Cricket is a multi-faceted sport which, in very broad terms, can be divided into major cricket
and minor cricket based on playing standards. A more pertinent
division, particularly in terms of major cricket, is between matches in
which the teams have two innings apiece and those in which they have a
single innings each. The former, known as first-class cricket, has a duration of three to five days (there have been examples of "timeless" matches too); the latter, known as limited overs cricket
because each team bowls a limit of typically 50 or 20 overs, has a
planned duration of one day only (a match can be extended if necessary
due to bad weather, etc.).
Typically, two-innings matches have at least six hours of
playing time
each day. Limited overs matches often last six hours or more. There are
usually formal intervals on each day for lunch and tea with brief
informal breaks for drinks. There is also a short interval between
innings. Historically, a form of cricket known as
single wicket
had been extremely successful and many of these contests in the 18th
and 19th centuries qualify as major cricket matches. In this form,
although each team may have from one to six players, there is only one
batsman at a time and he must face every delivery bowled while his
innings lasts. Single wicket has rarely been played since limited overs
cricket began.
Test cricket
Main article:
Test cricket
Test cricket
is the highest standard of first-class cricket. A Test match is an
international fixture between teams representing those countries that
are Full Members of the ICC.
Although the term "Test match" was not coined until much later, Test cricket is deemed to have begun with two matches between
Australia and
England in the
1876–77 Australian season. Subsequently, eight other national teams have achieved Test status:
South Africa (1889),
West Indies (1928),
New Zealand (1929),
India (1932),
Pakistan (1952),
Sri Lanka (1982),
Zimbabwe (1992) and
Bangladesh (2000). Zimbabwe suspended its Test status in 2006 due to its inability to compete against other Test teams,
[38] and returned in 2011.
[39]
Welsh players are eligible to play for England, which is in effect an
England and Wales team. The West Indies team comprises players from
numerous states in the Caribbean, notably
Barbados,
Guyana,
Jamaica,
Trinidad & Tobago, the
Leeward Islands and the
Windward Islands.
Test matches between two teams are usually played in a group of
matches called a "series". Matches last up to five days and a series
normally consists of three to five matches. Test matches that are not
finished within the allotted time are drawn. In the case of
Test and
first-class cricket:
the possibility of a draw often encourages a team that is batting last
and well behind to bat defensively, giving up any faint chance at a win
to avoid a loss.
[40]
Since 1882, most Test series between England and Australia have been played for a trophy known as
The Ashes. Some other bilateral series have individual trophies too: for example, the
Wisden Trophy is contested by England and West Indies; the
Frank Worrell Trophy by Australia and West Indies and the
Border-Gavaskar Trophy between India and Australia.
Limited overs
An
ODI match between India and Australia in January 2004. The men wearing black trousers are the
umpires. Teams in limited overs games, such as ODIs and T20s, wear multi-coloured uniforms and use white
cricket balls.
Standard
limited overs cricket
was introduced in England in the 1963 season in the form of a knockout
cup contested by the first-class county clubs. In 1969, a national
league competition was established. The concept was gradually introduced
to the other major cricket countries and the first limited overs
international was played in 1971. In 1975, the first
Cricket World Cup
took place in England. Limited overs cricket has seen various
innovations including the use of multi-coloured kit and floodlit matches
using a white ball.
A "one day match", named so because each match is scheduled for
completion in a single day, is the common form of limited overs cricket
played on an international level. In practice, matches sometimes
continue on a second day if they have been interrupted or postponed by
bad weather. The main objective of a limited overs match is to produce a
definite result and so a conventional draw is not possible, but matches
can be undecided if the scores are tied or if bad weather prevents a
result. Each team plays one innings only and faces a limited number of
overs, usually a maximum of 50. The
Cricket World Cup is held in one day format and the
last World Cup in 2011 was won by the co-hosts, India. The
next World Cup will hosted by
Australia and
New Zealand in 2015.
Twenty20
is a new variant of limited overs itself with the purpose being to
complete the match within about three hours, usually in an evening
session. The original idea, when the concept was introduced in England
in 2003, was to provide workers with an evening entertainment. It was
commercially successful and has been adopted internationally. The
inaugural Twenty20 World Championship was held in 2007 and won by India.
2009's Twenty20 World Championship
was staged in England and won by Pakistan. The next Twenty20 World
Championship will be held in the West Indies. After the inaugural
ICC World Twenty20 many domestic Twenty20 leagues were born. First of them was
Indian Cricket League which is a rebel league since it is unauthorized by
BCCI and led to form an official league called the
Indian Premier League. Both these leagues are cash rich and attracted players and audience around the globe. Recently
Twenty20 Champions League was formed as a tournament for domestic clubs of various countries.
National championships
First-class cricket
includes Test cricket but the term is generally used to refer to the
highest level of domestic cricket in those countries with full ICC
membership, although there are exceptions to this. First-class cricket
in England is played for the most part by the 18 county clubs which
contest the
County Championship. The concept of a
champion county
has existed since the 18th century but the official competition was not
established until 1890. The most successful club has been
Yorkshire County Cricket Club with 30 official titles.
Australia established its national first-class championship in 1892–93 when the
Sheffield Shield was introduced. In Australia, the first-class teams represent the various states.
New South Wales has won the maximum number of titles with 45 to 2008.
National championship trophies to be established elsewhere included the
Ranji Trophy (India),
Plunket Shield (New Zealand),
Currie Cup (South Africa) and
Shell Shield (West Indies). Some of these competitions have been updated and renamed in recent years.
Domestic limited overs competitions began with England's
Gillette Cup
knockout in 1963. Countries usually stage seasonal limited overs
competitions in both knockout and league format. In recent years,
national Twenty20 competitions have been introduced, usually in knockout
form though some incorporate mini-leagues.
Other types of matches
There are numerous variations of the sport played throughout the world that include
indoor cricket,
French cricket,
beach cricket,
Kwik cricket
and all sorts of card games and board games that have been inspired by
cricket. In these variants, the rules are often changed to make the game
playable with limited resources or to render it more convenient and
enjoyable for the participants.
Indoor cricket is played in a netted, indoor arena, and is quite formal but many of the outdoor variants are very informal.
Families and teenagers play
backyard cricket
in suburban yards or driveways, and the cities of India and Pakistan
play host to countless games of "Gully Cricket" or "tapeball" in their
long narrow streets. Sometimes the rules are improvised: e.g. it may be
agreed that fielders can catch the ball with one hand after one bounce
and claim a wicket; or if only a few people are available then everyone
may field while the players take it in turns to bat and bowl. Tennis
balls and homemade bats are often used, and a variety of objects may
serve as wickets: for example, the batter's legs as in
French cricket, which did not in fact originate in France, and is usually played by small children.
In
Kwik cricket,
the bowler does not have to wait for the batsman to be ready before a
delivery, leading to a faster, more exhausting game designed to appeal
to children, which is often used PE lessons at English schools. Another
modification to increase the pace of the game is the "Tip and Run",
"Tipity" Run, "Tipsy Run" or "Tippy-Go" rule, in which the batter must
run when the ball touches the bat, even if it the contact is
unintentional or minor. This rule, seen only in impromptu games, speeds
the match up by removing the batsman's right to block the ball.
In Samoa a form of cricket called
Kilikiti is played in which
hockey stick-shaped
bats are used. In original English cricket, the hockey stick shape was
replaced by the modern straight bat in the 1760s after bowlers began to
pitch the ball instead of rolling or skimming it. In
Estonia, teams gather over the winter for the annual
Ice Cricket
tournament. The game juxtaposes the normal summer pursuit with harsh,
wintry conditions. Rules are otherwise similar to those for the
six-a-side game.
In addition, there is also
Tape ball and
Tennis ball cricket. Both variations use a tennis ball instead of a regular cricket ball to play. In
Tape ball
cricket, the ball is additionally covered with electric tape. The
variation was pioneered in Pakistan and is greatly attributed to
Pakistan's famous production of Fast bowlers as children are brought up
playing the game using a tape ball in which various skills are
developed. The increasing popularity of the tape ball in informal, local
cricket has transformed the way games are played in cricket-loving
nations such as Pakistan, Bangladesh and India.