15 Laws of Cricket (Basic Rules): Explained with Images

Spirit of Cricket vs Rules of Cricket

The debate between the spirit of cricket and the rules of cricket is very old. There are arguments about whether certain rules of cricket should be applied given they can sometimes be against the spirit of the game.

In 2023, a closely contested Ashes series took place in England. England was batting at the Lord’s Stadium when Australian wicket-keeper, Alex Carey stumped out Jonny Bairstow. However, this wasn’t an ordinary stumping as Bairstow, facing the last delivery of an over from Cameron Green, left the ball and went to the middle of the pitch to chat to his non-striker partner. Carey who thought the ball was in play made an underarm throw at the stumps inflicting the dismissal. The moment turned out to be a heated moment in the series and the spirit vs law of the game debate once again began.

In the same year during the ODI World Cup, Shakib al Hasan as the Bangladeshi skipper appealed for Angelo Mathews to be dismissed as he did not reach the crease in the allowed time. This was the first instance of a timed-out dismissal in International cricket. Discussions arose whether Shakib’s decision was in the spirit of cricket or not even though it was well within the rules of the game.

Basic Cricket Rules and Regulations

So how many laws or rules of cricket are there? Well, the former governing body of the sport, MCC (Marylebone Cricket Club) states that there are 42 laws of the game. These 42 laws are responsible for maintaining the sanctity of cricket. These laws cover different game parameters, ranging from the players to how players should conduct themselves on the field.

There are laws for every mode of dismissal, including common dismissals like bowled and caught behind. These laws also include dismissals that are rarely seen, like hitting the ball twice or being timed out. While there are 42 cricket laws, we will explain the most common 15 rules of cricket.

Dead Ball

The dead ball was one of the controversial laws that was highly discussed during the Ashes in 2023. The dead ball comes under the purview of Law 20 of the MCC rulebook. The ball becomes dead when the following conditions are met:

- The ball becomes trapped between the bat and the clothing of the batter.

No Ball

The no-ball is governed under Law 21 of the MCC rulebook. In modern-day cricket, a no-ball is signaled by a siren rather than by an umpire. A no-ball could be called for multiple reasons given below:

Wide Ball

The wide ball is governed under Law 22 of the MCC rulebook. It is a simple rule that if a bowler delivers a ball to the leg-side of the batter or outside the popping crease of the off-side of the batter. A wide can also be called if the ball passes over the head of the batter after pitching.

In case a no-ball and a wide ball occur simultaneously, then the umpire shall revoke the wide call and signal a no-ball.

Bye or Leg Bye

A bye or leg bye is the form of extras where the batting team is able to score runs without hitting the ball with the bat. The two extras are governed by the Law 23.

Runner

The role of a runner is no longer seen in the game of cricket. The runner comes under the purview of Law 25.5 of the MCC rulebook. The umpire shall allow for a runner if the below conditions are met:

Wicket is broken

The wicket is broken when at least one bail is removed from the stumps or one or more stumps is removed from the ground. This is governed by Law 29 of the MCC which states that the following ways are the correct way to break the wicket:

Batter out of their ground

Batter out of their ground is a mode of dismissal that is governed by Law 30 of MCC. If a batter's body or bat is grounded behind the popping crease at that end, that batter will be deemed out of his or her ground.

Fair catch

A fair catch comes under Law 33.2. A catch will be deemed to be fair if the fielder has caught the ball without ground it. The catch will be deemed fair even if it hits the non-striker and is then caught by the fielder. The fielder should remain within the boundary while making the catch.

Boundary catching

Boundary catching comes under the governance of Law 33. A ball will be deemed to be caught fairly near the boundary line if:

Hit the ball twice

Hit the ball twice is one of the rare modes of dismissals seen in International cricket. This mode of dismissal is governed by Law 34 of MCC. The batter is given out if they strike the ball twice with their bat willfully.

Obstructing the field

Obstruction of the field is also a rare dismissal and can be a controversial one on some occasions. The batter can be dismissed for obstructing the field if they make contact with the ball with their hand not holding the bat. They can also be dismissed as obstructing the field if they hinder the natural course of the ball when it is thrown by the fielder.

Running out the non-striker

There is no specific rule concerning the running out of the non-striker. This mode of dismissal falls under Law 38.3 of the run-out rule.

If the non-striker leaves their crease before the bowler has reached the final delivery stride the bowler can attempt a run-out at the non-striker end. The final delivery stride will be defined as the moment when the batter expects the ball to be released. This will be the moment when the bowler has reached the highest point of their delivery action.

Once the bowler has reached the highest point in their action then the run-out at the non-striker end can not be attempted. In a case where the attempt is made and the umpire signals not out then the ball will be signaled dead.

Leg Before Wicket (LBW)

Leg Before Wicket (LBW) is a common mode of dismissal. However, even though it is common, there is still some confusion around the rule. For a batter to be dismissed LBW there are a few conditions that must be met. Law 36 of the MCC rulebook says:

Seamers who can swing the ball into the pads of batters get many players dismissed LBW or bowled. Similarly, the spinners, who turn the ball into the batter get their dismissals as LBW.

Stumped

Stumped is a form of dismissal where a spinner deceives a batter with the flight and the turn of the ball. It comes under the purview of Law 39.

A batter is stumped out if they have left their ground and the keeper whips the bails off. The ball should not be a no-ball. If the batter gets out one a wide ball then one run will be awarded to the batting team.

The batter shall not be stumped out if the keeper collects the ball in front of the stump and it has not made any contact with the batter or the bat.

Damaging the pitch

The pitch shall not be damaged by either the bowler, the batter, or the fielder. The Law 41 governs any concern over damaging the pitch.