Rules to Bat and Trap

Instruction on how to play and set up the Game of Bat and Trap.

In our bat and trap guide we help you learn about the equipment needed, a guide to playing, how to pick teams, and how to score in a game

The trap is placed on the ground at one end of the 21 yard long pitch, and at the other end are the two posts, 13ft 6” apart.  These regulation measurements can be adapted to garden play. 

Equipment Used
The front part of the trap is the “wicket” which is a square white target with a black painted disc for the bowlers to aim at.  This is hinged at the bottom and stands vertically so that a successful throw will knock the flap down.  On the top of the trap is a simple see saw mechanism that propels the ball upwards when the batsman pushes down the other end.  The wooden bat has an oval face maximum 8” long by 5” wide.  The ball is special sorbo rubber.

Playing Bat and Trap
The Game is a team game with eight players on each side for a garden play, a minimum of 3 players per side is recommended.  The team captains should toss a coin to decide which team bats first.  An “innings” consists of each player on the team having one chance to bat, each player batting until he is “out”.

Teams
Each team plays an innings and the team with the most points wins the game.  A normal league match will be the best of three legs but if a leg is drawn a fourth leg would be played to decide the match.

How to play
Only one player bats at a time.  To start, the batsman stands beside the trap and knocks the lever down smartly with his bat which shoots the ball upwards where it can be hit with the bat.  The batsman is allowed 3 attempts to shoot the ball to a sufficient height to be struck but as soon as a swing is made at the ball, the strike is deemed to have been taken.  The objective is to strike the ball so that is passes between the two posts.  If the batsman misses the ball or the ball does not manage to cross the line between the two posts or if the ball passes over the line at a higher altitude than the top of the fielders heads, the batsman is “Knocked Out”.  Behind and between the two posts, the opposing or fielding team stand in a line ready to field the ball.  The fielders must remain behind the posts but should the ball be caught by one of the fielders before touching the ground, the batsman is “Caught Out”.  This is quite unusual however and normally, the ball bounces once or twice before successfully crossing the line where it is stopped by the fielders.
 

Scoring in bat and Trap
After this, the bowling half of the turn begins.  This is simply a chance for one of the fielders to throw the ball back down the pitch at the target flap at the front of the trap.  The fielding side take turns to bowl so that each fielder bowls only once every 8 balls and the bowler must keep one foot behind the posts at all times.  The batsman can do nothing to prevent the ball hitting the wicket and must stand to one side while the ball is thrown.  If the ball knocks the target so that it is knocked backwards and hits the ground, the batsman is “Bowled Out”.  If the bowler does not manage to knock down the target, the batsman scores one run, collects the ball and starts the process over again.