Cricket rules for beginners

How a match works

Two teams of 11 players. A coin toss decides who bats first. One team bats and tries to score runs; the other bowls and fields and tries to get the batters out. Then they swap. The team with more runs wins.

• Two batters are on the field at a time, one at each end of the pitch.
• A bowler bowls an over: 6 legal balls in a row from one end. The next over is bowled by a different bowler from the other end.
• An innings ends when 10 batters are out ("all out"), the overs run out, or (in Test cricket) the captain declares.

The pitch and the creases

At each end of the 22-yard pitch stands a wicket: three stumps with two bails on top. The popping crease is the line in front of the stumps: a batter is safe ("in their ground") when their bat or body is grounded behind it.

Scoring runs

• Running: after hitting the ball, both batters run to the other end. Each completed run scores 1.
• Four: the ball reaches the boundary after touching the ground.
• Six: the ball clears the boundary without touching the ground.
• Extras are runs given to the batting side without the bat: a wide (too far from the batter to hit) and a no-ball (for example the bowler's front foot over the popping crease) each add 1 run and must be bowled again; byes and leg byes are runs taken when the ball misses the bat.
• In ODI and T20 internationals, the ball after a no-ball is a free hit: the batter cannot be out bowled, caught or LBW from it.

How a batter gets out

• Bowled: the ball hits the stumps and knocks off a bail.
• Caught: a fielder catches the ball off the bat before it touches the ground.
• LBW (leg before wicket): the ball hits the batter's leg or body (not the bat first) when it would have gone on to hit the stumps. It is not out if the ball pitched outside the leg stump, or if it hit the pad outside the off stump while the batter was trying to play a shot.
• Run out: the fielders break the wicket while the batter is running and out of their ground.
• Stumped: the wicket-keeper breaks the wicket when the batter has stepped out of their ground and missed the ball.
• Hit wicket: the batter knocks their own stumps with the bat or body while playing the ball or setting off for a run.
• Rare ones: hit the ball twice, obstructing the field, timed out (the new batter is too slow to come in).

When a batter is caught, the new batter comes in at the end where the strike will be (the batting end), even if the batters had crossed.

Test, ODI and T20

• Test cricket: up to 5 days, each team bats twice. If neither side wins in time, the match is a draw.
• One-Day International (ODI): each team bats once for up to 50 overs. In internationals a bowler may bowl at most 10 overs.
• T20: each team bats once for up to 20 overs, about three hours in all. A bowler may bowl at most 4 overs.
• In ODIs and T20s, fielding restrictions (powerplays) limit how many fielders may stand outside the 30-yard circle in set overs. A tie may be settled by a Super Over in many competitions.

Umpires and reviews

Two on-field umpires make the decisions; a raised index finger means out. In top matches a third umpire uses TV replays for run outs and stumpings, and teams can ask for a review of an umpire's decision (the Decision Review System, DRS) a limited number of times per innings.

Tips for beginners

• Batting: watch the ball out of the bowler's hand, keep your head still and play straight. Call clearly when running: "Yes", "No" or "Wait".
• Bowling: aim for a good length on or just outside the off stump; accuracy beats speed.
• Fielding: stay low with your hands ready, and back up throws to the wicket.
• Gully and street cricket often use local rules (one-tip-one-hand, no LBW): agree them before you start.