Exploring the types of outs in cricket: A complete guide

In cricket, while batters aim to accumulate as many runs as possible, bowlers work hard to dismiss batters or at the very least, limit their scoring opportunities.

Getting a player out is the most efficient way for bowlers to halt scoring since it doesn’t just remove a set batter but also forces a new batter to take the crease.

More often than not, new batters take time to acclimatise to the pitch and game conditions before going on to score freely.

Dismissing all the batters of the opposing team allows the bowling side to conclude the innings. The team that batted first then focuses on defending their total by bowling out the opposition or restricting them from surpassing the set target.

In essence, dismissing batters is the ultimate goal for bowlers and interestingly, cricket recognises 10 types of outs in cricket.

Each mode of dismissal is unique and requires certain conditions to be met for the opposition batter to be adjudged out.

A prerequisite for most outs in cricket is that the ball must be legal and never a no-ball. A wide ball which is another type of illegal delivery can also yield wickets for a bowler in the rarest of instances.

Types of outs in cricket

Bowled

A batter is out bowled if a delivery directly or indirectly via the bat, pad or equipment hits and dislodges the bails or stumps.

Caught

A caught out takes place when a batter's shot is caught by a fielder, wicketkeeper or bowler before touching the ground. A few of the different types of caught outs include caught behind by the wicketkeeper, caught by a fielder and caught and bowled by the bowler.

Hit wicket

A batter is deemed out hit wicket if they inadvertently disturb their stumps with their body, bat or other equipment while attempting to play a shot.

Leg before wicket

An LBW or leg before wicket happens when a ball hitting the batter's pad would have gone on to strike the stumps unimpeded, provided the ball didn’t pitch outside the leg stump.

Run out

A batter is run out if they fail to reach the crease before the stumps are broken during an attempt at taking a run. Batters can be run out even off a no-ball. Another form of run out can take place when a bowler decides to run out the non-striker while they are backing up or leaving the crease too early before the bowler releases the ball at the point of delivery. This is referred to as a ‘Mankad’.

Stumped

A stumping occurs when a batter steps out of his crease and misses the ball, allowing the wicketkeeper to remove the bails before they can return to the crease. Similar to the run out, batters can be stumped off a wide ball in cricket.

Hit the ball twice

A rare form of dismissal, hit the ball twice happens when a batter either deliberately or unintentionally strikes the ball twice with any part of their body or bat. However, the batter can hit the ball twice to protect his stumps or with the permission of the bowling team.

Obstructing the field

A batter can be dismissed for obstructing the field if they are deemed to have wilfully attempted to obstruct or distract the fielding side by word or action. A batter cannot intentionally block the bowling side from taking a catch, field, throw or hitting the stumps. The bowler does not get credit for the wicket if the batter is out for obstructing the field.

Retired out

A retired out happens when a batter decides to voluntarily leave the field of play without being dismissed. It typically takes place due to strategic reasons in most cases. A batter can also be retired hurt due to injury and can resume the innings if they recover later. It is not a mode of dismissal.

Timed out

Timed out is another rare mode of dismissal in cricket. This happens when a new batter takes longer than three minutes to make his way to the crease. Sri Lanka’s Angelo Mathews, due to a helmet malfunction, became the first player to be timed out in international cricket during the 2023 ODI World Cup against Bangladesh.