Batting — the shots
The strokes a batter plays, what each one says about the ball that was bowled, and where on the ground it sends it. This is the vocabulary the rest of the site is labelled in: every stroke here is one the delivery checker records, and each carries the pitch bands and the fielding regions it is consistent with — which is what lets a recorded shot contradict a bad measurement.
Lines and regions are named for a right-hander throughout and mirror with the batter's hand, so a left-hander's cover drive stays a cover drive rather than becoming a flick to mid-wicket.
The most played shots
The cover drive, pull and forward defensive are the strokes analysts, coaches and ball-tracking data agree are played most. A batter's repertoire runs to more than twenty distinct strokes, but frequency varies sharply with the format and with the player's role — this ranking is for standard match progression.
| # | Shot | Type | Tactical frequency |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Forward defensive | Defensive | The most frequently used stroke in longer formats. Used to smother spin or neutralise pace bowling early in an innings. |
| 2 | Cover drive | Attacking | The premier attacking shot against overpitched deliveries. Played through the off side between cover and mid-off. |
| 3 | Pull shot | Attacking | The primary response to short-pitched bowling. Played off the back foot, sending the ball through the mid-wicket or square leg region. |
| 4 |
On-drive / straight drive
two strokes:
On-drive and Straight drive
|
Attacking | The most technically demanding attacking shots. Played straight down the ground past the bowler or through mid-on. |
| 5 | Square cut | Attacking | The standard weapon against wide, short deliveries. Executed off the back foot to send the ball past point or backward point. |
| 6 |
Flick / glance
two strokes:
Flick off the pads and Leg glance
|
Attacking | The primary method to work straight balls off the pads. Uses wrist work to deflect the ball through mid-wicket or fine leg. |
| 7 | Sweep shot | Attacking | The fundamental counter-strategy against spin bowling. Played by dropping to one knee and bringing the bat horizontally across the line. |
| 8 | Lofted drive | Attacking | The backbone of modern limited-overs power hitting. Hitting over the infield into the outfield or over the boundary. |
The full hierarchy
Shots fall into three families by intent and execution, running from the foundational textbook strokes to the modern innovations. Each entry carries what it implies about the delivery — a stroke that cannot have been played to the ball as measured is flagged when that delivery is next opened.
1. Foundational attacking & defensive shots
High frequencyThe core baseline of any innings — the strokes that account for most balls faced in every format, and the ones a technique is built on.
Forward defensive
DefensiveFront-foot block that smothers the ball close to the pitch of it. The most frequently played stroke in longer formats — used to kill spin and to see off pace early in an innings.
- Length
- Full toss, Yorker, Full, Good length, Back of a length
- Line
- Down leg, Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump, Outside off
- Goes to
- nowhere in particular — the stroke does not travel far enough for its direction to mean anything
Back-foot defensive
DefensiveBack-foot block protecting the stumps against a rising ball, played late and under the eyes so the ball drops dead in front of the batter.
- Length
- Good length, Back of a length, Short
- Line
- Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump, Outside off
- Goes to
- nowhere in particular — the stroke does not travel far enough for its direction to mean anything
Cover drive
AttackingThe premier attacking shot to an overpitched ball, played through the off side between cover and mid-off with the full face of the bat.
- Length
- Full toss, Yorker, Full, Good length
- Line
- Middle stump, Off stump, Outside off, Wide outside off
- Goes to
- Mid-off, Covers
Square drive
AttackingA drive played squarer than cover, to a ball wide enough to free the arms, sent past point rather than through the covers.
- Length
- Full toss, Full, Good length
- Line
- Off stump, Outside off, Wide outside off
- Goes to
- Covers, Point
Straight drive
AttackingAn extension of the defence, hitting back past the bowler. Among the most technically demanding strokes: the swing has to be straight and the head still.
- Length
- Full toss, Yorker, Full, Good length
- Line
- Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump, Outside off
- Goes to
- Straight, Mid-off, Mid-on
On-drive
AttackingDriven to the leg side of the straight field, past mid-on. The hardest orthodox stroke to play well, because the front leg has to clear without the head falling away.
- Length
- Full toss, Yorker, Full, Good length
- Line
- Down leg, Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump
- Goes to
- Straight, Mid-on
Square cut
AttackingThe standard weapon against a wide, short ball. Played off the back foot with a horizontal bat, sent past point or backward point.
- Length
- Good length, Back of a length, Short
- Line
- Off stump, Outside off, Wide outside off
- Goes to
- Point, Backward point
Pull
AttackingThe primary response to short-pitched bowling. Played off the back foot with a cross bat, sending a ball below chest height through mid-wicket or square leg.
- Length
- Back of a length, Short
- Line
- Down leg, Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump
- Goes to
- Mid-wicket, Square leg, Mid-on
Hook
AttackingThe high-risk variation of the pull, played to a ball at chest or head height and helped round behind square rather than hit in front of it.
- Length
- Short
- Line
- Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump
- Goes to
- Square leg, Backward square leg, Fine leg
2. Situational & spin-countering shots
Medium frequencyStrokes used to manipulate a field, rotate strike, or take on slow bowling — chosen for the match situation rather than forced by the delivery.
Leg glance
AttackingA straight ball deflected fine off the face of the bat, using the bowler's pace rather than the batter's, down toward fine leg.
- Length
- Yorker, Full, Good length
- Line
- Down leg, Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump
- Goes to
- Fine leg, Backward square leg
Flick off the pads
AttackingThe primary way of working a straight ball away for a single: wrists turn a full delivery from middle or leg through mid-wicket.
- Length
- Full toss, Yorker, Full, Good length
- Line
- Down leg, Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump
- Goes to
- Mid-on, Mid-wicket, Square leg
Sweep
AttackingThe fundamental counter to spin: front knee down, bat swung horizontally across the line, hitting the ball along the ground to square leg.
- Length
- Full toss, Yorker, Full, Good length
- Line
- Down leg, Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump
- Goes to
- Square leg, Backward square leg, Mid-wicket
Slog sweep
AttackingThe aerial, high-power sweep — hit in front of square over the mid-wicket boundary rather than swept behind it.
- Length
- Full toss, Full, Good length
- Line
- Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump
- Goes to
- Mid-wicket, Square leg, Mid-on
Paddle sweep
AttackingA delicate deflection rather than a hit — the ball is helped fine behind square, past the keeper, with the bat angled and almost no swing.
- Length
- Full toss, Yorker, Full, Good length
- Line
- Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump
- Goes to
- Fine leg, Backward square leg
Lofted drive
AttackingDriven over the top of the infield rather than through it — the backbone of modern limited-overs hitting down the ground.
- Length
- Full toss, Yorker, Full, Good length
- Line
- Down leg, Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump, Outside off
- Goes to
- Straight, Mid-off, Mid-on, Covers
Late cut
AttackingThe ball is guided late, almost off the keeper's gloves, down to third man — timing and angle instead of force.
- Length
- Good length, Back of a length, Short
- Line
- Off stump, Outside off, Wide outside off
- Goes to
- Third man, Backward point
3. Modern & innovative T20 strokes
Low to medium frequencyHigh-risk, high-reward strokes born out of limited-overs constraints, where a field set for orthodox batting is the thing being attacked.
Reverse sweep
AttackingThe sweep turned round: hands reverse on the handle and the ball is swept to the opposite side of the field, into the gap a leg-side field has left.
- Length
- Full toss, Yorker, Full, Good length
- Line
- Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump, Outside off
- Goes to
- Point, Backward point, Third man
Switch hit
AttackingStance and grip are both reversed before the ball is released, so a right-hander strikes as a left-hander — over what was cover or point.
- Length
- Full toss, Full, Good length
- Line
- Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump
- Goes to
- Covers, Point, Mid-off
Scoop / ramp
AttackingThe bowler's own pace is used against them: the ball is scooped straight over the keeper or short fine leg, into the one region no field covers.
- Length
- Yorker, Full, Good length
- Line
- Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump
- Goes to
- Behind the keeper, Fine leg
Upper cut
AttackingA bouncer outside off sliced deliberately over the slip cordon, using the height of the ball rather than fighting it.
- Length
- Back of a length, Short
- Line
- Off stump, Outside off, Wide outside off
- Goes to
- Third man, Backward point
Helicopter shot
AttackingA yorker dug out with extreme wrist whip, the bat following through round the body, sending a ball that should have been unhittable over the leg-side boundary.
- Length
- Yorker, Full
- Line
- Outside leg, Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump
- Goes to
- Mid-wicket, Square leg, Mid-on
Periscope / up-and-over
AttackingA short ball is deliberately allowed to hit the face of an angled bat and fly straight over the keeper's head.
- Length
- Back of a length, Short
- Line
- Leg stump, Middle stump, Off stump, Outside off
- Goes to
- Behind the keeper, Third man, Fine leg
4. No stroke completed
Common in every formatDeliveries where nothing came off the bat. Recorded because they are evidence — about the ball, and about the tracking: the batter did not send it anywhere, so it carried on behind the wicket, and a measured direction that says otherwise is following the wrong object.
Left alone
LeaveNo stroke offered. Recorded because a leave is itself evidence about the delivery: a ball worth leaving was going past the off side.
Ends up behind the keeper, third man, fine leg — a ball left alone was going past the off side, not at the stumps, and carries on behind the wicket rather than out into the field.
Attempted and missed
No contactA stroke was attempted and the ball beat the bat. Worth separating from a leave: the batter thought there was something there to hit, which is a different piece of evidence about the delivery from deciding there was not.
Ends up behind the keeper, third man, fine leg — a ball that beat the bat carries straight on past the batter, so it finishes behind the wicket rather than anywhere a shot would have sent it.
Through to the keeper
No contactThe ball passed the bat — played at or not — and was taken by the keeper. The one outcome that guarantees nothing was struck, which makes it the most useful thing on this list for checking a shot tracker rather than a batter.
Ends up behind the keeper, third man, fine leg — a ball taken by the keeper went past the batter, so it finishes behind the wicket and nowhere else.
Format against shot selection
How often each of these is played changes completely with the format being played. The same batter, with the same technique, produces a different distribution of strokes over four days than over twenty overs.
Test and long-form cricket
The forward defensive, back-foot defensive and cover drive account for well over half of all shots played. Preserving the wicket and wearing the bowler down is the objective, so the stroke that scores nothing is the one played most.
ODI and T20
Defensive shots drop away sharply. The pull, lofted drive and flick take precedence, and the modern innovations appear precisely because they attack a field set for orthodox batting.
The regions these are named in
The ground is carved into twelve sectors of thirty degrees at the batting crease — fielding positions rather than the four quadrants a scorer records, because "off side" is not somewhere you can put a fielder. Every wagon wheel on the site is read against these.