The laws of cricket drafted by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is the authoritative document on the rules and regulations of the sport. The law that details on no ball is Law 24. It explains that no balls are illegitimate deliveries that results in the batting side get a penalty run. Moreover, the delivery that follows a no ball is a free hit, on which a batter cannot be dismissed except for a run out or obstructing the field.
A no ball is called by the umpire when the bowler bowls such that the ball does not pitch and reaches the batter above the waist height. Another manner in which no ball is bowled is when the bowler oversteps the popping crease at the time when he or she releases the ball. This is called a front foot no ball.
While the front foot no ball and the waist height no ball are the most common variants, another version of this illegitimate delivery is a backfoot no ball. A backfoot no ball is not about overstepping any line but rather stepping on a demarcated line known as the return crease.
The return crease is the line that connects the popping crease with a line that is drawn in line of the stumps. The return crease is marked four feet away from either side of the pitch (marked from the middle stump) and is eight feet long. Thus, a rectangular framework can be imagined wherein the return crease represent the breadth whereas the popping crease and the line coinciding with the stumps are the lengths.
If the backfoot of the bowler touches the return crease, it is called a no ball. Penalty runs and free hit rules are followed for this version of no ball too. The back foot no ball rule was introduced so that bowlers do not get an unfair advantage by releasing bowls at sharp angles. Should the conditions favor swing bowling, the release of the ball at acute angles in addition to the variations on the ball becomes an uphill task for the batter to counter.
