How to Play

Cricket is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players each. It is a bat-and-ball game played on a roughly elliptical grass field, in the centre of which is a hard, flat strip of ground some 22 yards long, called the pitch.

At each end of the pitch stand a set of wooden poles called a wicket (traditionally made from the wood of the ash tree). A player from one team (the bowler) propels a hard, fist-sized ball from one wicket towards the other. A player from the opposing team (the batsman) attempts to defend the ball from hitting the wicket with a wooden cricket bat, traditionally made of willow. Another batsman (the non-striker) stands in an inactive role near the bowler's wicket.

If the batsman hits the ball with his bat, he may run to the other wicket, exchanging places with the non-striker. This scores a run. The batting team attempts to score as many runs as it can, while members of the bowling team gather the ball and return it to either wicket. If the ball strikes a wicket while the nearest batsman is still running, the batsman is out. Batsmen can also be out by other means, such as failing to defend the bowled ball from hitting the wicket, or hitting a catch to a fielder.

Once out, a batsman is replaced by the next batsman in the team. As there must always be two batsmen on the field, if and when the tenth batsman is out, the team's turn to bat or innings (always with a terminal "s" in cricket usage) is over, and the other team may bat while the first team takes the field. Depending on the specific rules of the match, one or two innings may be played, possibly with a fixed number of legally-bowled balls defining the end of an innings rather than ten batsmen having been dismissed. At the end of the match, the winner is the team that has scored the most runs. However, the game may run out of time before it is finished, in which case it is a draw, even if one team is overwhelmingly winning at that point. This is sometimes surprising to those not familiar with the game, but it does add interest to one-sided games by giving the inferior team the incentive to try and achieve a draw even if they cannot win.

Cricket has been an established team sport for several centuries. It originated in its modern form in England, and is popular mainly in the countries of the Commonwealth. In some countries in South Asia, including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, cricket is by far the most popular sport. Cricket is also a major sport in England and Wales, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Zimbabwe and the English-speaking countries of the Caribbean, which are known in cricketing parlance as the West Indies. It is also a prominent minor sport in countries as diverse as the Netherlands, Israel, Nepal, and Argentina (see also: International Cricket Council).

The length of the game — a match can last six or more hours a day for up to five days in one form of the game — the numerous intervals for lunch and tea, and the rich terminology are notable aspects which can often confuse those not familiar with the sport. For its fans, the sport and the intense rivalries between top cricketing nations provide passionate entertainment and outstanding sporting achievements. It has even occasionally given rise to diplomatic outrage, the most infamous being the Bodyline series played between England and Australia. (Source:  Wikipedia.com)

Rules

Cricket is played with two teams of eleven, each with two umpires (referees) on an oval field. The size of the field varies, but generally has a diameter of around 200 metres. A cricket bat is oblong shaped with a skinny handle. The bat in length is around 90 centimetres, or up to your waistline. A cricket ball is made of cork and coated with leather, and is then stitched up. A ball weighs around 10 ounces.

In the middle of the field is what is known as a pitch. A pitch is a hard, flat strip of dry ground around 18 metres long. Two batsmen are at the pitch at a time, both at different ends, with one facing the delivery of the ball from the bowler. The bowler runs up to the pitch where he bowls the ball over arm but releases the ball before he reaches the crease, which is a white line painted on the pitch. If the bowler oversteps the line, there is a one run penalty.

Teams score by getting runs. A run is completed when a batsman hits the ball and then runs to the other end of the cricket pitch, getting past the crease. The non striking batsman has to run to the opposite end as well. The batsman can run as many times as they like, but the batsmen can get out if their stumps are hit with the ball by a fielder before the batsman reaches the crease. The stumps are three sticks of equal size measuring around 90 centimetres tall with 5 centimetres separating them. Bails (small pieces of wood) are balanced on top of the stumps.

Other ways runs can be scored are by hitting boundaries. Boundaries are scored when the ball is hit and touches or goes past the outer edge of the field. Four runs are scored when the batsmen hits the ball and the ball hits the ground before reaching the outer edge of the boundary, and six runs are scored when the ball is hit and goes over the boundary without touching the ground. Runs can also be scored in the following ways: No balls, when the bowler oversteps the crease, bowls in a dangerous manner or incorrectly, or if the ball rises above the batsman's head. A no ball is worth one run. A wide is scored when the ball goes outside the line of the pitch before coming in line with the batsman. This is also worth one run. A leg bye is scored when the ball hits the batsman but doesn't contact his bat and then proceeds to run. A bye is scored when the batsman runs without the ball coming into contact with the batsman or his bat, and then runs.

The fielding team can get the batsman out in several ways, by 1) catching him out. This is done when the batsman hits the ball with his bat and a fielder catches the ball on the full. By 2) bowling him out. This happens when the bowler bowls the ball and the ball strikes the batsman's stumps or bails. By 3) leg before wicket, or LBW. This happens when the bowler bowls it and the stumps being hit by the ball are prevented when the batsman's leg gets in the way. By 4) stumped, when the batsman comes forward to hit the hit but steps out of his crease, misses the ball and the fielder behind the stumps collects the ball hits the stumps before the batsman gets back behind his crease. By 5) run out, when the batsman attempts to score a run but has his stumps hit by the ball before he reaches the other crease. By 6) Hit wicket, when the batsman hits his own stumps while trying to hit the ball. By 7) retired, when the batsman voluntarily decides to finish his innings, and 8) timed out, when the next batsman doesn't appear on the pitch within two minutes of the last batsman getting out.

Each team has one inning of 50 overs. An over is a series of 6 bowls by a bowler. Each bowler can only bowl 10 overs maximum, and can only bowl one over at a time. The team that scores the most runs in their innings is the team that wins. If 10 of a team's batsman are out, the innings ends there regardless of how many balls are left to be bowled. A good score is 250 plus, and a disappointing score is around 150 or less, although it depends on the conditions of the area being played in. Sub tropical climates such as India or the Caribbean generally result in high scoring matches, exceeding 300 runs at times as the pitch is hard which results in more bounce. In a cooler climate however, such as England, the pitches generally are softer, which means the ball comes to the batsman at a slower pace which means there is less momentum when the ball is hit. This results generally in low scoring games.

There are different types of bowlers, fast, medium and spin. Fast bowlers bowl at full speed, sometimes at speeds of 160 kilometres per hour. Medium pace bowlers bowl at speeds of around 100 kilometres per hour but try to bowl in a style that will restrict the batsmen from scoring. A spin bowler bowls a lot slower, at around 75 kilometres per hour, but spins the ball so that it moves a lot in order to deceive the batsmen.