The off side is a particular

half One half ( : halves) is the irreducible fraction resulting from dividing one by two or the fraction resulting from dividing any number by its double. Multiplication by one half is equivalent to division by two, or "halving"; conversely, d ...

of the

field Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a grass ...

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by s ...

. From the point of view of a right-handed batsman facing the bowler, it is the right-hand side of the field, or the half of the field in front of the right-handed batsman when he or she assumes the batting stance. The off side consists of the entire half of the field stretching from behind the batsman-end wicket, around third man, square of the wicket on the off side, the covers, and mid/long off, up to the opposite bowler-end wicket and, behind it, the straight field. To the opposing bowler facing a right-hand batsman, it is the left side of the field. The left-handed batsman's off side is to the batsman's left and to the opposing bowler's right. In the diagram, fielding positions are shown for a right hand bowler approaching over-the-wicket to bowl to a right-handed batsman. Off side field positions in this diagram include the slips, gully, point, cover, mid-off, third man, and long off. Because of the typical line of attack of bowlers, the off side is usually more well-defended than the

leg side The leg side, or on side, is defined to be a particular half of the field used to play the sport of cricket. It is the side of the field that corresponds to the batsman's non-dominant hand, from their perspective. From the point of view of a ri ...

, which in the diagram includes the fielding positions fine leg, square leg, mid-wicket, mid-on, and long on. Some common batting strokes that are played through the off side include straight drive to long off, the cover drive, the square cut, the late cut, and the glance to third man. Batsmen skilled in strokeplay through these regions, particularly square of the wicket and through the covers, often become favorites for fans to watch because of the relative difficulty of mastering such shots. Various batsmen have distinguished their style and success through the off side, including such greats as

Sachin Tendulkar Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar (; ; born 24 April 1973) is an Indian former international cricketer who captained the Indian national team. He is regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket. He is the all time highest run-sco ...

, Brian Lara,

Garfield Sobers Sir Garfield St Aubrun Sobers, (born 28 July 1936), also known as Sir Gary or Sir Garry Sobers, is a former cricketer who played for the West Indies between 1954 and 1974. A highly skilled bowler, an aggressive batsman and an excellent fielde ...

Kumar Sangakkara Kumara Chokshananda Sangakkara ( si, කුමාර් චොක්ශනාද සංගක්කාර; born 27 October 1977) is a Sri Lankan cricket commentator, former professional cricketer, businessman, ICC Hall of Fame inductee and th ...

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Rohit Sharma Rohit Gurunath Sharma (born 30 April 1987) is an Indian international cricketer and the current captain of the Indian cricket team. Widely considered as one of the best opening batter of all time, he plays as a right-handed batsman for Mumba ...

Chris Gayle Christopher Henry Gayle, OD (born 21 September 1979) is a Jamaican cricketer who has been playing international cricket for the West Indies since 1999. A destructive batter, Gayle is widely regarded as one of the greatest batsmen to have play ...

Virender Sehwag Virender Sehwag (born 20 October 1978) is a former Indian cricketer who represented India from 1999 to 2013. Widely regarded as one of the most destructive opener, he played for Delhi Capitals in IPL and Delhi and Haryana in Indian domes ...

, and Sourav Ganguly.

References

{{Reflist Cricket terminology

See also

References