Off theory is a

bowling Bowling is a target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a ball toward pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). The term ''bowling'' usually refers to pin bowling (most commonly ten-pin bowling), though ...

tactic in the

sport Sport pertains to any form of Competition, competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and Skill, skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to specta ...

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 striki ...

. The term ''off theory'' is somewhat archaic and seldom used any more, but the basic tactic still plays a part in modern cricket. Off theory involves concentrating the line of the bowling attack just outside the off

stump Stump may refer to: * Stump (band), a band from Cork, Ireland and London, England * Stump (cricket), one of three small wooden posts which the fielding team attempt to hit with the ball *Stump (dog): Clussexx Three D Grinchy Glee (born 1998), 200 ...

. This area is often referred to as the "

corridor of uncertainty In the sport of cricket, the corridor of uncertainty is an area where a cricket ball can pitch during a delivery: a narrow line on and just outside a batsman's off stump. The name is derived from the opinion that this is the area in which a batsma ...

", as unless a batsman knows exactly where his off-stump is, he will have to play a shot at any ball bowled there. (Not to do so runs the risk that the ball will hit off-stump, which would not only get the batsman out but leave him looking extremely foolish.) The attack is supported with several fielders in a cordon of catching positions called slip fielders behind the

wicket In cricket, the term wicket has several meanings: * It is one of the two sets of three stumps and two bails at either end of the pitch. The fielding team's players can hit the wicket with the ball in a number of ways to get a batsman out. ...

on the

off side The off side is a particular half of the field in cricket. 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 ...

. The aim is to entice the

batsman In cricket, batting is the act or skill of hitting the ball with a bat to score runs and prevent the loss of one's wicket. Any player who is currently batting is, since September 2021, officially referred to as a batter (historically, the ...

to play at the

ball A ball is a round object (usually spherical, but can sometimes be ovoid) with several uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used f ...

with the

bat Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bi ...

away from the body ('fishing outside off-stump'). This provides several ways in which the batsman can get out: * Edging the ball off the outside edge of the bat to the waiting catchers. * Edging the ball off the inside edge of the bat into the wicket. * Missing the ball and having it pass between the bat and the leg pads on to the wicket (being bowled "through the gate"). Originally developed in the late 19th century as an alternative to bowling directly at the wicket in an attempt to get batsmen out bowled or

leg before wicket Leg before wicket (lbw) is one of the ways in which a batsman can be dismissed in the sport of cricket. Following an appeal by the fielding side, the umpire may rule a batter out lbw if the ball would have struck the wicket but was instead in ...

, off theory led to the rise in importance of

slips Slips (or SLIPS) may refer to: *Slips (oil drilling) *SLIPS (Slippery Liquid Infused Porous Surfaces) *SLIPS (company) *SLIPS (Sri Lanka Interbank Payment System) *Slip (cricket), often used in the plural form *The Slips, a UK electronic music duo ...

and gully fielders as dedicated catching positions. The tactic has evolved until the modern day, in which the usual line of attack by

fast bowlers Fast bowling (also referred to as pace bowling) is one of two main approaches to bowling in the sport of cricket, the other being spin bowling. Practitioners of pace bowling are usually known as ''fast'' bowlers, ''quicks'', or ''pacemen''. T ...

is somewhat further outside off stump than it was typically in the 19th century. Off theory - although not commonly known by that name now - has become the most common attacking bowling tactic used in cricket. It has thus developed many nuances and can be a ball-by-ball tactical struggle for supremacy between the bowler and batsman that many cricket fans find gripping when executed by a skilled bowler.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Off Theory Cricket terminology Cricket captaincy and tactics Bowling (cricket)

See also

References