Stumps
Also known as: wicket stumps, the stumps
Stumps are the three upright wooden posts — off stump, middle stump, and leg stump — 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: 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.
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.
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 — "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, and 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.
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