Cricket is a sport that involves bat and ball. It is a contest between two teams (generally housing eleven players). The game is played on a grass field, roughly oval in shape and is mostly outdoor sport. In the center of the field, there will be a pitch, a flat strip of ground having length of 22 yards. There are three stumps with bells on both the ends of the pitch. A batsman has bat in his hand and a bowler bowls a ball in a particular fashion from one end and on opposite end of the pitch, a batsman plays or hits a ball with the bat. `
Cricket has been an established team sport for about centuries. This game is invented or originated in its modern form of England. Cricket is second most popular sport in the world. There are many countries that play cricket. In countries like India, Pakistan, Australia, England, South Africa etc. cricket is more popular than any other game.
There are many form and grades of cricket those played professionally at an international level such as test cricket, one-day international and most recently, Twenty-twenty cricket.
Test cricket was started in the year 1877 and was most favorite sport on those days. It used to be timeless on its initial period but then it became the play for 3,4,5 or 6 days. Nowadays, maximum of five days are allowed in which, both the teams should bat maximum two times. On the other hand, one-day international is the most favorite and exciting game in which, there are 50 over (each over has six balls to bowl) in which, the batting team try to make maximum runs and bowling team to restrict it. First innings get completed by either 50 over or if all batsman get out, whichever earlier.
Recently, to save time and to make cricket more exciting, twenty-twenty match has been started. This allows bowling only 20 over in each session/innings. The match generally starts in the evening. Evening session could be a part of one-day international too, as there are two types of ODIs, day match and day-night match. In day match, the cricket can be played with white or red leather ball where as in night, it is generally white.
There is an International Cricket Council – ICC that recognizes and regulates the cricket teams and the game itself. There are board members and they decide all the rules and regulations for the game. All the cricket teams are given with certain specially designed colored clothes for the recognizing of the team and its player. The apparel generally contains name of the player on the back side and country’s name on the front. Many test matches are still played in ‘total white uniform’, which was mandatory for all games of cricket once upon a time.
Cricket is so popular that in some countries like India, street cricket and society cricket is the game played not only by children or adolescents but here, age is no bar. It can be played with tennis ball or rubber ball also. It has been a favorite for all the people across the nations. Even people going for picnics or outings, will be taking ball, bat and stumps to make fun all the time.
