A Basic Guide to Cricket

I remember watching cricket on TV as a child, and I loved listening to the cricket theme music that was played at the beginning of every match. It was then that I became interested in cricket, but it took me a long time to understand how difficult it is.

To help other new audiences, I used my knowledge of cricket to give a general idea of ​​the game and how it is played:


Essential Guide to Cricket

Cricket is a bat and ball game played by two teams of eleven players. There are several game formats, but the basic principles are the same across all formats. Cricket matches can last several days, or they can be played in the afternoon. For example, Test Match will be scheduled for five days, while Twenty20 will be finished in a few hours.


The traditional game of cricket is played over two innings. Each team has the ability to hit twice and hit twice - this does not always mean that this will happen, as the team that hits the second can theoretically outlast the other team twice and get enough runs to win the match without batting again.

A cricket bat is a flat blade made of wood (usually willow) about 4.25 inches wide and 38 inches long with a handle inserted into the top.

The cricket ball is a sturdy construction of cork and strings, woven in thick leather with one straight center pattern. The size and hardness are similar to baseball.


The game is played on a field, usually oval in shape, with a diameter of 90 to 150 meters, with a field in the center. The field is a rectangular strip of densely packed soil with densely trimmed grass 20 meters long. At each end of the field, there are three vertical wooden "stumps" (round posts with a diameter of 1 ") along the height of the thigh with two small wooden crosses, known as" guarantors ", which are located at the top between the stumps. This structure is known as a wicket.

The batsman's job is to defend the wicket and score runs, and the bowler's job is to fire the batsman in several ways, the most obvious of which is hitting the wicket with the ball shifting the bails.

Before a match starts, a coin is tossed to decide the order of play. The team that wins the toss decides whether to shoot first or enter the field first.

The Poles team will have all eleven players on the field, while the Batting team has two players. The rest of the batting team will remain out of the field awaiting their turn to bat.

The outfield side will strategically locate players around the field to prevent the opposing side from running. One of the attackers is the Wicket Keeper, and he stands behind the wicket to pick up the ball if he is near the batsman. The goalkeeper will wear webbed and soft gloves, as well as foot pads and a safety helmet.

The outfield side will usually only have one wicket keeper, but they can have multiple bowlers, each of whom can turn the bowl.

Bowler will run in and deliver the ball (with an upward motion of the arm) down the field at a range of 50 to 90 mph. A bowler hat aims to hit stumps or coax a batsman to hit the field to get caught. If the ball is hit by a wicket or the ball is caught by a field player (without first touching the ground), then the batsman has “left”, meaning he has been fired and will be replaced by the next batsman on the team.

Each bowler will deliver a 6-ball sequence known as the end before being rested, while the other bowler kicks in the other ball from the other end of the field.

The batsman standing in front of the bowler "is on strike" and the other batsman at the opposite end of the field is "not striker".

The batsmen score wins by hitting the ball after it has been delivered by the bowler and by running between the wickets as many times as they can before the side of the field can collect the ball and bring it back to center.

If, while the batsmen are running between the wickets, the outfield side manages to hit the wicket with the ball before the batsman reaches the "crease" (the line drawn on the field directly in front of the wicket), the batsman "exited" (fired) ...

The batsman can also accumulate "runs" by hitting the ball towards the "border" of the area. The border is usually indicated by a solid line or rope that runs in a circle. If the ball reaches the boundary by touching the ground, the batsman makes four runs without even running between the wickets. If the ball hits the border without touching the ground, the batsman will score six runs, again without the need for a physical run.

The bowling team aims to fire ten batsmen by missing as few runs as possible. The eleventh batsman cannot fly alone, so the service ends with the loss of the tenth batsman.

The batting team strives to hit as many runs as possible before firing all ten batsmen.