The forward leg hit is made in the following manner:—When a ball is pitched rather wide on the near side, advance the left foot in front of the wicket, turn half round, and hit down upon the ball as hard as you can.
When the ball is pitched inside the near stump, step back with the right foot, and with an upright bat play it off the wicket. The ball will fly rapidly along the ground, and usually between leg and long-stop.
Recollect, the sooner you hit at a leg ball the squarer it goes.
The cut is the most difficult of all, and can only be accomplished when the ball rises a little wide of the off-bail. Even then you are very likely to play either too soon or too late at it, and it is very rare indeed that a player makes a really good legitimate cut.
When you see the ball about to rise a foot away from off-bail, draw the right leg backwards, and, with a horizontal bat, give the ball something between a pat and a push, between point and short-slip.
This is very far from being a scientific definition of this delightful stroke; but I think, from the plain manner in which I have stated it, that it will be more likely to be understood.
THE CUT.
The technical names for the various balls the batsman is likely to receive are—the full pitch, the tice, the hop, the half volley, the ground ball, and the shooter.