A wicket in cricket has several meanings. It is one of the two sets of three stumps and two bails at either end of the pitch. The fielding teams players can hit the wicket with the ball in a number of ways to get a batter out. The wicket is guarded by a batter who, with their bat (and sometimes with their pads), attempts to prevent the ball from hitting the wicket (if it does, he is bowled out) and to score runs where possible. Through metonymic usage, the dismissal of a batter is known as the taking of a wicket. The cricket pitch itself is sometimes referred to as the wicket.

A wicket consists of three stumps, or stakes, each 28 inches (71.1 cm) high and of equal thickness (about 1.25 inches in diameter), stuck into the ground and so spaced that the ball cannot pass between them. Two pieces of wood called bails, each 4.37 inches, lie horizontally across the top of the stumps. The sides take turns at batting and bowling (pitching); each turn is called an “innings” (always plural) .

The ways to get a wicket are done through being caught, bowled, run out, stumped, or leg before wicket. If the batsman is caught, it means a fielder caught the bowled ball before it hit the ground. If the batsman is bowled, the two bails are knocked over by a bowled ball. If the batsman is run out, they fall short of the batting crease, and a player from the fielding team knocks over the wicket while the batter is running between the wickets. If the batsman is stumped, it means the wicket-keeper collects the cricket ball and knocks over the wicket before the batter is in the batting crease. Lastly, if the ball would hit the stumps if it wasn’t for the batsman’s pads, it is considered a leg before wicket.