GUIDES · BETSLIP DOCTOR
When can a fielder jump from outside the boundary and still prevent a boundary?
Under the MCC 2017 Code, 4th Edition (2026), an airborne fielder's first contact with the ball is treated as beyond the boundary if their final ground contact before that touch was not entirely within the boundary. If the first ball contact does not breach that test, the fielder may later jump from outside and make another airborne contact with the ball. After that later touch, all subsequent ground contact by that fielder until the ball is dead must be within the field. If the ball is returned to the field by the outside-origin jump, the fielder must land and remain inside until it is dead.
For Cricket fans checking whether an airborne fielding touch prevents a boundary · Updated
Check the fielder's last ground contact before the ball touch
Law 19.5.2 treats a fielder who is airborne as grounded beyond the boundary if, before their first contact with the ball, their final contact with the ground was not entirely within the boundary. In that case, touching the ball while airborne can make it a boundary under Law 19.4.2.
The test applies to any fielder who touches the ball after it has been delivered, whether or not another fielder touched it earlier. The relevant sequence is the final ground contact before this fielder's first ball contact.
After a permitted airborne touch, stay inside on every later landing
Law 19.5.2's first-contact test and Law 19.5.2.1's later outside-origin jump are separate events. If the fielder's first contact with the ball after delivery does not contravene Law 19.5.2, that fielder may then jump from outside the boundary and make a later airborne contact with the ball. After this later airborne touch, any subsequent contact with the ground by that fielder until the ball becomes dead must be within the field; a ground contact outside during this period results in a boundary whether or not the fielder is touching the ball at that moment.
If the fielder who jumped from outside returns the ball to the field, Law 19.5.2.2 separately requires them to land and remain within the boundary until the ball becomes dead.
Use the current MCC edition and check competition conditions
This explanation follows the MCC 2017 Code, 4th Edition (2026), Laws 19.4.2 and 19.5.1–19.5.2.2. No competition-specific Playing Conditions were checked; verify them before applying the rule to a named match or format.
A lawful in-field touch, then a later jump from outside
Suppose a fielder first touches the ball while grounded wholly inside the boundary, with their final ground contact before that first ball touch entirely within the boundary. The ball remains in play and moves toward the rope. Once the fielder is no longer touching it, they become grounded outside, then jump and make a later airborne touch that sends the ball back into the field before it reaches the rope. In the first version, after this later touch they land inside and remain within the boundary until the ball is dead; this sequence does not itself score a boundary. In the second version, after the same later airborne touch they touch the ground outside before the ball is dead. That later ground contact results in a boundary even if they are no longer touching the ball. The example uses the current MCC 2026 text and makes no claim about another edition or a particular competition's Playing Conditions.
Related questions
Does an earlier touch by a teammate remove the ground-contact test?
No. Law 19.5.2 applies to any fielder making contact after the ball is delivered, whether or not another fielder touched the ball before.
Does a later landing outside count if the fielder is no longer touching the ball?
Yes. After a permitted airborne touch, any subsequent ground contact outside the boundary by that fielder before the ball is dead results in a boundary, whether or not they are touching the ball.