightly wound string, and covered by a leather case with a slightly raised sewn seam.
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The laws of cricket are a set of rules framed by the Marylebone Cricket Club which serve to standardise the format of cricket matches across the world to ensure uniformity and fairness.
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batsman in the sport of cricket is, depending on context:
  • Any player in the act of batting.
  • A player whose speciality in the game is batting.

The batting role


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A bowler in the sport of cricket is usually a player whose speciality is bowling, analogous to a pitcher in baseball. A bowler who is also a competent batsman is known as an all-rounder.
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batsman in the sport of cricket is, depending on context:
  • Any player in the act of batting.
  • A player whose speciality in the game is batting.

The batting role


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Bowled is a method of dismissing a batsman in the sport of cricket. This method of dismissal is covered by Law 30 of the Laws of cricket.

A batsman is out bowled if his wicket is put down by a ball delivered by the bowler.
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For the term run out, used in equestrian sport, see refusal

Run out is a method of dismissal in the sport of cricket. It is governed by Law 38 of the Laws of cricket.
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stump has three different meanings:

1. part of the wicket, 2. a manner of dismissing a batsman, and 3. the end of the day's play ("stumps").

Part of the wicket

The stumps are three vertical posts which support two bails.
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Hit wicket is a method of dismissal in the sport of cricket. This method of dismissal is governed by Law 35 of the Laws of cricket. The striker is out Hit-wicket if, after the bowler has entered his delivery stride and while the ball is in play, his wicket is put down by
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The laws of cricket are a set of rules framed by the Marylebone Cricket Club which serve to standardise the format of cricket matches across the world to ensure uniformity and fairness.
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In the sport of cricket, a bail is one of the two smaller sticks placed on top of the three stumps to form a wicket. The bails are used to determine when the wicket is broken
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A cricket ball is a hard, solid ball used to play cricket.

Manufacture

Cricket balls are made from a core of cork, which is layered with tightly wound string, and covered by a leather case with a slightly raised sewn seam.
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Fielding in the sport of cricket is what fielders do to collect the ball when it is struck by the batsman, in such a way as to either limit the number of runs that the batsman scores or get the batsman out by catching the ball in flight or running the batsman out.
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An umpire in cricket (from the Old French Nompere meaning not equal, i.e. not a member of one of the teams, impartial) is a person who has the authority to make decisions on the cricket field, according to the Laws of Cricket.
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A cricket bat is used by batsmen in the sport of cricket. It is usually made of willow wood.

Shape

This specialised bat is shaped something like a paddle, consisting of a padded handle
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In the sport of cricket, two batsmen bat in partnership, although only one is on strike at any time. The partnership between two batsmen will come to an end when one of them is dismissed or retires, or the innings comes to a close (usually due to victory being achieved, a
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inning, or innings, is a fixed-length segment of a game in any of a variety of sports – most notably baseball and cricket – during which one team attempts to score while the other team attempts to prevent the first from scoring.
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This article may contain original research or unverified claims.
Please help Wikipedia by adding references. See the for details.
This article has been tagged since October 2007.

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The laws of cricket are a set of rules framed by the Marylebone Cricket Club which serve to standardise the format of cricket matches across the world to ensure uniformity and fairness.
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Cricket is a team sport played between two teams of eleven. It is known for its rich terminology. Some terms are often thought to be arcane and humorous by those not familiar with the game.

This is a general glossary of the terminology used in the sport of cricket.
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