Bouncer

A bouncer is a fast, short-pitched delivery that rises towards the batter's chest, shoulder or head.

Its purpose is to unsettle. A batter who has just ducked a bouncer is less likely to step forward to the full ball that follows, which is why fast bowlers pair it with the yorker. It also takes wickets on its own: a hook or pull that is mistimed goes up in the air to a deep fielder, and a batter who fends it off can pop a catch to the leg-side ring. On a bouncy pitch a well-directed short ball is the most dangerous delivery in cricket; on a slow one it sits up to be hit.

The laws limit how many short-pitched deliveries a bowler may send down per over, and the limits differ by competition, so a captain cannot simply order a bouncer barrage. In white-ball cricket the bouncer is also a defensive ball: bowled wide of the batter at the death, it is hard to reach and harder to hit for six.

Ask the wrong bowler for it and it fails. A spinner cannot bowl a bouncer, and a medium pacer's bouncer is a long hop.

In Masterstroke: ask a spinner for a bouncer and the commentary will tell you why it went for four.