In the sport of cricket, the crease is the area demarcated by white lines painted or chalked on the field of play. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (877x502, 60 KB) // Caption The cricket pitch Licence Description Main article: Cricket The most of the action takes place in the centre of this ground, on a rectangular clay strip usually with short grass called the pitch. ... For more coverage of cricket, go to the Cricket portal. ...

The term crease is also used to refer to the lines themselves, particularly the popping crease. Law 9 of the Laws of Cricket governs the size and position of the crease markings. The laws of cricket are a set of rules framed by the Marylebone Cricket Club which serve to standardise the format of cricket matches across the world to ensure uniformity and fairness. ...

Four creases (one popping crease, one bowling crease, and two return creases) are drawn at each end of the pitch, around the two sets of stumps. The batsmen generally play in and run between the areas defined by the creases at each end of the pitch. A cricket pitch is the central strip of the playing area between the wickets. ... In the sport of cricket, the term stump has three different meanings: part of the wicket, a manner of dismissing a batsman, and the end of the days play (stumps). Part of the wicket The stumps are three vertical posts supporting the bails to form a wicket at each... Cricket batsman A batsman in the sport of cricket is a player whose speciality in the game is batting. ...

Bowling crease

One bowling crease is drawn at each end of the pitch so that the three stumps in the set of stumps at that end of the pitch fall on it (and consequently it is perpendicular to the imaginary line joining the centres of both middle stumps). Each bowling crease should be 8 feet 8 inches (2.64 metres) in length, centred on the middle stump at each end, and each bowling crease terminates at one of the return creases. A foot (plural: feet) is a non-SI unit of distance or length, measuring around a third of a metre. ... Mid-19th century tool for converting between different standards of the inch An inch is an Imperial unit of length. ... The metre (or meter in American English), symbol: m, is the basic unit of distance or length, in the International System of Units. ...

The bowling creases lie 22 yards (66 feet or 20.12 m) apart and mark the ends of the pitch, and so may be used to determine whether there is a no ball because a fielder has encroached on the pitch or the wicket-keeper has moved in front of the wicket before they are permitted to do so. In the sport of cricket a no ball is an illegal delivery by the bowler. ... Fielding in the sport of cricket is what fielders do to collect the ball when it is struck by the batsman in such a way as to either limit the number of runs that the batsman scores or get the batsman out by catching the ball or running the batsman... A wicket keeper in characteristic position, ready to face a delivery. ... This article is about the cricket term. ...

Formerly, part of the bowler's back foot in the delivery stride was required to fall behind the bowling crease to avoid a delivery being a no ball. This rule was replaced by a requirement that the bowler's front foot in the delivery stride must fall behind the popping crease (see below). Darren Gough bowling A bowler in the sport of cricket is usually a player whose speciality is bowling. ...

Popping crease

One popping crease is drawn at each end of the pitch in front of each of the two sets of stumps. The popping crease must be 4 feet (1.22 m) in front of and parallel to the bowling crease. Although it is considered to have unlimited length, the popping crease must be marked to at least 6 feet (1.83 metres) on either side of the imaginary line joining the centres of the middle stumps.

The popping crease is used in one test of whether the bowler has bowled a no ball. To avoid a no ball, some part of the bowler's front foot in the delivery stride (that is, the stride when he releases the ball) must be fall behind the popping crease (although the bowler's front foot does not have to be grounded). Cricket ball The cricket ball is a hard, solid ball with an interior of cork and a leather case with a slightly raised sewn seam. ...

Batsman out of his ground

In addition, the popping crease determines whether a batsman has been stumped or run out. This is describe in Law 29 of the Laws of cricket. The laws of cricket are a set of rules framed by the Marylebone Cricket Club which serve to standardise the format of cricket matches across the world to ensure uniformity and fairness. ...

• If the batsman facing the bowler (the striker) steps in front of the popping crease to play the ball, leaving no part of his anatomy or the bat on the ground behind the crease, and the wicket-keeper is able to remove the bails from the wicket with the ball, then the striker is out stumped.
• If a fielder uses the ball to remove the bails from either set of stumps whilst the batsmen are running between the wickets (or otherwise forward of the popping crease during the course of play), then the batsman (striker or non-striker) is out run out.

In the sport of cricket, a bail is one of the two smaller sticks placed on top of the three stumps to form a wicket. ... Fielding in the sport of cricket is what fielders do to collect the ball when it is struck by the batsman in such a way as to either limit the number of runs that the batsman scores or get the batsman out by catching the ball or running the batsman...

Return crease

A return crease is drawn on each side of each set of the stumps, along each sides of the pitch (so there are four return creases in all, one on either side of both sets of stumps). The return creases lie perpendicular to the popping crease and the bowling crease, 4 feet 4 inches (1.32 m) either side of and parallel to the imaginary line joining the centres of the two middle stumps. Each return crease terminates at one end at the popping crease but the other end is considered to be unlimited in length and must be marked to a minimum of 8 feet (2.44 m) from the popping crease.

The return creases are primarily used to determine whether the bowler has bowled a no ball. To avoid a no ball, some part of the bowler's back foot in the delivery stride must land within and not touching the return crease.

Batting Crease

The batting crease is nothing but the popping crease on the other side of the pitch with respect to the bowler. It is the crease where the batsman stands while batting.

See also

• Cricket terminology