Placements of players

The standard fielding positions in cricket for a right-handed batsman. The spots are only indicative. Only nine fielders are available in addition to the bowler and wicketkeeper, so there are always many unprotected areas.

The team batting always has two batsmen on the field. One batsman, known as the striker, faces and plays the balls bowled by the bowler. His or her partner stands at the bowling end and is known as the non-striker.

The fielding team has all eleven of its players on the ground, and at any particular time, one of these will be the bowler. The player designated as bowler must change after every over. The wicket-keeper, who generally acts in that role for the whole innings, stands or crouches behind the wicket at the batting end. The captain of the fielding team spreads his or her remaining nine players — the fielders — around the ground to cover most of the area. Their placement may vary dramatically depending on strategy. Each position on the field has a unique label.

The cricket pitch

A cricket pitch is the central strip of the cricket field between the wickets. The pitch is 22 yards (20.12 m) long and 10 feet (3 m) wide. The surface is very flat and normally covered with extremely short grass though this grass is soon removed by wear at the ends of the pitch.

In amateur matches, artificial pitches are commonly used. These can be a slab of concrete, overlaid with a coir mat, or artificial turf. Artificial pitches are rare in professional cricket - only being used when exhibition matches are played in regions where cricket is not a common sport.

The pitch has very specific markings delineating the creases, as specified by the Laws of Cricket.
The word wicket is often used to refer to the pitch. Although technically incorrect according the Laws of Cricket (Law 7 covers the pitch and Law 8 the wickets, distinguishing between them), cricket players, followers, and commentators persist in the usage, with context eliminating any possible ambiguity. Track is yet another synonym for pitch.

The rectangular central area of the field that is used for pitches is known as the square.

At each end of the pitch three upright wooden stakes, called the stumps, are hammered into the ground. Two wooden crosspieces, known as the bails, sit in grooves atop the stumps, linking each to its neighbour. Each set of three stumps and two bails is collectively known as a wicket. One end of the pitch is designated the batting end where the batsman stands and the other is designated the bowling end where the bowler runs in to bowl. The area of the field on the side of the line joining the wickets where the batsman holds his bat (the right-hand side for a right-handed batsman, the left for a left-hander) is known as the off side, the other as the leg side or on side.

Lines drawn or painted on the pitch are known as creases. Creases are used to adjudicate the dismissals of batsmen and to determine whether a delivery is legal.

The nature of the pitch
Pitches vary in consistency, and thus in the amount of bounce, spin, and seam movement available to the bowler. Hard pitches are usually good to bat on because of high but even bounce. Dry pitches tend to deteriorate for batting as cracks often appear, and when this happens spinners can play a major role. Damp pitches, or pitches covered in grass (termed "green" pitches), allow good fast bowlers to extract extra bounce and seam movement. Such pitches tend to offer help to fast bowlers throughout the match, but become better for batting as the game goes on.

A cricket bat

A cricket bat, front and back sides.

A traditional cricket ball

The white stitching is known as the seam. As one-day games are often played under floodlights, a white ball is used to aid visibility.