A mandatory equipment in cricket are the two sets of stumps placed on either side of the pitch. They are also known as wickets. A set of wicket comprises three wooden stumps and two wooden bails on top of it. Any event related to the stumps is questioned only if the bails are dislodged.
Law 29 of the Marylebone Cricket Club’s Laws of Cricket is dedicated to the manner in which the wickets should be broken (how the bails should be dislodged). The displacement of bails with the ball is the minimum requirement for the fielding side in order to make an appeal to the umpire for a potential dismissal. Run out, stumping, hit wicket, bowled, are the various dismissals that come into picture when the bails are removed with the ball.
There are three ways in which the bails can be legally broken with the ball. Firstly, the ball can either directly hit the stumps as it is released from the bowler’s arm, or it can ricochet off the batter’s bat. Secondly, if the batter’s clothing or part of equipment is detached and goes on to hit the bails, then the batter is deemed out. Third, as seen in most run out cases, the bails can be broken by the fielder either by directly hurling the ball on to the stumps or by dislodging the bails with the arm in which the ball is held.
If the bails are removed by any other manner, then it is not considered to be a legal option. Natural factors like strong winds might cause the displacement of the bails. But this is considered illegal and the batter is not out.
At times, the weather itself might see a gush of strong winds across the stadium. In such a situation, the laws state that the umpires should decide if play is possible in such a scenario as there are high chances of the bails falling off. If the umpires decide to continue in such a weather, then the bails can be removed. A decision of any event after that which sees the ball hitting the wickets, is left to the umpire’s discretion.
