LBW in Detail Explained: The Full Criteria for an LBW Decision
The full LBW criteria in cricket — all five conditions required for an LBW dismissal, the umpire's judgment process, why pitching outside leg stump means not out, and how DRS has changed LBW decisions.
Leg Before Wicket (LBW) is one of cricket's most complex dismissal rules — requiring an umpire to make a judgment on multiple simultaneous criteria within a fraction of a second. LBW is out when: (1) the ball is bowled by the bowler; (2) the ball pitches in line OR on the off side of the wicket (not outside leg stump); (3) the ball hits the batter's pad (or body) in line with the stumps; (4) the ball would have gone on to hit the stumps if the pad had not been there; AND (5) the batter did not play a genuine shot (if the batter played a shot, only the pitch and impact criteria apply — not the 'no shot' criterion). All five criteria must be met for LBW to be given out.
Pitching Outside Leg: Not Out
If a delivery pitches outside the leg stump (i.e., lands to the leg side of the leg stump), it cannot result in an LBW dismissal — regardless of how the ball subsequently moves or where it hits the batter's pad. This rule exists because: (1) asking batters to play on a delivery that pitches outside their natural playing position was considered unfair; (2) the original Law was designed to stop bowlers bowling wide down the leg side and generating constant LBW appeals. Deliveries pitching outside leg stump are frequently attempted by leg-spinners (whose googly may pitch on leg stump and turn into right-handers' body) — any such delivery that hits the pad outside leg stump is automatically not out LBW.
Impact Outside Off Stump
If a batter plays a shot AND the ball hits the pad outside the off stump (beyond the off stump line), the dismissal depends on the specific criteria: for 'playing a shot' LBW appeals, the ball only needs to pitch in line or off-side, hit in line, and be going on to hit the stumps. If the ball hits the pad outside the off stump line and the batter was playing a shot, and the ball is predicted to hit the stumps — it can be given out. This is the most complex LBW scenario and the most frequently reviewed by DRS — whether the ball would have continued to hit the stumps after hitting the pad outside off.
LBW Without Playing a Shot
If a batter makes NO genuine attempt to play the ball (attempts to pad the ball away, or is hit by a delivery they simply duck in front of), the LBW law applies differently: the ball can hit the pad outside the off stump line AND be given out — because the 'playing a shot' protection does not apply when the batter did not attempt a shot. This rule encourages batters to play their shots rather than using their pads to block deliveries — padding away outside off stump would otherwise be a legitimate defensive technique without the rule.
Frequently asked questions
What are all the criteria for an LBW decision?
Five must all be met: (1) bowler bowled the ball; (2) ball pitches in line with stumps or on the off side (not outside leg); (3) ball hits batter's pad/body in line with stumps; (4) ball would have gone on to hit stumps; (5) batter did not play a genuine shot (or if they did, impact outside off stump is still potentially out). All five required — missing any one means not out.
Why is a delivery pitching outside leg stump not LBW?
Because asking batters to play on deliveries pitching outside their natural playing position was considered unfair under the original Laws. Any delivery pitching outside the leg stump cannot result in LBW — regardless of where the ball subsequently moves or hits. This frequently protects batters against leg-spinners' googlies that pitch outside leg and turn into the body.
What is 'Umpire's Call' in DRS?
When Hawk-Eye predicts the ball is marginally hitting the stumps — within the 2.5cm uncertainty zone — the original on-field umpire's decision is retained. If the umpire originally gave out, it stays out; if not out, it stays not out. This accounts for the uncertainty in ball-tracking predictions and defers to human judgment for genuinely marginal decisions.