Wicketkeeping gloves and kit: what Law 27 allows.

Who may wear gloves and leg guards

Law 27.1 of the 2026 edition makes the wicket-keeper the only fielder allowed to wear gloves and external leg guards. If worn, they count as part of the keeper's person for fielding the ball. Law 28.1 says the same from the other side: no other fielder may wear gloves or external leg guards, and hand or finger protection may be worn only with the umpires' consent.

The right is tied to the job. Under Law 27.1, a keeper whose actions and position show they cannot carry out a keeper's normal duties loses the right to wear this equipment, and to be treated as the keeper for catches, stumpings and fielding restrictions.

The gloves (Law 27.2 and Appendix E)

• Law 27.2.1: keeping gloves may have no webbing between the fingers, except between the index finger and thumb, where webbing may be inserted as a support.
• Law 27.2.2: that webbing must be a single piece of non-stretch material. It may have facing material attached, but no reinforcements or tucks.
• Law 27.2.3: the top edge of the webbing may not protrude beyond the straight line joining the tip of the index finger to the tip of the thumb, and must be taut when the thumb is fully extended.
• Appendix E: illustrates these glove rules with images.

When a ball counts as held, Appendix A.2.7 (2026) says it is held with complete control in the palm or fingers, including the palm or fingers of a keeper's glove.

What changed in 2026

• Law 27.3.1. Under the 2026 edition, the keeper must be wholly behind the wicket only from the instant of delivery, not from the moment the bowler starts the run-up as before. The MCC says this means gloves in front of the stumps during the run-up are no longer penalised.
• Appendix A.12.3. The wicket-keeper's glove was removed from the definition of the hand. The MCC lists this among the 2026 equipment-related changes.

Keeping kit in international cricket

The ICC Clothing and Equipment Regulations (effective January 2024) set these rules for keepers:

• Gloves: any visible stitching, ventilation or stencil in the shape of a maker's mark counts as the maker's identification, and no other visible logos are allowed.
• Pads: plain white in Tests; plain coloured, not white or a light colour, and the same across the team in ODIs and T20 internationals, with discoloured or faded pads not permitted. These match the rules for batting pads.
• Face protectors: one plain colour.

The ICC Men's ODI Playing Conditions (effective October 2026) note in their appendix on keeping gloves that the gloves must also comply with the Clothing and Equipment Regulations on marks and logos.

Head protection for keepers standing up

Helmet requirements for keepers come from the ICC and the boards, and most of them apply when the keeper stands up to the stumps:

The ECB's 2025 recreational regulations are read from a copy reproduced in a Cornwall Cricket handbook. Each body's full rule is on helmet rules by body.

The standards behind them

BSI lists BS 7928-2:2009, a standard for face protectors for cricket wicket-keepers, as current, published on 31 December 2009. BSI also notes that its main head-protector standard, BS 7928:2013+A1:2019, may be worn by keepers and close fielders, but that its test protocol is designed around batting impacts. Neither standard is a judgment on any product; the standard and the body's rule decide. More is on helmet standards.