Cricket Terminology

All-Rounder: A batsman who has the ability to bat and bowls both. Can also refer to a batsman/wicket-keeper.
Around-the-wicket: When a bowler bowls with the wicket on the other side of the body to the bowling arm.
All Out: When a batting side has no more player to bat, the state is called 'all-out', or end of the innings.
Appeal: A call by a player to an umpire for a decision on any playing matter. Usually, it is 'How's that's by the fielding side, asking the umpire to declare a batsman 'out'.
Away-Swinger: A bowling delivery that moves in the air from leg to off, for left-handed batsman it moves from off to leg.
Arm Bowl: Type of bowling by an off-spinner that has little or no spin. Such bowl when bowled by leg-spinner is called 'footer
Back Foot: Batsman's footwork when he has placed his center of gravity onto the back foot to play a shot, usually a defensive shot on a rising delivery.
Bails: Two small wooden cylinder-like pieces balanced at the top of three vertical dowels or stumps.
Ball-Tampering: Illegally altering the condition of the ball by the fielding side. The altered condition may give the fielding side an unfair advantage as the ball can swing more and late.
Bat carry: If one of the openers stays at the crease, while all other batsmen are out; it is said that he 'carried the bat'.
Batsman: A player who plays with the help of bat different shots when the ball has been bowled, usually in order to make runs.
Bowler: A player throwing the red, leather ball at the batsman to play, aiming to get him out.
Box: A protector worn by a batsman to protect his part of the body below the navel (genitals), types of guard, like chest guard or thigh guard.
Beamer: A bowling delivery aimed directly at the body or head of the batsman.
Beaten: When a batsman failed to strike or play the ball, he is said to have been 'beaten' by the bowler's skillful delivery.
Bouncer: A bowling delivery by a fast bowler which is pitched short and rising towards the batsman's head, or at least chest high. Also called short-pitched delivery.
Boundary: Outer limit of playing area, like bowing ring, soccer ground, etc.
Break: A slow bowler's delivery spins to either side after hitting the pitch surface.
Bye: A run not scored by the bat, usually refers to when the wicketkeeper failed to stop the bowling delivery, which allows a batsman to make run/runs, whether the bowl connected the bat or not.
Century: When a batsman scored 100 runs in one inning.
Chinaman: Kind of leg-break delivery, when bowled by a left-handed bowler.
Call: When both batsmen communicate, in order to refuse or confirm, for making a run or runs, usually by shouting "yes", "no", "wait".
Chop: Kind of shot played by a batsman, a form of late cut.
According to law, chucker: Illegal delivery by a bowler when he throws to bowl instead of round-arm bowling.
Creeper: A ball runs along the ground, also known as 'shooter' or 'sneaker'.
Cut: kind of shot by a batsman.
Cover drive: A batting stroke directed towards the cover area.
Deep: When fielder fields near the boundary e.g. Deep Mid-on, Deep Cover, Deep Third Man, etc.
Duck: When a batsman out without scoring any run.
Duck (Golden): Golden duck is referred to when batsman out on zero on the very first delivery.
Declaration: When a captain decides to close an innings when he still has wickets in hand i.e. batsmen still remaining to bat.
Delivery: Act of bowling.
Doosra: When a right-handed off-spinner bowls a delivery turning like a leg break, turning from off to leg side.
Drive: A stroke by batsman like 'cover-drive, 'on-drive...
Edge: Outermost perimeter of the bat. Also, refer to a bowler's bowl when only just struck by the edge of the bat.
Extras: Runs added to a team's total which is not created by the bat/batsman e.g. bys, leg-byes, no-ball, wide-ball, etc.
Field: Playing area, also refers to a fielder or positioning of the fielders.
Fine Leg: Field position whether short-leg or long-leg.
Full Toss: Bowler's ball which doesn't hit the pitch before reaching the batsman.
Finger Spin: A method that helps slow bowlers to spin the ball with the help of finger/fingers.
Flight: Kind of slow ball which has a loop in the air, dropped sharply onto the pitch in order to deceive the batsman.
Full Blooded: Batting stroke played with full physical power.
Good Length: In terms of length this bowling delivery pitches in such a position that a batsman faces difficulty to play a stroke. Usually, he plays it defensively.
Googly: Leg break bowling to the right-arm batsman, it appears that the ball will spin leg to off or middle to off, but instead it will spin in opposite directions to deceive the batsman.
Grubber: A delivery after pitching the surface go very low.
Half Volley: A bowling delivery which pitches very near the bat that batsman has to strike the ball immediately.
Hook: A batting stroke when played on the side of the short-pitched delivery.
Howzat: "How's That?" An appeal by the fielding side to the umpire asking for dismissal of a batsman.
Innings: Time period for batting by a team or individual.
King Pair: A batsman is out on the first ball for zero in both innings in a test match, he begged King Pair.
Late Cut: With a horizontal bat a wristy stroke played outside the off-stump in the slip area.
Long Leg: Fielding position, near the boundary, behind the wicket.
LBW: Leg Before Wicket. Method of dismissal credited to the bowler. When Batsman failed to play the delivery and ball struck on his leg which is just in front of the wicket. It is up to umpire judgment to give the batsman out or not under certain cricket law.
Leg Break: On pitching a ball turns from leg to off.
Leg Cutter: A fast leg-break bowled by the seam bowler.
Long Leg: Fielding position near the boundary on the leg-side. A very deep fine-leg.
Long-Off, Long-On: Fielding positions near the boundary on either side of the sightscreen at the bowler's end.
Maiden Over: An over in which no run is scored by the batsman.
Night Watchman: When a wicket falls shortly before the closing of the play, a low-order batsman is sent in to play out time, in order to prevent a better batsman from risking his wicket.
No Ball: An illegal delivery under a certain law. And the bowler has to bowl extra. A run is added to the score.
Off-Break: When a ball turns from off to leg.
Off-Cutter: Fast off-break bowling cutting the fingers across the seam of the ball.
Off-Drive: Drive on the front foot which hits the ball between cover and mid-off.
On-Drive: Drive which hits the ball between mid-wicket and mid-on.
Pitch: A specially prepared area, 5 feet width and 22 yards long, between the two sets of stumps.
Point: A close fielding position square with the wicket on the off-side.
Pull: A force-full stroke sending the ball between mid-on and mid-wicket.
Reverse Sweep: When a right-handed or left-handed batsmen plays a sweep shot towards the other side by changing the stance from left-handed to right-handed and vice versa. This relative improvisation by the batsmen to play opposite to the set field position allowing the batsmen to score runs where there are no fielders.
Run: Unit of scoring.
Run-out: A method of dismissal not credited to the bowler. When a batsman running for a run and failed to reach the stumps in time, meanwhile a fielder, by throwing the ball, hit the stumps.
Seam: The stitching around the circumference of the ball that fastens together its leather segments.
Seamer: A bowler (medium or fast) who uses the seam to deviate the ball when it pitches.
Shooter: A ball does not rise off the ground after pitching.
Short-Leg: A close fielding position on the leg side, it could be forward short-leg, backward or square.
Slip: Fielding position on the off-side near the wicket-keeper.
Square-Cut: A batsman's stroke which dispatches the ball just backward of point.
Stumps: Three wooden sticks when surmounted by the bails.
Sweep: Another stroke played off the front foot from the crouch position on the leg side.
Tail: Lower order of players in the team of 11, who are not selected for their specialized batting skill.
Test Match: A contest of two innings per side in 5 days between the two full members of the ICC (International Cricket Conference)
Tie: Match ended up with equal runs scored by both sides and with the team batting last having completed its innings.
Top Spin: Leg-break bowling when ball gain pace after bouncing but not deviate laterally.
Track: Substitute word for the cricket pitch.
Twelfth Man: An emergency fielder.
UDRS: Umpire Decision Review System. The link covers Hawk-Eye, Snickometer, and hotspot technology.
Wicket: Three wooden stumps having bailed on top. Wickets are pitched opposite and parallel to each other, 22 yards apart. The term is also used to describe the pitch.
Wicket-Maiden: An over in which no runs scored by the batsman but at least one wicket falls.
Wide: A ball high over or wide of the wicket and must be signaled by the umpire as "wide" and as a penalty, a run is added to the score.
Yorker: A ball pitched just near the bat or batsman's toes, the batsman has to stop it very quickly otherwise ball passes underneath the bat to hit the wickets.