Anyone for cricket? Learn a little of the lingo so you can keep up with events on the pitch as you enjoy a cricket tea from the safety of the picnic blanket
Badger - a very enthusiastic cricketer
Baggy green - the dark green cap worn by the Australian cricket team since the early 1900s
Cafeteria bowling (aka buffet bowling) - bowling so pathetic it allows the batters to simply 'help themselves' to wickets
Castled (see also 'Yorker', below) - If you are 'skittled out' you are dismissed as batsman pretty quickly. If you are 'castled out' you are dismissed as the result of a Yorker.
Chin Music - a bowling technique where the ball is designed to bounce and target the batsman's chin or throat
Cow corner - the part of the field between deep mid wicket and wide long on. Fielders are rarely placed there so the idea is cows could happily graze on it during the match.
Dibbly Dobbly - a bowl that is neither fast nor slow and with no special technique
DLS (Duckworth Lewis Stern) method - If rain stops play this mathematical formula determines the winner or whether the match can be played but shortened. The sum is based on analysis of past matches.
Dolly - an incredibly easy catch that the fielder barely has to move to make.
Duck and Golden Duck - A Duck is when the batsman is dismissed without scoring. A Golden Duck is when they are dismissed on the first ball.
Pie chucker - a rather poor bowler whose delivery gives the ball a look of a 'pie' in the air
Yorker - A difficult ball to bat in which the ball hits the pitch close to the batter’s feet. May originate from Yorkshire or come from the (somewhat unfair, we think) 18th century term 'to pull a Yorkshire' meaning 'to deceive'.
If all that has just got you fancying a Pimms and a cucumber sandwich, you might enjoy our ‘gathering’ feature ‘All Out For Tea’ in our June issue. It’s a menu for a cricket tea including Veggie Picnic Pie, Cucumber Skewer Sandwiches, Homemade Lemonade and much more.
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