What is a diamond duck in cricket? Well, it’s not something any player wants to be on the receiving end of, and is certainly a rare occurrence in cricket.
A duck as we all know happens when a player gets dismissed without scoring a single run for his or her team.
A golden duck where a player is dismissed off the first ball that they face is another term we’ve heard plenty of times in the past as they happen more frequently than diamond ducks.
However, cricket has seen plenty of diamond ducks over the years and here we have a look at what precisely is a diamond duck, while also exploring some of the other types of ducks in cricket.
What is a diamond duck in cricket?
One of the most unfortunate ways of getting out, a diamond duck in cricket happens when a player is dismissed without even facing a single ball. One of the few ways a diamond duck can happen is if a player who is at the non-striker’s end and hasn’t even faced a ball yet gets run out while attempting to complete a run.
Another way a diamond duck can occur in cricket is if a batter hits the ball straight down the ground and the bowler manages to get his fingertips to the ball and ricochets it onto the stumps of the non-striker, who hasn’t even faced a ball yet.
Different types of ducks in cricket
In total, there are eight different types of ducks in cricket that see batters getting dismissed without scoring a run and troubling the scorers. These ducks are diamond duck, golden duck, silver duck, bronze duck, royal duck, laughing duck, pair, and king pair. Here’s a closer look at what each of these ducks represent.
Diamond Duck: As already mentioned, a diamond duck in cricket takes place when a player gets out without even facing a ball.
Golden Duck: A golden duck happens when a batter is dismissed without scoring on the first delivery that they face after coming into bat.
Silver Duck: As the name may suggest following on from a golden duck, a silver duck happens when a batter is dismissed without scoring off the second delivery of their inning.
Bronze Duck: A bronze duck happens when a batter is dismissed without scoring on the third delivery of their inning.
Royal Duck: A royal duck takes place when an opener gets out without scoring off the very first ball of his or her team’s inning.
Laughing Duck: When a batter is dismissed without scoring at the end of their team’s inning, it is known as a laughing duck.
Pair: A pair only happens in Tests or first-class cricket and it takes place when a batter is dismissed without scoring a run in the two innings of red-ball cricket.
King pair: A king pair occurs when a batter is dismissed off the first ball that they face in both innings of a Test match.
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