Cricket

What Is Cricket?

Cricket is a bat and ball team sport which is played between two teams of eleven players.

Cricket has been a major team sport for several centuries and as such carries a tradition and rivalry unmatched by many other popular/professional sports. Some games (tests) are traditionally played over days or weeks. For some cricket is often regarded as a difficult game to understand due to its jargon and precise rules. In the past it has even been regarded as esoteric or elitist. Cricket enjoys utter devotion among its followers and remains a complete mystery to others.

Is Cricket About Fair Play?

The game originated in England and is often associated with the concept of Englishness, etiquette and fair play. "It's not cricket" is an expression used in England to describe bad manners or unfair behaviour.

Who Plays Cricket?

Cricket enjoys huge popularity in England and Wales and also throughout countries which are former members of the British Commonwealth of Nations, where it is also a major professional sport. In some Asian countries such as India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka cricket is by far the most popular sport. Indian and Pakistan's star players enjoy the type of enormous popularity normally associated with pop stars. Cricket is also extremely popular in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Zimbabwe and throughout the West Indies, ie those English speaking countries which retain strong links to England. There are well established amateur leagues in many other countries.

Is Cricket Big In America ?

Strangely the USA, another country with strong ties to England and the UK, has never taken to cricket in a big way despite it being a popular sport in the early colonial days. Cricket was introduced in the US in the 18th Century and was endorsed by George Washington and many other US founding fathers. The disruption of the American civil war is often identified as the reason cricket floundered in America. Instead baseball, another ball game derived from the English girl's game of rounders, became popular instead. Cricket remains a cult sport in the US though and is enjoyed by a number of celebrities. Jack White of the band White Stripes is said to be a big fan.

How Do You Play Cricket?

On an oval grass field in the centre of which is a flat strip - the pitch . At each end of the pitch is a wicket including a set of wooden stumps. One team bowls the other bats. The pitch is also called the wicket. A player from the fielding team the bowler propels a hard apple sized cork and leather ball from one wicket to the other. The batting player defends his wicket and tries to strike the ball with his cricket bat before it hits his stumps. The batsman tries to run between the wickets exchanging ends with another batsman at the other end. Each time they do this the batter scores a run which compiles the score of the batting team. The remainder of the bowlers' team stand in the field. These fielders try and catch and return the ball to prevent the scoring of runs.

How Do You Get Knocked Out?

The aim of the batsmen is to score as many runs as they can. The aim of the bowler and his team is to get each batsman out - known as a dismissal, a wicket or the taking of a wicket. Dismissals are achieved via different means, such as being bowled, ie striking the wicket, or being caught - the bowler strikes the ball and it is caught by a fielder before it hits the ground, or LBW - leg before wicket - the batter fails to hit the ball and it strikes his leg while it is positioned in front of the wicket. While the batsman is attempting a run fielders can knock the bails off either set of stumps with the ball before the batsman reaches it.

The 10 most popular ways of being out are:

1. Caught
2. Bowled
3. Stumped
4. LBW - Leg Before Wicket
5. Run Out
6. Hit Wicket - Batter hits the wicket.
7. Handling The Ball - Without permission.
8. Obstructing The Field
9. Hitting The Ball Twice - Unless protecting the wicket.
10. Time Out - New batsman takes longer than two minutes to appear.

What Are Innings And Overs ?

An innings is a session of cricket. Once out a batsman is replaced by the next batsman. The innings of the batting team ends when the tenth batsman is out thus the team is all out. At the end of the innings the teams swap around and the fielding team becoming the batting team. The game is divided into overs of six balls. At the end of an over the batting and bowling ends will be swapped and the bowler replaced by another member of the fielding side. The fielding positions and the two umpires also change positions at this time.

So How Confusing Is Cricket?

It can be difficult to understand for newcomers to cricket. A draw is a fairly common result. It can sometimes be a long game - certain test matches can last more than six hours a day, for up to five days at a time - and so test series can last for weeks at a time. There is also lots of jargon which often sounds nonsensical to the newcomer. The game incorporates 42 main laws including many laws concerning the various intervals for lunch and tea. Other rules supplement the main laws and may change to deal with different circumstances and types of game. Different varieties of the game have different restrictions on the numbers of overs , the numbers of innings and the number of balls thrown.

How Important Is Drinking Tea In Cricket?

Crucial. The laws about drinking tea sometimes appear as important as the hitting of the ball. This important aspect of the game was tightened up a few years ago to incorporate Law 15.8 -Tea interval - 9 wickets down. Seen as controversial at the time this provision allowed for continuing play beyond the agreed time for tea and increasing the number of occasions on which play will continue rather than tea being taken.

Where Is The Spiritual Home Of Cricket?

The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) at Lord's in St Johns Wood in London . The MCC was founded in 1787 and its elder statesmen were for many years in charge of the game. The game is now controlled by the International Cricket Council worldwide and the England and Wales Cricket Board in the UK ; but the MCC is still regarded as the ultimate authority by many. For many years English touring teams were known as 'the MCC'.

What's A Follow On?

In a five day match a side can enforce a 'follow on' and make the opposing team bat once more; as long as they have a first innings lead of at least 200 runs. The follow on rules vary per duration of matches. If there is no play on the first day of a five day match then a lead of only 150 runs is needed.

Leads required for the follow on:

1. 5 days - 200 runs
2. 3 or 4 days - 150 runs
3. 2 days - 100 runs
4. 1 day - 75 runs

Why Are Bowlers Either Fast Or Slow Bowlers?

Bowlers are often assessed by commentators and opposing teams in order of the pace/acceleration of the ball so you hear people talk of slow, medium, and fast bowlers and sometimes even medium fast and fast medium bowlers.

What Are The Ashes?

This is the annual test series between England and Australia who play for one of sport's smallest trophies - The Ashes. The Ashes is international cricket's oldest and most talked about contest dating back to 1882. It is played alternately in England and Australia each year. The Ashes are named after an obituary published in The Sporting Times in 1882 following a match at The Oval in South London in which Australia beat England in England for the first time. The satirical obituary said English cricket had died and the body will be cremated and the ashes sent to Australia. The next English tour to Australia (1882-83) became known as the attempt to regain The Ashes. The trophy is a small terracotta urn containing ashes of bails presented to the English team by a group of Australian women during the tour. The urn is presented to the winner but remains in the MCC 's Museum at Lords Cricket Ground. If a series is drawn then the country holding the Ashes retains the title.

What Are Legside and Offside?

When a batsman takes his usual side on stance the side towards his legs is his strong side and is called the onside or leg side of the field. The other side is called the offside.

What Are Some Of The Main Cricketing Terms?

Here's some of the main jargon to keep you abreast of the action:

Ball Tampering

Illegal action of changing the condition of the ball to create extra spin or unusual movement against the wicket. Scuffing the surface, picking the seam, or applying sweat or saliva are examples.

Beamer

A ball that does not bounce heading straight at the batsman at about head height. Can be dangerous.

Bouncer

Short pitched ball passing the batsman at chest or head height.

Boundary

The perimeter of the cricket field. By hitting the ball outside this line the batsman can score a four (bouncing over the line) or a six (flying over the line).

Bye

Run scored when the batsman does not touch the ball with bat or body.

Declaration

The batting side ends their innings before all players are out. They declare.

Duck

Score of zero.

Full Toss

Ball reaches batsmen without bouncing. Above waist height it becomes a beamer.

Googly

Right armed legspinner's ball that turns instead of the leg to the off side from off to leg, into a right-handed batsman and away from the left-hander.

Grubber

A ball with little bounce.

Jaffa

A delivery too good for the batsman leaving him groping hopelessly for a shot.

Maiden

An over where no runs are attributed to the bowler.

Rough

The area of pitch scuffed by the bowler running along it. Spin bowlers often try and play off the rough.

Sitter

Easy undroppable catch for a fielder. To miss a sitter is fielder's nightmare.

Wide

A wide delivery that lands too far away from the batsman and is impossible to score off and so must be replayed.

Yorker

Powerful deliver aimed at the batsman's toes or the base of the stumps.