Detailed masbooq recitation and sitting-order rules

Answer

Al-Hidayah: *وَمَا أَدْرَكَ الْمَسْبُوقُ مَعَ الْإِمَامِ فَهُوَ آخِرُ صَلَاتِهِ، وَمَا يَقْضِي بَعْدَ سَلَامِ الْإِمَامِ أَوَّلُ صَلَاتِهِ، فَيَقْرَأُ فِي أَوَّلِ الرَّكْعَتَيْنِ فَاتِحَةَ الْكِتَابِ وَسُورَةً، وَفِي الْأَخِيرَتَيْنِ فَاتِحَةَ الْكِتَابِ* — "Whatever the masbuq catches with the Imam is the latter part of his prayer, and whatever he completes after the salam of the Imam is the beginning of his prayer. Thus he recites al-Fatiha and another surah in the first two rakats he makes up, and only al-Fatiha in the last two." Al-Mabsut: *الْمَسْبُوقُ يَقْضِي أَوَّلَ صَلَاتِهِ فِي حَقِّ الْقِرَاءَةِ، وَآخِرَهَا فِي حَقِّ التَّشَهُّدِ* — in recitation he treats the missed rakats as his first rakats, but in sitting order what he prayed with the imam is considered.

Practical rulings from al-Fatawa al-Hindiyyah: if he caught three rakats of a four-rakat prayer, he completes one rakat with recitation and sits; if he caught two rakats, he completes two, reciting in both and sitting after the first; if he caught one rakat, he completes three — reciting in the first two, sitting after the first, and reciting only al-Fatiha in the third. Regarding catching rukuʿ, al-Quduri states whoever catches the Imam in rukuʿ and performs rukuʿ with him, that rakat counts for him.

(Note: this detailed answer arrived in reply to an unrelated visible thread about business-contract termination and refund policy — it appears to be a delayed answer to an earlier masbooq question not captured in this export's visible window, and duplicates the ruling given above under "Completing missed rakats as a latecomer to Zuhr.")