CRICKET

                               CRICKET

•                Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on a roughly circular field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. 

•                Each team takes it in turn to bat, in which they attempt to accumulate as many runs as possible, while the other team fields, attempting to prevent the batting team scoring runs. Teams may bat once or twice each depending upon the format of the game. 

•                 Each turn is known as an innings. 

•                 The game progresses as one member of the fielding team known as the bowler delivers the ball to the batsman down the length of the pitch. 

•                 The batsman then attempts to strike the ball with his bat so that the ball either reaches the boundary or travels far enough away from a fielder to enable him to run to the other end of the pitch and thus accumulate runs. 

•                 Each batsman may continue batting until he is dismissed. 

•                 Once ten batsmen from the batting side have been dismissed, the team is said to be all out and the two teams change roles. A person who plays cricket is called a cricketer

                                                              PLAYING SURFACE

•                  Cricket is played on a grassy field. The Laws of Cricket do not specify the size or shape of the field, but it is often oval. In the centre of the field is a rectangular strip, known as the pitch.

Cricket Pitch Dimensions

•                     The pitch is a flat surface 10 feet (3.0 m) wide, with very short grass that tends to be worn away as the game progresses. At either end of the pitch, 22 yards (20 m) apart, are placed wooden targets, known as the wickets. These serve as a target for the bowling (also known as the fielding) side and are defended by the batting side, which seeks to accumulate runs.

CRICKET STUMP

•        A wicket consists of three stumps that are hammered into the ground, and topped with two bails.

Two Types of Cricket Ball

  

Two different types of cricket balls:

i) A used white ball. White balls are mainly utilised in limited overs cricket, especially in matches played at night, under floodlights (left).
ii) A used red ball, Red balls are utilised in Test cricket and first-class cricket and some other forms of cricket (right).
NB Both balls are the same size.

Umpire

•                       The game on the field is regulated by two umpires, one of whom stands behind the wicket at the bowler's end, the other in a position called "square leg", a position 15–20 metres to the side of the "on strike" batsman. The main role of the umpires is to adjudicate on whether a ball is correctly bowled, when a run is scored, and whether a batsman is out 
•                        Off the field and in televised matches, there is often a third umpire who can make decisions on certain incidents with the aid of video evidence. The third umpire is mandatory under the playing conditions for Test matches and limited overs internationals played between two ICC full members. These matches also have a match referee whose job is to ensure that play is within the Laws of cricket and the spirit of the game.

                                                    A typical Bowling action