In cricket, there are several rules that govern how the game is played. These range from simple things like what time of day the match can be played to more complicated issues such as whether or not players can use illegal equipment.
There are six main areas where the laws of the sport come into play which we will discuss in this article. They are-the field, the bat, the ball, out, overrate and runout.
Each one of these has their own set of regulations and interpretations depending on the situation and who is involved in the game. It is very important for spectators to know the laws because they may be needed at any time!
This article will go through all 6 of these concepts in detail and give you an understanding of when and why each rule comes into effect.
Leg-side run-ups
Another rule that can get people confused is what position you should be when running for the ball. This one comes down to how close your foot needs to be to the sideline to make it past the boundary.
The off side line is where the field lines meet at an angle, making it a half circle. The outside edge of this half circle is called the sidelines. If your feet are closer than this distance then it would be considered out.
On the other hand if your feet are more in bounds then it would be regarded as a legitimate run. A few cricket rules apply here!
One of these is whether or not the batsman has completed his forward defensive shift. When a player receives the ball they must immediately move their feet so that their front foot is between five and eight metres from the next pitch.
If they don’t do this within this time frame then they have failed to put enough pressure on the ball and allowed their opponent to gain an advantage by choosing to bowl there instead of taking a catch.
Leg-side field settings
Fielding behind the batsman is one of the most fundamental parts of cricket. The type of leg side fielding that you choose to do depends mostly on if there are runners in the field or not, how close the batter is to the bowler’s run up, as well as whether the batting team needs a defensive tactic.
There are three different types of leg side fields that cricketers can practice: backstop, half-back, and full-back. A backstop field is where the fielder comes right up to the striker (batter) at the front of the bat and drops his hands about knee high. This is typically done when the hitter has a very short stride and/or doesn’t hit the ball hard enough to get it past him.
A half-backfield is similar to a backstop field except that instead of dropping your hands all the way down, you only drop them just beyond the middle of the bat. This is usually done when the player feels like they have time to wait for a bad shot or want to make sure nothing gets stolen because their team does not need the ball.
A full-back field is identical to a half-back field but the defender drops his hands much more aggressively, almost touching the stick. This is typically done by good defenders when the other two fields cannot be used due to lack of space or potential danger to the runkeeper or runner.
Leg-side boundaries
The other major difference between cricket and football is how the field is divided into in game areas. In soccer, what we refer to as the “goal” has a cross bar across it, which defines when it is a goal and when it is not. This does not apply in hockey or rugby, where there are no goals!
In cricket, however, there is an area of the pitch that is referred to as the “leg-side boundary”. This is simply the side of the field where the batsman can run with the ball if he loses his balance while batting (while running up to hit/field).
The leg-side boundary line comes down at knee height, then gets higher towards the fence. A very popular way to score a goal in soccer is through the use of a corner kick. This is because it gives your team the opportunity to strike from behind by putting more emphasis on getting past the goal than trying to shoot for the goal directly.
A similar situation happens in cricket. When a player runs out of the fielding zone with the ball, they may choose to try and take a quick shot at scoring a goal by hitting the space just outside the goal. However, this space becomes much smaller the longer the throw takes, so it is better to go over the top instead. This is called a high catch.
Head-on collisions
In cricket, a head-on collision occurs when two players make contact with their heads or necks. It is one of the most common types of fouls in the game because it can result in a penalty such as a dismissal for either player involved or both.
There are three main instances where a head-on collision happens. The first instance is when a player jumps out of the way to avoid being hit by a ball but misses and hits his/her opponent instead. This is usually done at high speed to prevent the ball from going past them so that they do not have to go all the way around the field.
The second instance is when a player is running down the pitch and is met face-to-face by another player who has stopped to watch the play.
The third instance is when a player is backing up while hitting the ground with the bat and is run into by the foot or leg of a runner coming towards the batsman.
These things happen very quickly so there is no time to hesitate before reacting. Players must be aware of how close others are to them at all times so that they know what to do if something does occur.
Leg-side catches
This is one of the trickier rules to understand in cricket. A catch is defined as “A player or team picking up the ball after it has been hit towards them and putting it into their hands”.
So what makes a leg-side catch different from an ordinary run out? It comes down to how close you have to be to the batted ball when you pick it up. If you don’t get within striking distance quickly enough, then it doesn’t matter whether your hands are empty or not – it won’t count as a catch.
With that said, here are the three possible leg side catchers and the rule for each!
The first type of catcher is the front footer. You read that correctly! The front footer is when the fielder drops his/her feet onto the ground before catching the ball with their hands.
This is typically done at short boundaries where they want to stop the batsman getting a quick single. Obviously, if the bowler runs forward to field the ball, this isn’t an option anymore! (More about those types of boundary catches below)
If a front-foot catcher gets there just in time to take a good grip of the ball, then no problem! They will get credit for a catch and the batter will be awarded two runs instead of one.
Leg-side stumpings
This is one of the trickiest rules in cricket. It can either win or lose your game, and it’s totally down to luck! A leg-stump declaration usually means that there will be no run out for the batting side, but if they try to take off after the batsman has hit the ball then you have a potential match-winning situation.
A bowler needs to make sure he doesn’t drop his knee beyond the line of the foot as he runs up to bowl, and at the same time he must keep enough balance so that he doesn’t trip over his own feet. If he does get tripped up then he risks being called for a DRS (Direct Reception System) which would end the innings immediately.
If a player uses their hands to stop the ball going onto the pitch before stepping forward, then this isn’t considered legal bowling action and therefore not worth using your hand.
Bowling restrictions
The second type of restriction is bowling restrictions. These are typically limited to how many times you can bowl within a certain time frame or for a set number of balls. For example, if you’re in an ODI match then there is a one hour limit per bowler. If it were closer to the end of the game than an hour then your team would need to make sure that person doesn’t get too much rest before the next phase!
There is also a maximum amount of bowls allowed during this period which dependents on what kind of cricket we are talking about. A Twenty-Twenty game has twenty overs while a Test match has seventy-five. In both cases the maxium is ten consecutive bowls. This means that player gets two minutes between each over!
In One Day Internationals (ODIs) and Twenty-twenty games, every member of the fielding side needs to be aware of these rules otherwise they could easily find themselves being replaced at the top of the order.
