LBW, short for “leg before wicket,” is a method of dismissal in cricket in which a batter is given out because the ball struck their body — usually the leg or pad — when it would otherwise have gone on to hit the stumps. In simple terms, a batter cannot use their body to block a ball that was heading for the wicket, and the LBW law exists to enforce that.
The basic idea
The purpose of the LBW law is to stop batters from simply standing in front of the stumps and letting the ball hit their legs to protect the wicket. Without it, a batter could just plant a pad in front of the stumps and never risk being bowled, so the law keeps the contest between bat and ball fair. If the bowler’s delivery would have hit the stumps, but the batter’s body got in the way first, the umpire can rule the batter out leg before wicket. The bowler and fielders must appeal — usually with the familiar shout of “howzat?” — before the umpire makes any decision, as an umpire will not normally give a batter out LBW without an appeal.
What conditions must be met for LBW?
Under the Laws of Cricket, maintained by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and applied in international cricket by the ICC, several conditions all have to be satisfied for an LBW to be given. In plain language, the main ones are:
- The ball must be legal (not a no-ball).
- The ball must not pitch outside the leg stump, no matter what else happens.
- The ball must strike the batter (typically the pad) rather than the bat first.
- The point of impact must be in line with the stumps — or outside the off stump if the batter is not attempting a genuine shot.
- The ball must be judged to be going on to hit the stumps.
If any one of these fails, the batter is not out LBW.
Why does “pitching outside leg stump” matter so much?
This is one of the most important parts of the law. If the ball bounces (pitches) outside the line of the leg stump, the batter can never be given out LBW — even if the ball would have gone on to hit the stumps and even if it struck the pad in line. This rule protects the batter from deliveries angled in from a very wide leg-side position and is a frequent talking point when close decisions are reviewed. It is a hard line: pitch outside leg, and LBW is impossible.
Does it matter where the ball hits the batter?
Yes, the point of impact is central. If the ball strikes the batter in line between the two sets of stumps (wicket to wicket), an LBW can be given, provided the other conditions are met. If the ball strikes the batter outside the line of the off stump, the batter can only be out if they were not making a genuine attempt to hit the ball with the bat. A batter who is playing a proper shot and is hit outside off stump is therefore safe, while a batter who shoulders arms — deliberately not playing a shot — can still be out even when struck outside off.
What if the ball hits the bat first?
If the ball touches the bat (or the glove holding the bat) before it strikes the body, the batter cannot be out LBW. This is why you often see batters try to get an “inside edge” onto their pad — if the ball has hit the bat first, any subsequent contact with the body does not count for LBW purposes. The bat-first rule is a key protection and one of the details umpires and review technology look at closely.
How is LBW decided today?
The on-field umpire makes the initial LBW decision by judgment, watching where the ball pitched, where it struck the batter, and whether it looked to be heading for the stumps — all in a fraction of a second. In many professional matches, teams can challenge the decision through a review system that uses ball-tracking technology to predict the ball’s path. The technology helps confirm whether the ball pitched in a legal spot, hit the batter in line, and would have gone on to hit the stumps — the same questions the law has always asked, now assisted by cameras. When a review is close, some systems apply an “umpire’s call” principle, meaning the on-field decision stands if the evidence is only marginal, which keeps the original umpire’s judgment at the center of the process. If you want to understand a delivery that often produces LBW appeals, read our guide to the googly.
Why is LBW so often debated?
LBW decisions can be controversial because they require an umpire to judge what would have happened — whether a ball that never reached the stumps was truly going to hit them. That prediction, combined with fine margins on pitching and impact, means honest disagreements are common, which is exactly why ball-tracking review systems were introduced. Factors such as swing, bounce, and how far down the pitch the ball struck the batter all affect the judgment, and two experienced umpires can genuinely see the same delivery differently. For more sports-rules explainers, see our guides to the clean sheet in football and the Grand Slam in tennis.
