Cricket Field Positions Explained: Every Position on the Ground and What It Means
Cricket has more named fielding positions than any other sport — approximately 40 named positions covering a 360-degree oval ground. Understanding slip, gully, point, cover, mid-on, mid-wicket, square leg, fine leg, and all their variants is essential to understanding field settings and captaincy. This guide explains every major fielding position, where it is on the ground, and why it is placed there.
The cricket ground overview: a cricket ground is an oval (though some grounds are more circular than others). The pitch is in the centre. The batsman stands at the crease at one end of the pitch (approximately 18 metres long). All field positions are named from the perspective of a right-handed batsman: the off side is the side the batsman's body faces (toward the right for a right-hander), the leg side (or on side) is the side toward the batsman's legs (toward the left for a right-hander). The naming convention: most fielding positions have a modifier — 'deep' means far from the pitch (near the boundary); 'short' means close to the pitch; 'square' means level with the batting crease; 'fine' means closer to the behind-the-wicket region.
Behind the Wicket Off Side
Behind-the-wicket off-side positions (slip cordon, gully): Slip fielder(s): positioned behind the batsman on the off side, 1-5 metres wide of the wicketkeeper. First slip (closest to keeper), second slip (next out), third slip, and occasionally fourth slip. Slips are catching positions for edges — when the batsman edges an outswinging or off-stump delivery toward the off side. Gully: behind the batsman on the off side, wider than third slip (approximately square of the stumps). Gully catches edges that bounce off the ground or slashes that go backward of square. Backward point: behind the batsman, wide of gully, around 45 degrees behind square on the off side. Point: square of the wicket on the off side (level with the batsman). Catches cut shots that travel square of the wicket.
Mid-Wicket and On-Side Positions
Leg-side (on-side) fielding positions: Fine leg: behind the batsman on the leg side, close to the boundary, positioned for top-edge catches from pull/hook shots and balls that deviate from the leg stump toward fine. Deep backward square leg: between fine leg and square leg, in the deep — positioned for pull and hook shots that go square. Square leg: level with the batsman's crease on the leg side. Mid-wicket: between square leg and mid-on, approximately 45 degrees to the leg side of the pitch. Mid-on: close to the pitch on the leg side (almost at the boundary of the square, facing the batsman). Long-on: deep outfield equivalent of mid-on — near the boundary on the straight leg side. Mid-off: close to the pitch on the off side (mirror of mid-on). Long-off: deep outfield equivalent of mid-off — near the boundary on the straight off side. Cover: in the off-side infield, approximately 45 degrees from the pitch on the off side. Extra cover: slightly wider than cover, between cover and mid-off.
Close Fielding Positions
Close-in catching positions (inside 10 metres of pitch): Silly mid-on: directly in front of the batsman on the leg side, approximately 5-8 metres from the bat. Used for bat-pad catches when spin bowling — the ball turns into the right-hander's leg side and catches the inside edge of the bat and deflects to silly mid-on. Silly mid-off: same concept on the off side. Short leg (forward short leg): just behind square on the leg side, approximately 5-6 metres from the batsman. The most dangerous fielding position: a full-blooded defensive shot from a right-hander can send a ball at short leg at extremely high speed; short leg fielders must wear a helmet, arm guard, and shin guards. Leg slip: behind the wicketkeeper on the leg side — positioned for edges off the inside of the bat from fast bowlers. Wicketkeeper: behind the stumps always, either close (standing up) or at distance (standing back) depending on the bowling pace.
Frequently asked questions
What are the fielding positions in cricket?
Cricket has approximately 40 named fielding positions covering the full 360-degree oval ground. The main positions are: Behind the wicket on the off side: wicketkeeper (always), first slip, second slip, third slip, gully, backward point. Infield off side: point, cover point, extra cover, mid-off. Infield leg side: mid-on, mid-wicket, square leg. Close to pitch off side: gully (also), silly mid-off. Close to pitch leg side: silly mid-on, short leg (forward short leg), leg slip. Deep outfield off side: long-off, deep cover, deep extra cover. Deep outfield leg side: long-on, deep mid-wicket, deep square leg, deep backward square leg, fine leg. Additional specialist positions: cow corner (between deep square leg and long-on), third man (in the deep off side behind the wicketkeeper, catching edges that go fine rather than to slip), point variations (backward point, forward point). The fielding captain positions these fields based on the bowler type (fast/seam = more slips; spin = more leg-side catching positions), the batsman's tendencies, and the match situation.
What is a slip fielder in cricket?
A slip fielder in cricket is positioned behind the batsman on the off side, close to the wicketkeeper — specifically to catch edges (when the ball grazes the edge of the bat and deflects toward the off side behind the batsman). The slip cordon (2-4 slip fielders standing in a row, numbered 1st, 2nd, 3rd from the keeper outward) is used in Test cricket and seam bowling conditions when: (1) The ball is new and swinging — outswing bowling creates edges as the ball moves away from the right-handed batsman's off stump; (2) The pitch is seaming — lateral movement off the pitch also creates edges; (3) The bowler is an off-spinner — off-break deliveries can take the outside edge of a right-hander and go to slip. Slip fielding requires excellent reactions (the ball reaches the slip fielder in 0.3-0.5 seconds from the bat), positional awareness (judging the height of the expected edge), and 'soft hands' (absorbing the ball into the palm rather than fighting the ball's momentum). Rahul Dravid is considered the greatest slip fielder in Test cricket history — 210 catches in Test cricket, mostly at slip.
What does deep mean in cricket fielding positions?
In cricket fielding positions, 'deep' means the fielder is positioned in the outfield — the area near the boundary rope, far from the pitch (typically 60-80 metres from the batting crease). The modifier 'deep' distinguishes the outfield version of a position from the infield version: mid-on (close infield) vs long-on (deep outfield, near the straight boundary on the leg side); mid-wicket (infield) vs deep mid-wicket (near the boundary on the leg side); cover (infield) vs deep cover (near the boundary on the off side); square leg (infield) vs deep square leg (near the boundary, square on the leg side). Deep fielders are positioned to stop boundaries (reaching balls hit hard to the outfield before they reach the rope) and take catches on big hits (the batsman who attempts to hit over the infield for six may be caught by a deep fielder if the shot is mistimed and loops to the outfield). In powerplay conditions, fielding restrictions limit teams to 2 fielders outside the 30-yard circle, so only 2 fielders can be placed 'deep' at any time during powerplay overs.