Howzat? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Bowled

The wicket consists of three stumps (vertical sticks) with two bails (smaller horizontal pieces of wood) resting in grooves on top of the stumps. The bowler's ideal is to hit the wicket so hard that the stumps are dislodged from the ground, and cartwheel through the air. If the ball hits the wicket without the batsman having hit it, and at least one bail is dislodged, the batsman is out "bowled". If the ball hits the wicket without making a bail actually fall, the batsman is "not out". If the batsman manages to hit the ball, but deflects it onto the wicket, he is still out bowled.

Answer: Caught

For the batsman to be out "caught", he must have hit the ball with his bat or with his hand (including the batting glove) while holding the bat, and the ball must be caught before it has touched the ground. Batsmen playing a defensive stroke often try to hit the ball down into the ground near their feet, to avoid being caught. Fielders close to the wicket can often be seen making spectacular leaps through the air in an attempt to catch the ball.

Answer: Leg before wicket

"Leg before wicket" (abbreviated lbw) is one of the most furiously debated modes of dismissal - appeals are frequent, but the dismissal depends on a number of umpire judgments, and often incurs lengthy disagreement from spectators. These have been reduced somewhat in recent times by the use of video evidence to show whether the umpire made the correct decision regarding the critical aspects of the decision, but even video evidence is sometimes inconclusive, and the umpire's judgment has to be supported.

Answer: Either the striker or the non-striker can be run out

Once the ball has been hit (or missed by a fielder), the two batsmen attempt to run to each others' end of the pitch. If a bail is dislodged from either end before the runner going to that end gets there, that batsman is run out.

One of the most controversial, and unusual, forms of run out is the 'mankad', named after the first player to effect it. In 1947 the Indian bowler Vinoo Mankad ran out Australian non-striking batsman Bill Brown at the bowler's end. Brown had advanced well down the pitch, shortening the distance he would have to run to reach the other end, and was outside his safe ground as Mankad came up to deliver the ball. Instead of bowling it, he threw it at the stumps where he was, appealed for a run out, and was awarded the decision. This has happened a handful of times in international competition since then, however the Laws were changed in 2000 and now the 'Mankad is not a valid form of dismissal.

Answer: Wicket keeper

If the wicket keeper removes the bails while the batsman is out of his ground, and he is not attempting a run, the mode of dismissal is "stumped" rather than "run out". This most often occurs when a spinner is bowling, and the batsmen are moving up the wicket while the ball is in flight, intending to produce a stroke that will send the ball to the boundary. If he misses, he is vulnerable to being stumped.

Answer: Hit wicket

A batsman is out "hit wicket' if he dislodges one or both bails with his bat, person, clothing or equipment in the act of receiving a ball, or in setting off for his first run having just received a ball. It is always a very disconsolate batsman who leaves the field after such an incident!

Answer: Hit the ball twice

The batsman is allowed to hit the ball a second time, if it is in defense of his wicket. He is not, however, allowed to deliberately knock the ball away and attempt to score runs from it. This also counts if it has come off his pad or body first, and then he knocks it away and attempts to run.

Answer: Obstructing the field

This is another unusual form of dismissal, but it has happened at international level. The Pakistani player Rameez Raja was the first batsman to be dismissed "obstructed the field" in a 50-over-a-side international match (ODI) when he hit the ball with his bat to avoid being run out while attempting a second run in an effort to score a century (100 runs) on the final ball of the match.

India's Mohinder Amarnath became the second player to be dismissed for "obstructing the field" in an ODI when he kicked a ball away from the bowler to avoid being run out.

Answer: Handled the ball

According to the Laws of cricket, a batsman must not deliberately touch the ball with his hand. If his hand is holding the bat at the time of contact, the hand is deemed to be part of the bat, and he can be caught by a member of the fielding team. But if he removes the hand from the bat and it touches the ball, he may be given out "handled the ball".

Answer: Did not reach the crease to start his innings within the stipulated amount of time

There is a set time allowed between batsmen - when a player is out, the next to go in must be in the centre and ready to bat within the stipulated time. Depending on the form of the game (Test, ODI, T20 or a domestic competition) this may be between 90 seconds and 3 minutes. The next batsman is usually required to have his batting pads on, and be ready to sprint out immediately on the fall of the wicket.

In 1919 A. E. Street, the last batsman for the English county team of Somerset, was timed out in a match against Sussex with the scores level. The match was tied, a very unusual result in cricket.