In cricket, a yorker is a type of delivery bowled by a bowler that hits the cricket pitch around the batsmans feet. It is a challenging ball for the batsman to hit with their cricket bat, and it is best used to surprise a batsman who has become accustomed to hitting shorter-pitched balls and not with the bat speed necessary to defend against a yorker. A yorker is frequently bowled quickly to give the batsman less time to react and position their bat. The term "yorker" is believed to have originated from Yorkshire, but there are different hypotheses about its origin. Despite the effectiveness of yorkers, they are notoriously difficult to bowl correctly and usually will be attempted only a handful of times during a sequence of several overs. There are different types of yorkers that can be bowled during a cricket match, including slow yorkers, fast yorkers, swinging yorkers, and toe crushers. A yorker is particularly effective against weak tail-end batsmen and in the later stages of an innings in one-day cricket.