[BoyBrumby]

Originally Posted by Spark

Why is that so weird re: an edge being a smaller misjudgement? If you're trying to middle the ball, it stands to reason that the more you miss it by, the "worse" you've done. Ofc this doesn't take technical considerations like following the ball with your hands into account, but it's a fair point

Seem to recall Ed Smith arguing the same point in a recent(ish) article on cricinfo about luck in the sport.

Originally Posted by Ed Smith

You need a lot of skill to make a hundred. But you almost certainly need luck as well. After all, how many hundreds are reached without a single play-and-miss? Not many. And yet, as we all know, a play-and-miss is a worse shot than an edge to the slips. Not a worse outcome. But worse in terms of the degree of distance from the batsman's intention (which is hitting the ball with the middle of the bat) and the end result (an air shot). In cricket, if you really mess up and miss the middle of the bat by a foot, then the ball travels safely through to the wicketkeeper. But if you only mess up by a small amount, and miss the middle of the bat by half the width of the bat face, then the ball catches the edge and you trudge back to the pavilion. Go figure.