Out for 99

“The batsman was on his way to his maiden century. Then he entered the ‘nervous nineties’ and his scoring slowed down but eventually he clawed his way up to 99. At this point he decided that it was time to do something dramatic, so he hit the next ball miles into the outfield. He completed one run, whereupon there was a huge cheer from the pavilion, and the batsmen had almost crossed on the second run when the ball was caught in the deep. Having completed the one run he needed, had he made his century or not?”

Sadly for him, no he hadn’t. He was dismissed Caught, for 99. The one completed ‘run’ doesn’t count. It is amazing how many players - some of whom have played the game for years - do not realise that no runs ever count if hit off a delivery from which the batsman is caught.


Read more about Law 32.5 (Caught) at the MCC website