cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

, a beamer (less commonly beam ball) is a type of

delivery Delivery may refer to: Biology and medicine *Childbirth *Drug delivery *Gene delivery Business and law *Delivery (commerce), of goods, e.g.: **Pizza delivery ** Milk delivery ** Food delivery ** Online grocer *Deed ("delivery" in contract law), a ...

in which the ball, without bouncing, passes above the batsman's waist height. This kind of delivery is dangerous, as a batsman will be expecting the ball to bounce on the pitch. The failure to bounce makes it much harder to avoid the ball or to hit it with the bat. It is usually an accident caused by the ball slipping from the bowler's hands at delivery, but they have been bowled deliberately, an act highly contrary to the

Laws of Cricket The ''Laws of Cricket'' is a code that specifies the rules of the game of cricket worldwide. The earliest known code was drafted in 1744. Since 1788, the code has been owned and maintained by the private Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) in Lord's Cr ...

and the sportsmanship expected of the players. This type of delivery can result in injuries to the batsman, and the penalty is an immediate

no-ball In cricket, a no-ball (in the Laws and regulations: "No ball") is a type of illegal delivery to a batter (the other type being a wide). It is also a type of extra, being the run awarded to the batting team as a consequence of the illegal d ...

and, in

Twenty20 Twenty20 (abbreviated T20) is a shortened format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the county cricket, inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two t ...

and one-day matches, a

free hit In cricket, a free hit is a delivery to a batter in which the batter cannot be dismissed by any methods other than those applicable for a no-ball, namely run out, hit the ball twice and obstructing the field. The rule is used in limited overs ...

. The use of beamers is governed under Law 41.7. The bowler is then given a warning by the umpire for dangerous bowling. Repeated or deliberate cases may result in the bowler being barred from bowling again for the remainder of the

innings An innings is one of the divisions of a cricket match during which one team takes its turn to bat. Innings also means the period in which an individual player bats (acts as either striker or nonstriker). In cricket and rounders, "innings" is ...

(or

match A match is a tool for starting a fire. Typically, matches are made of small wooden sticks or stiff paper. One end is coated with a material that can be ignited by friction generated by striking the match against a suitable surface. Wooden matc ...

), as happened with

Waqar Younis Waqar Younis Maitla HI ( Punjabi, ; born 16 November 1971) is a Pakistani cricket coach, commentator and former cricketer who captained Pakistan national cricket team. A right-arm fast bowler, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest bowle ...

in the

2003 Cricket World Cup The 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup was the eighth Cricket World Cup, organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC). It was co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya from 9 February to 23 March 2003. This edition of the World Cup was the ...

. Fast bowlers, particularly younger players yet to fully refine their techniques, are likely to bowl such deliveries more often than other bowlers, albeit accidentally. A beamer may not necessarily be bowled with intent. It may be due to sweaty hands or a wet ball, causing a slipped release from the hand. It is also possible that the bowler attempts to bowl a

yorker In cricket, a yorker is a ball bowled (a delivery) which bounces by the batsman's feet. This makes it very challenging for a batter to play. When a batsman assumes a normal stance, a yorker generally bounces on the cricket pitch on or near th ...

which goes askew. A bowler can legally target the batsman with a ball aimed at his head that bounces, called a

bouncer A bouncer (also known as a door supervisor) is a type of security guard, employed at licensed or sanctioned venues such as bars, nightclubs, cabaret clubs, strip clubs and casinos. A bouncer's duties are to provide security, to check legal ag ...

. These are easier to play or avoid than beamers, as beamers do not land on the pitch and are illegal, batsman's are caught by surprise and the technique of batting, using feet and body movement to meet the ball after it pitches does not apply.

Abdur Rehman Abdelrahman or Abd al-Rahman or Abdul Rahman or Abdurrahman or Abdrrahman ( or occasionally ; DMG ''ʿAbd ar-Raḥman'') is a male Arabic Muslim given name, and in modern usage, surname. It is built from the Arabic words '' Abd'', ''al-'' and '' ...

, a

Pakistani Pakistanis (, ) are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. As much as ...

spin bowler, bowled three consecutive beamers in the

2014 Asia Cup The 2014 Asia Cup (also known as Arise Asia Cup) was the twelfth edition of the Asia Cup cricket tournament. The tournament was held in Bangladesh from 25 February to 8 March 2014. Pakistan were the defending champions, having won the previous ...

against

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

, and was banned from the match without actually bowling a single legitimate ball, despite giving away 8 runs. This was the first time this happened in the history of cricket.

Shoaib Akhtar Shoaib Akhtar (; born 13 August 1975) is a Pakistani former international cricketer and commentator. Nicknamed the "Rawalpindi Express", he is the fastest bowler in cricketing history, with an unbeaten 161.3 kmph (100.23 mph) delivery. Akht ...

, Pakistani fast bowler, admitted that he bowled a beamer against

Mahendra Singh Dhoni Mahendra Singh Dhoni (; born 7 July 1981) is an Indian professional cricketer who plays as a right-handed batter and a wicket-keeper. Widely regarded as one of the most prolific wicket-keeper batsmen and captains and one of the greatest O ...

on purpose.

References

{{Reflist Bowling (cricket) Cricket terminology Banned sports tactics

See also

References