What is “pitching Outside Leg” in LBW in Cricket?

Pitching outside leg means a ball bounced outside an imaginary line running from the batter’s leg stump to the stump at the other end of the wicket. This means the batter cannot be out LBW (leg before wicket.)

You will normally hear the phrase “pitching outside leg” during a DRS (decision review system) appeal seeking to overturn an umpire’s decision of whether the batter was out or not by LBW. As part of the review, a “TV Umpire” checks several points.

One of these is whether the ball pitched (bounced) outside the leg stump line. If the leg stump is on the right from the bowler’s perspective (almost always the case if the batter is right-handed), pitching outside means the ball bounced to the right of the line. The reverse is true for a left-handed batter.

If the ball is pitching outside leg, the batter cannot be out, even if all the other criteria for LBW are met. The reason for this rule is to avoid a bowler repeatedly aiming the ball at the leg stump and trying to hit the back of the batter’s leg. This would put the batter at a significant disadvantage and arguably make the game both unfair and boringly repetitive. (Non-cricket fans can insert their own joke here.)