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Basics Of the Game

What is Cricket?

Cricket is a team sport played between 2 teams playing 11 players each. It is played with a bat made of willow and a ball which weighs about 5.7 ounces having a spherical diameter of 7.8cms. It is usually played on a circular or an oval-shaped field of about 90 yards. Right on the centre of those 90 yards there is a rectangular area of 22 yards in length with a width of about 3 metres. The Cricket field other than the pitch is covered with grass while there is very little or no grass on the pitch. At each end of the 22 yards there is a pair of 3 pole like timbers standing parallel to each other which are known as "Stumps" or "Wickets".

The person with the bat in his hand is known as the batsman/batter while the one with the ball in his hand is known as the bowler. A batsman generally stands on the pitch in-front of the wickets and is partnered by another batsman who stands at the other end. A bowler is expected to deliver ball from his end to the batsman at the other end in such a way that it doesn't bounce for more than once and the batsman is supposed to hit that delivery with his bat. The batsman facing the delivery is known as the striker or the striking batsman and the one who stands at the other end is known as non-striker or the non-striking batsman. The act of delivering the ball to the batsman is known as bowling(verb form- to bowl) while the act of facing the delivery from the batsman is known as batting(verb form- to bat). The Cricket field is surrounded by a border known as the boundary line. The mode of scoring in Cricket is determined by runs. 

The decision maker on the Cricket field is known as the "Umpire" while the one who is expected to maintain discipline and the code of conduct among the players in a match is known as the "Match Referee". There are often decisions that are to be taken which are beyond the control of an Umpire, such decisions are taken by a Match Referee. The Umpire generally stands few feets behind the stumps at the non-striker's end throughout the Cricket match.

A Cricket match generally begins with a coin toss. In a Cricket match, there are 2 teams which are lead by their respective Captains. One team is the home team and the other team is the away team. The away Captain generally tosses the coin while the home Captain calls either "Heads" or "Tails". In case the home Captain calls "Heads" and the coin ends up showing "Heads" the home Captain wins the toss and if it comes as "Tails" the away Captain wins the toss. The Captain winning the toss decides whether his team wants to bat first or bowl first. A coin toss generally takes place in-front of a Match Referee.

How does a Cricket field look like?

Below is an example of how a Cricket field looks like:


As you can see in the above diagram, a Cricket field isn't exactly a circle and the size of the boundary varies from all sides with the shortest boundary being 65m and longest being 82m. The size of the boundary in the above diagram is measured from the striking batsman's point of view. If we take an average of all the Cricket grounds in the world a boundary is generally 65-70m away from the striking batsman. 

Now let us look at how a Cricket pitch looks like:

Source- crichereos_app Instagram page

The pitch is one of the most important parts of the playing area of a Cricket field. In the above diagram, you can see something called "Batting crease". Batting crease is where a batsman stands field facing a delivery. The non-striker is also expected to stay inside the batting crease at the other end also known as the non-striker's end. 

The other thing that you see is the "Popping crease". The bowler is generally expected to bowl the ball from the popping crease. That means, he cannot go beyond the popping crease to deliver the ball. If the bowler's foot falls on or beyond the popping crease, it results in an illegal delivery called, "No ball". 

The "Bowling crease" that you see is the area from where the bowlers starts to release the ball from his hand. At both sides of the "Wickets" also known as "Stumps" you can see vertical lines known as the "Return crease". If the ball at the batsman's end goes beyond the "Return crease" it results in another form of an illegal delivery known as "Wide ball".

The batsman hits the ball and then runs to the non-striking end resulting in a run. The next ball is then faced by the batsman who just ran from the non-striking end to the striker's end. The batsman can run as many runs he wants until the ball becomes dead.

There are players in opposition other than the bowlers. Their job is to generally stop the ball from going across the ground and to return it back to the bowler. There is a designated special fielder on the field known as the wicket-keeper. The wicket-keeper generally stands behind the wickets and collects the ball in case a batsman misses to hit the ball or he decides to not hit the ball.

What are the protective gears that are used in Cricket?

The below listed are the basic protective gears used in Cricket:

  1. Helmet
  2. Arm-guards
  3. Pads
  4. Thigh Pads
  5. Gloves
  6. Wicket-Keeping gloves (only for Wicket-Keepers)

For more information see the page- Protective Gears used in Cricket


What are modes of scoring for a batsman?

  1. One run- If a batter plays the ball in the gap between the fielders and runs to the non-striker's end he adds one run to his tally
  2. Two runs- This is similar to one run but the difference here is, the batter who plays the ball needs to run to the non-striker's end and after crossing the crease runs back to his end. This will add 2 runs to his tally.
  3. Three runs- This is similar to the previous 2 modes of scoring. To score 3 runs, the batter needs to play the ball and run to the non-striker's end cross the crease and run back to his end crossing the crease and comeback to the non-strikers end. This will help him add 3 runs
  4. Four runs- When the batter plays/hits the ball and the ball runs across the outfield and between the fielders outside the boundary it is termed as a 'Four'. The batter can also hit the ball in the air and if it falls anywhere inside the boundary, bounces and goes beyond then also it results in 4 runs!
  5. Six runs- When the batter plays/hits the ball in the air and the ball falls beyond the boundary line it is termed as a 'Six'. Scoring 'Six runs' is a high risk-scoring and can result in a batter getting dismissed (we will discuss the modes of dismissals afterwards). Sometimes, it is important for a batter to bat for longer periods and in such case if he gets out trying to score a six it results in low-quality batting.
  6. Penalty runs- If the batter plays a shot and the ball's path gets obstructed due to any apparel or protective gear of the fielding side it results in 5 penalty runs being awarded to the batting side.
  7. Extras: These are the runs that do not come off the batter's bat and neither adds to the tally of the batsman but adds to the team's total. The following are the extras in Cricket:
  • Byes- A situation when the batsman decides not to play a shot on a delivery that is bowled and yet the ball rolls across the ground resulting the batsman in taking runs, it gets counted as a bye or byes.
  • Leg-Bye- When the ball hits the batter anywhere on the body or any apparel/protective gear worn by him/her including the helmet but apart from the batting gloves and runs across the ground and the batter takes a run, it gets counted as a leg-bye.
  • Wide- If a bowler delivers a ball that is outside the reach of a batter or above the head of a batter it is known as a wide delivery. Wide ball results in one run being added to the team's total. Any runs taken off a wide ball will be given as wides and not to be counted as byes/leg-byes. In limited overs Cricket if any delivery goes down the leg side of a batter it gets called as a wide.
  • No ball- There are few types of No ball in Cricket
    a) Basic- If the bowler's foot falls on or ahead of the crease at his end while bowling it results in no-ball.
    b) Head height no ball- If a bowler delivers a ball bouncing over the shoulder/head of the batter for more than twice in an over it results in a head-height no ball. In limited overs Cricket even if it happens more than once in an over it gets termed as a no-ball.
    c) Waist high no ball- If the ball without bouncing on the pitch is delivered over the waist of a batsman is called a waist high no ball. Such deliveries are more popularly known as a 'beamer'. If a bowler bowls more than one 'beamer' in the innings then it is termed as dangerous bowling and he/she is not allowed to bowl in the rest of the innings after bowling that delivery.

    (Note: In limited overs Cricket; if any delivery ends up being a no ball the next delivery becomes a free hit. A batsman cannot be dismissed off a free-hit unless he gets run-out)

How can a batter be dismissed in Cricket?

Following are modes of dismissals in Cricket:

1. Bowled
2. Leg before wicket (lbw)
3. Caught
4. Caught & bowled
5. Run-out
6. Stumped out
7. Hit-wicket
8. Timed out

Follow this link to know more in detail: Modes of Dismissal in Cricket


What are the types of pitches used in Cricket?


1. Normal Pitch-

A pitch that has covering of a dry layer of grass on it and have some moisture beneath the dry layer of grass and has a uniform layer throughout the surface can be referred to as a Normal Pitch. Such pitch will slowly dry out in the heat of the sun making it dustier and gradually cracks will start appearing on the pitch. Such pitches supports all kinds of bowlers and batters alike. Usually a normal pitch is used in a Test match in the Indian sub-continent or in a long tournament of limited overs Cricket with lot of matches being played on that surface due to it's slow deterioration.

2. Flat/Dead Pitch-

A soft but a uniformly layered pitch without any cracks can be termed as a flat/dead pitch. The name dead pitch suggests that it has absolutely nothing in it to support the bowlers and there are plenty of runs being scored. We find a lot of these in modern day Cricket especially in limited overs and T20 Cricket.

3. Hard Pitch-

These pitches are like hard concrete layers of soil. They provide pace and bounce to the quicker bowlers due to it's hardness. Batters who can usually come on top of the bounce and play their shots would enjoy batting on such surfaces while fast bowlers who can hit the right areas will have an equal advantage.

4. Dry Pitch-

A dry pitch is usually a pitch that is wearing down because of excess heat and have developed cracks at some areas of the pitch. Usually spinners and bowlers who hit the deck harder gets help from such pitches. On such pitches the batter needs to play with a little more patience and stay on the pitch for as long as possible which would make it easier for them to score runs once they are comfortable with the pace and bounce of the surface. Skills of playing slow bowlers or spinners become important playing on such surfaces.

5. Dusty Pitch-

A soft surface with open cracks and foot holes at certain areas of the pitch. These are deteriorated dry pitches where the ball just explodes off the surface after it pitches or stays awkwardly low on certain occasions. These pitches are massively in favor of spinners while it hardly offers anything to the pace bowlers and as incredibly tough for the batters to score runs off. Many times you could see a pop of dust appearing where the ball bounces off the surface. Usually such surfaces are found late in a Test match in the Indian sub-continent.

6. Green Pitch-

A green pitch usually have a lot of grass on offer. These pitches are almost indistinguishable from the ground outfield. These surfaces require a lot of water due to which it gets moisture and hardness. Fast bowlers who look to get some movement off the surface gets rewarded a lot on these surfaces. Batters struggle for their runs while spinners find it hard to grip the ball on surfaces like these.

7. Wet Pitch-

Due to rain/dew sometimes the water gets accumulated beneath the surface leaving behind a little bit of moisture. This moisture then helps the fast bowlers to get movement off the surface. A major drawback of playing on these pitches is lack of bounce and soggy nature of the surface. Spinners find it difficult to grip the ball and get some turn of the surface since the ball becomes wet while the surface is not dry enough to leave behind any cracks. Not being able to bowl with accuracy is another problem.


What are the different bowling types in Cricket?


These are the 2 major types of bowlers in Cricket:

1. Fast Bowler-

A fast bowler, also known as a pace bowler or a pacer is a bowler who usually runs in from about 15-18 yards from the pitch to gather momentum before he/she bowls at the batter. The idea is to bowl as quick as possible to make the batter play his shot hurriedly and in the process induce a mistake. 

Fast bowling is further divided into: 
a. Fast 
b. Fast Medium 
c. Medium Fast 
d. Medium 

There are usually 2 approaches to fast bowling which is seam bowling and swing bowling. 


2. Spin Bowler-

A spin bowler, also known as a spinner usually runs in with a short run and turns his wrists or fingers across the ball to create some deviation off the pitch and get some turn before the ball could reach the batter.

Following are the types in Spin bowling: 
a. Finger Spin/Off Spin
b. Wrist Spin/Leg Spin
c. Mystery Spin

For more detailed explanation visit the link below-

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