The
batsman is a member of the batting team
who try to hit the ball delivered by the bowler and run between wickets to get
as much runs as possible. Shots in batting, range from the square cut, hook, off-drive, pull
to the sweep and the leg-glance etc. The different types of shots a batsman can
play are as follows:
Block
A defensive shot played with the bat vertical and angled down at the front of
the wicket, so as to stop the ball and drop it down quickly on to the
pitch in front of the batsman. This is also known as a forward defensive
or backward defensive, depending on whether the batsman plays the shot from the
front foot or the back foot.
Drive
A shot played with the bat sweeping down through the vertical arc through the
line of the ball. A drive can be either a drive, straight drive, off
drive, or cover drive, depending on the direction the ball travels.
Cut
A shot played with the bat close to horizontal, which hits the ball somewhere
in the arc between cover and gully.
Edge, or Glance
A shot played off the bat at a glancing angle, through the slips area.
Leg Glance
A shot played at a ball aimed glancing angle behind the legs, using
the bat so that it goes in the direction of fine leg area.
Pull
A cross-battled shot which pulls the ball around the waist height of the batsman
into the square leg side.
Sweep
A cross-battled shot played to a low bouncing ball, usually from a slow
bowler, by kneeling on one knee and swinging the bat around in a horizontal
arc near the pitch, sweeping it around to the leg side
Hook
A cross-battled shot played to a bouncer at or near the batsman's head and
intended to hit the ball high in the air over square leg -sometimes for six
runs.
French Cut
An attempt at a cut shot which hits the bottom edge of the bat and goes
into the area behind square leg.
Reverse Sweep
A cross-battled shot played to a low bouncing ball, usually from a slow bowler,
by kneeling on one knee and swinging the bat around in a horizontal arc near
the pitch, but reversing the blade of the bat half-way through the swing
and sweeping the ball around to the off side from the leg side.