Appeal
A request to a match official to make or reconsider a ruling, most formally in cricket where fielders must appeal before a batter can be given out.
Definition
An appeal is a formal request for an official to rule on an event. It is most strongly codified in cricket, where the fielding side must ask the umpire, traditionally with the cry of 'How's that?', before most dismissals can be given; without an appeal, the umpire will not rule a batter out even for a valid dismissal. The umpire then responds by raising a finger for out or stating not out.
More broadly, an appeal is any legitimate, rule-governed request to review or apply a decision, distinct from simply protesting a call. In some sports players may appeal to trigger a technology-based review, while in others an appeal is a channelled way to question an outcome. Because it is a permitted procedure, an appeal differs from dissent, which is an improper protest against a decision already given.
Meaning by sport
This term is used differently across sports:
- Cricket
- A fielding side's request, calling 'How's that?', asking the umpire to decide whether a batter is out; required before most dismissals can be given.
- Tennis
- A player's challenge to a line call, historically resolved by the officials and now often through electronic review.
Where you’ll hear “appeal”
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How it connects
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Commonly confused with
Close enough to be mixed up — the distinction is worth knowing.
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Rules
- Leg before wicket (LBW)Cricket's most argued-about dismissal, set out as the Laws set it out: five conditions that must all be satisfied, and the one clause that changes everything if the batter played a shot.
- Three-hit ruleThe volleyball rule that a team may contact the ball at most three times before it must cross the net.
- The padel servePadel's underarm serve, set out exactly — the bounce before the strike, the waist-height limit, where the server's feet must be, and the wire-mesh fault that has no tennis equivalent.
- False startA rule breach in a race when a competitor begins to move before the starting signal is given.
- Wide ballThe delivery ruled too far from the batter to be hit — the exact test the umpire applies, the two situations that cancel a wide, and why a wide costs a run and must be bowled again.
Officiating
- Out-of-Bounds CallAn official's ruling that the ball or a player in possession has left the legal playing area, stopping play and handing a restart or possession to the opponent.
- Foul callA foul call is an official's ruling that a player broke a rule of contact or conduct, triggering a penalty such as a free kick, free throw or penalty.
- UmpireA match official who rules on lines, serves and dismissals in racket, bat-and-ball and net sports such as tennis, cricket and baseball — and, in racket sports, also keeps the running score.
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How this page is maintained
- Content type
- Term
- Provenance
- Tier A — evergreen educational
- Verified external sources
- 0
- Content updated
- 2026-09-01
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