Pipe runs inside counter (5)
I believe the answer is:
chirp
'pipe' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'runs inside counter' is the wordplay.
'runs' becomes 'r' (cricket abbreviation).
'inside' is an insertion indicator.
'counter' becomes 'chip' (chip is a kind of counter).
'r' inserted within 'chip' is 'CHIRP'.
(Other definitions for chirp that I've seen before include "Tweet" , "Fledgling's sound" , "Short sharp tone of grasshopper" , "Grasshopper's noise" , "Twitter" .)