Stumps
Also known as: wicket stumps, the stumps
Stumps are the three upright wooden posts. This means off stump, middle stump, and leg stump. This means that form each wicket in cricket, topped by two small bails that fall if the ball strikes them.
Each wicket consists of three stumps (9 inches wide in total) driven into the ground at each end of the 22-yard pitch. They are named for their position. This means off stump (on the off side of the batter), middle stump (directly behind the batter), and leg stump (on the leg side). Two small cylindrical bails sit in grooves on top, connecting pairs of adjacent stumps. If the ball hits the stumps with sufficient force to dislodge at least one bail, the batter is out bowled (or run out, or stumped, depending on how the stumps were hit). In modern cricket, miniature LED bails (Zing bails) light up when disturbed, providing certainty for DRS reviews. "Stumps" is also used to describe the end of a day's play in Test cricket: "stumps are drawn" means play has concluded for the day.
Practise with a set of stumps in the net rather than just a mark on the wall. This means seeing the physical target trains your eye for the off-stump corridor and helps you understand your own stumps's position at the crease.
Use the stump as a reference point for field placement decisions. This means understanding what angle the ball leaves the bat relative to the stumps tells you precisely where gaps will form against different field settings.
Example
The ball clips the top of off stump, dislodging the bail — the batter is given out bowled, even though the ball barely touched the wood.
Why it matters
The stumps are the literal target of all bowling. SwingVantage's cricket analysis (in development) will use stump geometry to contextualise ball-trajectory data and calibrate the technical advice for bowlers and batters alike.
How it shows up on video
Footage of stumps in play shows the three vertical posts set in the ground with two bails resting in the grooves on top, presenting a target 22.9 cm wide and 71.1 cm tall to the bowler. Video of stumps being hit reveals how small variations in trajectory can be the difference between a direct hit and a near-miss, especially on Ashes-style pitches where the ball can deviate off the seam.
Common mistakes
- Batters not knowing exactly where their stumps are, leading to leaving deliveries that clip off stump
- Fielders aiming at the base of the stumps rather than the middle, reducing the effective target for run-out throws
- Bowlers bowling too wide of the stumps in an attempt to move the ball, rendering even good deliveries harmless scoring opportunities
- Wicket-keepers standing too wide of the stumps, increasing the difficulty of a stumping chance when the batter overreaches
In SwingVantage Motion Lab
SwingVantage cricket analysis (currently in development) will overlay stump coordinates on video to provide spatial reference for ball-pitch position, line, and near-miss analysis during bowling reviews.
Related terms
- WicketIn cricket, a wicket refers both to the set of three stumps and two bails at each end of the pitch, and to the act of dismissing a batter. This means "taking a wicket" means getting a batter out.
- CreaseThe crease is any of the white painted lines on the cricket pitch that define legal bowling positions, the safe zone for batters. The starting point for LBW and run-out adjudications.
- BowledBowled is a dismissal where the ball, delivered by the bowler, hits the stumps and dislodges at least one bail without the batter touching it in a way that counts as a legal stroke.
Put this into your swing
SwingVantage can spot this in your own swing — free to start.