All about Cricket: A glossary of cricketing terms Part 5

Sandshoe crusher Colloquial term for Yorker, a full-pitched delivery that is aimed at the batsman's toes and usually hits them aswell

Seam The ridge of stitching that holds the two halves of a ball together, and causes deviation off the pitch when the ball lands. Seam bowlers, as opposed to swing bowlers, rely on movement off the pitch, rather than through the air

Shoulder arms The description of when a batsman decides that rather than risk being dismissed from a ball he lifts the bat high above his shoulder to attempt to keep his bat and hands out of harm's way.

Shirtfront A flat, lifeless, soul-destroying wicket that is beloved of batsmen the world over, and loathed by bowlers of all varieties. For a prime example, see the Antigua Recreation Ground

Shooter See grubber

Side on

Sitter The easiest, most innocuous and undroppable catch that a fielder can ever receive. To drop one of these is to invite a whole world of pain from the crowd and constant embarrassment from the giant replay screen (see dolly).

Sledging Not the act of travelling downhill at speed on a toboggan, but the act of verbally abusing or unsettling a batsman, in an attempt to make him lose concentration and give his wicket away. Often offensive, occasionally amusing, always a topic of conversation

Slog - Used to describe a shot which is not in the coaching book

Slogger - Exponent of the slog

Slog-sweep - A heave to the leg side, played like the sweep, but a lofted shot

Slower ball Like naff plastic wristbands, these are the must-have accessory of the modern international bowler. The idea is to deliver a pace of significantly reduced pace, while at the same time turning your arm over at the same speed so as to deceive the batsman. This change of pace can be achieved by a change of grip, or a late tweak of the wrist. The best exponents - Courtney Walsh, Chris Cairns - are lethal. The worst - no names mentioned - tend to be smacked clean over cow corner for six

Standing back/standing up Where a wicketkeeper positions himself for a particular bowler. He stands back for fast bowlers, and stands up for spinners

Stock ball A bowler's regular delivery, minimum risk, little chance of runs or wickets. To get away with a slower ball, they need a stock ball to lull the batsman into a false sense of security

Stonewall To protect one's wicket at all costs, putting defence above all other virtues. See Jacques Kallis. Also a gay pride organisation

Strike rate The number of runs a batsman scores per 100 balls; the number of deliveries a bowler needs to take his wickets

Sundries Australian word for extras

Swing A ball that curves through the air, as opposed to off the seam. See also, reverse swing

Tailender Players who come in towards the end of an innings, generally Nos. 8, 9, 10 and 11, who are not noted for their batting prowess (although ideally they can bowl a bit by way of compensation)

Throwing To deliver the ball with a arm that flexes at the elbow at point of delivery, thereby enabling extra spin to be imparted for a slow bowler, or extra pace for a quick bowler. A topic of endless debate

Ton A century (100 runs by a single batsman in one innings)

Tonk To give the ball a good wallop, onomatopoeically named after the sound a good hit makes. See also twat, biff, thwack, belt, spank and leather

Track The pitch

Trundler Slow, laborious type of bowler who thinks he's quick, once was quick, or is simply old, fat and unfit and needs to be put out to pasture. See military medium

Twelfth man A substitute fielder (and drinks waiter) for the chosen eleven. If called upon to play, he is permitted to field wherever he is needed, but can neither bat nor bowl

Two-paced A wicket that is beginning to break up, usually after three or four days of a Test match, and so produces some deliveries that leap off a length, and others that sneak through at shin-height

Uncovered pitches Pitches that were left open to the elements for the duration of a match, and so developed a variety of characteristics. The failings of a generation of English batsmen were attributed to the decision, in the 1970s, to bring on the covers at the slightest hint of rain

V - in the The arc between mid-off and mid-on in which batsmen who play straight (in accordance with the MCC Coaching Manual) tend to score the majority of their runs. Modern aggressive players, such as Virender Sehwag, tend to prefer the V between point and third man

Wagon-wheel A circular graph or line-drawing depicting the region in which a batsman has scored his runs

Walk (To) The improbable act of a batsman giving himself out, without waiting for an umpire's decision. Adam Gilchrist, famously, did this against Sri Lanka in the semi-final of the 2003 World Cup. Mike Atherton, equally famously, did not at Trent Bridge in 1998, en route to a matchwinning 98 not out against South Africa

Wicket One of those ubiquitous words that is central to the game of cricket. The word can be used to describe the 22 yards between the stumps, the stumps collectively (bails included), the act of hitting these stumps and so dismissing the batsman, and perversely, the act of not being out (Gayle and Sarwan added 257 for the second wicket). Plus any other use you care to think of

Wide A delivery that pitches too far away from the batsman and so proves impossible to score off. The umpire will single this by stretching his arms out horizontally, an extra will be added to the total and the ball will be bowled again

Wrist spin The version of spin bowling in which the revolutions on the ball are imparted via a flick of the wrist, rather than a tweak of the fingers. As a general rule, a right-arm wristspinner's action turns the ball from leg to off (legspin) while a left-armer turns it from off to leg (see chinaman)

Wrong 'un Australian term for a googly - a legspinner's delivery that turns in the opposite direction, ie from off to leg

Yips A mental affliction that affects many sportsmen, particularly golfers and spin bowlers. It is a mindblock that can cause a player to forget the basics of his game, and in the most serious cases can force that player into early retirement

Yorker A full-pitched delivery that is aimed at the batsman's toes and/or the base of the stumps. If the ball is swinging, these can be the most lethal delivery in the game, as perfected by Waqar Younis in his pomp

Zooter A spin bowling variation, first devised by Shane Warne. This is a delivery that snakes out of the hand with little or no spin imparted, and so deceives through its very ordinariness. Some question whether the delivery has ever existed, for it could be another of Warne's mindgames to keep his opponents on their toes