9 types of ducks in cricket

Getting out on the very first ball of your innings has to be up there with one of the worst feelings in cricket. Every batter in history must have prayed that they do not get out on the very first ball. However, sometimes the same is inevitable. As bad as getting out for a duck is, there are several types of ducks in the game.

Specifically, there are nine types of different ducks in cricket. Getting out on nought is called a duck, and it is called that because the number ‘0’ is similar to the egg of a duck. In this article, let us have a look at the different types of ducks in cricket.

1. Golden Duck

Probably the most infamous duck of all, the golden duck, is when the batter is dismissed off the very first ball that he faces in his innings. There have been many unfortunate batters who have experienced the golden duck firsthand.

2. Silver Duck

The Silver Duck is one of the less popular terms in the sport. It refers to when the batter is sent back to the pavilion for zero runs and gets out on the second ball that he faces.

3. Bronze Duck

As the name suggests, the Bronze Duck is when the batter is dismissed for no runs on the third ball that he faces in his innings. If the Golden or Silver Duck were bad, then the Bronze Duck would be the worse.

4. Diamond Duck

A unique type of duck in the sport, and quite possibly the worst of them all. The Diamond Duck is when a batter is run out, timed out, or has obstructed the field without having faced a ball. Getting out without facing a legal delivery is called a Diamond Duck.

5. Royal Duck 

The Royal Duck in cricket is associated with one of the biggest Test series in the history of the sport—the Ashes. The Royal Duck label is for the opening batters who have dismissed off the very first ball that they face in the marquee series between Australia and England.

6. Laughing Duck

A Laughing Duck in cricket is when the batter is dismissed for no runs, and the innings end with his wicket. Such a unique situation is referred to as a Laughing Duck.

7. A Pair

Another bamboozling situation of ducks, where the batter is sent back to the pavilion on any kind of duck in both innings of the same match, is referred to as ‘A Pair’ in cricket. 

8. King Pair

A King Pair duck is an even more uncommon situation where the batter is dismissed on Golden Ducks in both innings of the same match.

9. Batting Hattrick

Probably the rarest of them is the Batting Hattrick. A collection of three dismissals in three balls across any consecutive Test innings is referred to as the Batting Hattrick.