Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field, at the centre of which is a 22-yard (20-metre; 66-foot) pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails (small sticks) balanced on three stumps. Two players from the batting team, the striker and nonstriker, stand in front of either wicket holding bats, while one player from the fielding team, the bowler, bowls the ball toward the striker's wicket from the opposite end of the pitch. The striker's goal is to hit the bowled ball with the bat and then switch places with the nonstriker, with the batting team scoring one run for each of these exchanges. Runs are also scored when the ball reaches the boundary of the field or when the ball is bowled illegally.
John Barton "Bart" King (October 19, 1873 – October 17, 1965) was an American cricketer, active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. King was part of the Philadelphia team that played from the end of the 19th century until the outbreak of World War I. This period of cricket in the United States was dominated by "gentlemen cricketers"—men of independent wealth who did not need to work. King, an amateur from a middle-class family, was able to devote time to cricket thanks to a job set up by his teammates.
A skilled batsman who proved his worth as a bowler, King set numerous records in the continent of North America during his career and led the first-class bowling averages in England in 1908. He successfully competed against the best cricketers from England and Australia. King was the dominant bowler on his team when it toured England in 1897, 1903, and 1908. He dismissed batsmen with his unique delivery, which he called the "angler", and helped develop the art of swing bowling in the sport. Sir Pelham Warner described Bart King as "one of the finest bowlers of all time", and Donald Bradman called him "America's greatest cricketing son." (Full article...)
Smith made his Test debut against Pakistan in July 2010 at Lord's. His first Test century came during the fifth match of the 2013 Ashes series when he scored 138 not out. His highest score of 239 came against the same team during the 2017–18 series at the WACA Ground, Perth. Smith has scored Test centuries at eighteen different cricket grounds, including thirteen at venues outside Australia. In terms of centuries, he has been most successful against England (12) and India(9). As of July 2023[update], he ranks equal-second in the list of most centuries by an Australian in Tests. He topped the ICC Test Rankings for the best batsman in the years 2015, 2016 and 2017; on 30 December 2017 he achieved a rating of 947, the second highest of all time after Don Bradman. As a result of his involvement in the 2018 Australian ball-tampering scandal, Smith was subsequently banned from all forms of cricket, except club level, for a year in March 2018. (Full article...)
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The England cricket team represented England, Scotland and Wales in Test cricket. England played Australia in the first ever Test match, which took place at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in March 1877. Although four touring parties of English players had visited Australia prior to 1877, the Australian team had not previously been considered strong enough to play on equal terms. The two matches between the English cricketers and the Australians were retrospectively granted Test status.
Between 1877 and 1914, when competitive cricket was interrupted by the First World War, England played 123 Test matches, resulting in 59 victories, 22 draws and 42 defeats. For much of this period, England and Australia were the only Test playing countries and played each other every year or two. In 1888–89, England toured South Africa and played two matches subsequently deemed to be Test matches. Subsequently, the sides played each other sporadically and from 1906 fixtures were played as frequently as the Ashes series. In 1912, the three sides competed in a Triangular Tournament, which was deemed a failure, partly due to a damp English summer and in part because of the perceived complexity of the tournament. (Full article...)
Chanderpaul made his Test debut in March 1994, selected as an all-rounder who could bowl leg breaks, against England. He reached his first century three years later, scoring an unbeaten 137 against India at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown. During the initial phase of his career, Chanderpaul was criticised for his inability to convert half-centuries into centuries, but he proved his critics wrong during the 2001–02 series against India when he scored three centuries in five matches, thus earning the man of the series accolade. During that tournament, he batted for 1,513 minutes between dismissals, a record in Test cricket. Despite being well known for his patient batting, Chanderpaul scored a 69-ball century against Australia in 2003, which at the time was the third fastest century in terms of balls faced. His highest score in Test cricket is 203 not out, a total he achieved twice, first against South Africa in 2005, and then against Bangladesh in 2012. He has scored centuries against every Test playing nation with the exception of Sri Lanka, and has scored seven centuries against India, more than any other team. (Full article...)
Bell made his Test debut in 2004 in the fourth Test against the West Indies at The Oval, scoring 70 in a ten-wicket England victory. His first century came a year later against Bangladesh at the Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street. His highest Test score is 235 against India at The Oval. Bell has scored Test centuries at fifteen cricket grounds, including seven at venues outside England. He has scored his twenty-two Test centuries against eight different opponents; he is most successful against Australia, Pakistan and India, with four against each. England have never lost a test match in which Bell has scored a century. His dismissal for 199 against South Africa in July 2008 made him just the seventh batsman to lose his wicket on that score in Test cricket. As of November 2015, Bell is joint twenty-eighth among all-time Test century makers,[A] and joint third in the equivalent list for England. (Full article...)
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Sachin Tendulkar played for India, widely acknowledged as one of the greatest batsmen of all time, he is the most prolific run-scorer in international cricket. Tendulkar has scored the highest number of centuries (100 or more runs) in Test matches and One Day International (ODI) matches organised by the International Cricket Council. His total of 51 centuries in Test matches is a world record for highest number of centuries by a batsman and his 49 centuries in ODI matches are the second highest number of centuries after Virat Kohli. He became the first and only cricketer to score 100 international centuries when he made 114 against Bangladesh in March 2012.
After making his Test debut in 1989, Tendulkar achieved his first century against England at Old Trafford, Manchester in 1990; he made 119 not out. In Test matches, Tendulkar has scored centuries against all the Test cricket playing nations, and is the second batsman to score 150 against each of them. He has scored a century in at least one cricket ground of all Test cricket playing nations, except Zimbabwe. In October 2010, Tendulkar went past Brian Lara's record of 19 scores of 150 or more by hitting his 20th against Australia in Bangalore. He made his highest score in 2004, when he made 248 not out against Bangladesh at the Bangabandhu National Stadium, Dhaka. Tendulkar has scored six double centuries and remained unbeaten on 15 occasions. His centuries have come in 30 different cricket grounds, with 27 of them being scored in venues outside India. Tendulkar has been dismissed nine times between scores of 90 and 99. (Full article...)
A five-wicket haul (also known as a "five-for" or "fifer") refers to a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded as a notable achievement. (Full article...)
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Punjab Kings, formerly called Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), is a franchise cricket team based in Mohali, Punjab in India, and is one of the teams participating in the Indian Premier League (IPL). KXIP was founded in 2008. The franchise is owned by actress Preity Zinta, Ness Wadia of Bombay Dyeing, Karan Paul of the Apeejay Surendera Group and Mohit Burman of Dabur. The group paid US$76 million to acquire the franchise. It is owned by a consortium, along with the Rajasthan Royals. Along with the Rajasthan Royals, KXIP's franchise agreement was terminated by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in October 2010, because the teams had been signed by people who were not members of the consortium which owned the team. A petition of arbitration (appeal) was filed to the Bombay High Court in November 2010, challenging the decision, which was accepted a month later.
KXIP played their first Twenty20 match in 2008 during the first season of the IPL, where they reached the semi-final. They lost the 2008 semi-final to Chennai Super Kings on 31 May 2008, after playing fourteen matches in the league, winning ten matches and losing four. With ten international cricketers in 2009, they finished fifth in the second season of the IPL, winning and losing seven matches. KXIP finished in eighth place in the third IPL season, losing eleven of their fourteen matches. KXIP improved in the fourth season of the IPL, finishing in fifth place with seven losses and victories. In the IPL's fifth season in 2012, the team played sixteen matches, winning eight and losing nine to finish in sixth position. In the 2013 season, they won eight matches out of sixteen, and lost the other eight. In the 2014 season, they won 11 of 14 matches. In the 2015 season, KXIP won three of fourteen matches and finished in last position. In the IPL's ninth season, KXIP won four of fourteen matches and finished in last position. In the 2017 season, KXIP won seven of fourteen matches to finish in fifth position. (Full article...)
Since the team was formed, 62 women have represented South Africa in Twenty20 International cricket. This list includes all players who have played at least one Twenty20 International match and is initially arranged in the order of debut appearance. Where more than one player won their first cap in the same match, those players are initially listed alphabetically by last name at the time of debut. (Full article...)
When a player is found by the umpire to have delivered the ball contrary to those rules, the umpire will call a no-ball and he is said to have been called for throwing. Where public opinion is that a player's bowling action appears to be that he routinely throws, he is said to have a 'suspect' or an 'illegal' action, or more derogatorily, is said to be a 'chucker'. The issue is often highly emotive with accusers considering that deliveries with an illegal action are akin to cheating. (Full article...)
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In cricket, a batsman reaches a triple century if they score 300 or more runs in a single innings. The Ranji Trophy is the premier first-class cricket championship played in India. Conducted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, it was founded in 1934 as "The Cricket Championship of India". As of January 2020[update], a triple century has been scored on 46 occasions by 41 different batsmen in the Ranji Trophy.
Anderson took a five-wicket haul on his Test debut in 2003 against Zimbabwe at Lord's Cricket Ground. He took 5 wickets for 73 runs in the match which England won by an innings and 92 runs. In July 2010, he took five-wicket hauls in both innings of a Test match against Pakistan at the Trent Bridge. In total, he took 11 wickets for 71 runs, which remains his best bowling figures in a Test match as of August 2020[update]. He took another pair of five-wicket hauls at the same venue, against Australia in the first Test of the 2013 Ashes series. Anderson's career-best figures for an innings are 7 wickets for 42 runs against West Indies at Lord's Cricket Ground, in September 2017. As of 2022[update], he has taken 32 Test five-wicket hauls at 11 cricket grounds, and has been most successful against India with six five-wicket hauls against them. (Full article...)
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Kapil Dev is a former Test and One Day International (ODI) cricketer who represented India between 1978 and 1994. He took 24 five-wicket hauls during his international career. In cricket, a five-wicket haul—also known as a five-for or fifer—refers to a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded as a notable achievement, and as of October 2024[update], only 54 bowlers have taken 15 or more five-wicket hauls at international level in their cricketing careers. A right-arm fast bowler, Kapil Dev took 434 wickets in Test cricket and 253 in ODIs. With 23 five-wicket hauls in Tests, he has the third highest number of international five-wicket hauls among Indian cricketers as of 2012, after Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh. Kapil Dev was named by the Wisden as one of their Cricketers of the Year in 1983 and Indian Cricketer of the Century in 2002. Eight years later, the International Cricket Council (ICC) inducted him into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. As of 2012, Kapil Dev also holds the record for being the only player to have taken more than 400 wickets and scored over 5,000 runs in Tests.
Kapil Dev made his Test and ODI debuts against Pakistan, both in 1978. His first five-wicket haul came a year later against England during the first Test of India's tour. His career-best bowling figures in an innings of nine for 83 was achieved in 1983 against the West Indies in Ahmedabad. In Tests, Kapil Dev was most successful against Pakistan and Australia, with seven five-wicket hauls against each of them. He took his only five-wicket haul in ODIs against Australia during the 1983 Cricket World Cup. (Full article...)
Jayawardene's debut Test match was against India in August 1997, in which the Sri Lankan team made a world record 952 runs for 6 wickets. He scored his maiden Test century in his fourth match, played in June 1998 against New Zealand. The 150 he scored against Bangladesh in September 2001 is the fastest Test century made by a Sri Lankan player. However, this innings came to an unusual end when he retired out just after reaching 150 runs. Jayawardene's best innings was made against South Africa in July 2006 when he scored 374 runs, surpassing Sanath Jayasuriya's record of 340 for the highest individual score by a Sri Lankan batsman. It is also the fourth-highest score in Test cricket, as well as part of the world's highest Test partnership—624 runs—which he established with teammate Kumar Sangakkara. Jayawardene has scored a total of 34 centuries during his career, the second highest number by a Sri Lankan player, after Kumar Sangakkara. He has scored more than 200 runs on seven of these occasions. This is the second-highest number of double centuries by a Sri Lankan player, behind Kumar Sangakkara. He is also one of only three players who have scored a triple century for Sri Lanka; the other two being Jayasuriya and Sangakkara. (Full article...)
Boon made his Test and ODI debuts against the West Indies in 1984. He made his first Test century in December 1985, when he scored 123 against India at the Adelaide Oval. He achieved his highest Test score in 1989, when he made 200—his solitary double-century—against New Zealand at the WACA Ground, Perth. Boon scored three centuries in three consecutive Tests, against India during the 1991–92 home series; he achieved the feat once more in the 1993 Ashes series. His accomplishments with the bat during the 1993 English cricket season led to Wisden naming him as one of their Cricketers of the Year in 1994 and describing him as "the most assured batsman in the Australian team". As of 2017[update], Boon is ninth (with Neil Harvey) in the list of leading Test century-makers for Australia. He scored centuries against six different opponents, including six outside Australia. He was most successful against England, scoring seven Test centuries; six of his Test centuries came against India. (Full article...)
Anniversaries...
On this day in cricket
Australia
1847 - Harry Boyle, who played in 12 of the first 17 Test matches, is born at Sydney
The following are images from various cricket-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1The boundary can be marked in several ways, such as with a rope. (from Laws of Cricket)
Image 2A 1793 American depiction of "wicket" being played in front of Dartmouth College. Wicket likely came to North America in the late 17th century. (from History of cricket)
Image 3 First Grand Match of Cricket Played by Members of the Royal Amateur Society on Hampton Court Green, August 3rd, 1836 (from History of cricket)
Image 5In men's cricket the ball must weigh between 5.5 and 5.75 ounces (155.9 and 163 g) and measure between 8.81 and 9 in (22.4 and 22.9 cm) in circumference. (from Laws of Cricket)
Image 6Broadhalfpenny Down, the location of the first First Class match in 1772 is still played on today (from History of cricket)
Image 8A Game of Cricket at The Royal Academy Club in Marylebone Fields, now Regent's Park, depiction by unknown artist, c. 1790–1799 (from History of cricket)
Image 10A wicket consists of three stumps, upright wooden poles that are hammered into the ground, topped with two wooden crosspieces, known as the bails. (from Laws of Cricket)
Image 11New articles of the game of cricket, 25 February 1774 (from Laws of Cricket)
Image 12Plaquita, a Dominican street version of cricket. The Dominican Republic was first introduced to cricket through mid-18th century British contact, but switched to baseball after the 1916 American occupation. (from History of cricket)
Image 13Photograph of Miss Lily Poulett-Harris, founding mother of women's cricket in Australia. (from History of women's cricket)
Image 15A wicket can be put down by throwing the ball at it and thereby dislodging the bails. (from Laws of Cricket)
Image 16Afghan soldiers playing cricket. Afghan refugees in Pakistan brought the sport back to Afghanistan, and it is now one of the most popular sports in the country. (from History of cricket)
... that the relatively low standards of player selection for Somerset County Cricket Club in 1883 have been described as being "determined with a nod and a wink over drinks"?
The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the international governing body of cricket, and produces team rankings for the various forms of cricket played internationally.
Test cricket is the longest form of cricket, played up to a maximum of five days with two innings per side.
Matches is the number of matches played in the 12–24 months since the May before last, plus half the number in the 24 months before that. See points calculations for more details.