A 1904 illustration from the Badminton Library's Cricket, showing a batsman who is leg before wicket. The original caption was "A clear case" [of lbw].
Leg before wicket (lbw) is one of the ways in which a batter 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 intercepted by any part of the batsman's body (except the hand(s) holding the bat). The umpire's decision will depend on a number of criteria, including where the ball pitched, whether the ball hit in line with the wickets, the ball's expected future trajectory after hitting the batsman, and whether the batsman was attempting to hit the ball.
Leg before wicket first appeared in the laws of cricket in 1774, as batsmen began to use their pads to prevent the ball from hitting their wicket. Over several years, refinements were made to clarify where the ball should pitch and to remove the element of interpreting the batsman's intentions. The 1839 version of the law used a wording that remained in place for nearly 100 years. However, starting in the latter part of the 19th century, batsmen became increasingly expert at "pad-play" to reduce the risk of their dismissal. Following a number of failed proposals for reform, in 1935 the law was expanded, such that batters could be dismissed lbw even if the ball pitched outside the line of off stump. Critics felt this change made the game unattractive as it encouraged negative tactics at the expense of leg spin bowling.
After considerable debate and various experiments, the law was changed again in 1972. In an attempt to reduce pad-play, the new version, which is still in use, allowed batters to be out lbw in some circumstances if they did not attempt to hit the ball with their bat. Since the 1990s, the availability of television replays and, later, ball-tracking technology to assist umpires has increased the percentage of lbws in major matches. However, the accuracy of the technology and the consequences of its use remain controversial.
In his 1995 survey of cricket laws, Gerald Brodribb states: "No dismissal has produced so much argument as lbw; it has caused trouble from its earliest days".[1] Owing to its complexity, the law is widely misunderstood among the general public and has proven controversial among spectators, administrators and commentators; lbw decisions have sometimes caused crowd trouble. Since the law's introduction, the proportion of lbw dismissals has risen steadily through the years.[2]
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Legbeforewicket (lbw) is one of the ways in which a batter can be dismissed in the sport of cricket. Following an appeal by the fielding side, the umpire...
with their pads, but see the laws on LBW, legbeforewicket), attempts to prevent the ball from hitting the wicket (if it does, he is bowled out) and to score...
batter may be dismissed legbeforewicket. Leg byes are the most common form of extras scored in Test cricket. The average number of leg byes scored in a Test...
for a run, he is out hit wicket. This method is the sixth most common method of dismissal after caught, bowled, legbeforewicket, run out and stumped. It...
number of wickets in the history of Test cricket, Shane Warne and Anil Kumble, respectively, were leg spinners. One famous example of leg spin is Warne's...
the latter part of the 18th century include the three-stump wicket and legbeforewicket (lbw). The 19th century saw underarm bowling superseded by first...
wicket. The main innovation was the introduction of legbeforewicket (lbw) as a means of dismissal. The practice of stopping the ball with the leg had...
being strangled, or missing the ball entirely and being out bowled or legbeforewicket.[citation needed] Action See bowling action Agricultural shot A powerful...
for a ball-tampering incident in 2018. Warner was the first gone, legbeforewicket in the fourth over, while Bancroft was caught behind just four overs...
an alternative to bowling directly at the wicket in an attempt to get batsmen out bowled or legbeforewicket, off theory led to the rise in importance...
miss the ball with his bat and be bowled between bat and pad or out legbeforewicket if struck on the pads. A fast bowler will typically use the off cutter...
and not out legbeforewicket It is a game in which the ball is bowled at the legs of the batsman, with the batsman's legs forming the wicket. It is often...
major weapon in the arsenal of a leg spin bowler, and can be one of the bowler's most effective most important wicket-taking balls. It is used infrequently...
whilst a batsman blocking the ball with the body is likely to be out legbeforewicket. Despite this most direct method of getting the batsman out, bowlers...
Mahela Jayawardene top-scoring with an unbeaten 103. Sehwag was out legbeforewicket to Lasith Malinga in the second ball of the Indian innings; Tendulkar...
Unadkat out legbeforewicket to Narine for 4 and Kumar remaining not out on 0. KKR's bowling attack was led by Andre Russell, who claimed 3 wickets for 19...
without success. He took his first Test wicket in the second innings when he trapped Gary Kirsten legbeforewicket. India suffered a huge defeat in this...
called legbeforewicket, where the umpire was allowed to deduce whether the ball would have hit the stumps if the batter was not hit first. Leg pads became...
attack that lacked penetration on a flat WACA wicket. However, Ponting was dismissed legbeforewicket for 37, while Hayden went on to break Brian Lara's...
being out. Because the ball is pitched outside the leg stump, the batsman cannot be out legbeforewicket, and if the ball spun slightly more than expected...
but it does mean there is a chance of legbeforewicket, assuming the ball has not turned enough to miss the leg stump. However, the off spinner often...
18 runs in 46 deliveries, four of them legbeforewicket. He finished with figures of eight for 45, ten wickets in the match, and West Indies levelled...
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