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Cricket is a bat and ball sport played between two teams, usually of eleven players
each. A cricket match is played on a grass field (which is usually roughly oval),
in the centre of which is a flat strip of ground 22 yards (20.12 m) long, called
a pitch. At each end of the pitch is a set of three parallel wooden stakes (known
as stumps) driven into the ground, with two small crosspieces (known as bails) laid
on top of them. This wooden structure is called a wicket. A player from the fielding
team (the bowler) bowls a hard, fist-sized cork-centred leather ball from one wicket
towards the other. The ball usually bounces once before reaching a player from the
opposing team (the batsman), who defends the wicket from the ball with a wooden
cricket bat. The batsman, if he or she does not get out, may then run between the
wickets, exchanging ends with the other batsman (the "non-striker"), who has been
standing in an inactive role near the bowler's wicket, to score runs. The other
members of the bowler's team stand in various positions around the field as fielders.
The match is won by the team that scores more runs.
Cricket has been an established team sport for hundreds of years. It originated
in its modern form in England and is popular mainly in the present and former members
of the Commonwealth. In the countries of South Asia, including India, Pakistan,
Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, cricket is the most popular sport. It is also a major
sport in places such as England and Wales, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa,
Zimbabwe, Bermuda, and the English-speaking countries of the Caribbean, which are
collectively known in cricketing parlance as the West Indies. There are also well
established amateur club competitions in countries as diverse as the Netherlands,
Kenya, Nepal and Argentina, among others; there are over one hundred cricket-playing
nations recognised by the International Cricket Council.
Fielding Positions
Since there are only 11 players on a team, one of whom is the bowler and another
the wicket-keeper, at most nine other fielding positions can be used at any given
time. Which positions are filled by players and which remain vacant is a tactical
decision made by the captain of the fielding team. The captain may move players
between fielding positions at any time except when a bowler is in the act of bowling
to a batsman.
There are a number of basic fielding positions , some of which are employed very
commonly and others that are used less often. However, fielding positions are not
fixed, and fielders can be placed in positions that differ from the basic positions.
Most of the positions are named roughly according to a system of polar coordinates
- one word (leg, cover, mid-wicket) specifies the angle from the batsman, and is
optionally preceded by an adjective describing the distance from the batsman (silly,
short, deep or long). Words such as "backward", "forward", or "square" can further
indicate the angle. View fielding positions
The toss
The two opposing captains toss a coin before the match, and the captain winning
the toss chooses either to bat or bowl first. This decision will be based on whether
the team's bowlers are likely to gain immediate advantage from the pitch and weather
conditions (these can vary significantly), or whether it is more likely that the
pitch will deteriorate and make batting more difficult later in the game.
Overs
Each innings is divided into overs, each consisting of six consecutive legal (see
"Extras" for details) deliveries bowled by the same bowler. After completing an
over, the bowler must take up a fielding position and let another player take over
the bowling. After every over, the batting and bowling ends are swapped, and the
field positions are adjusted. The umpires swap so the umpire at the bowler's end
moves to square leg, and the umpire at square leg moves to the new bowler's end.
End of an innings
An innings is completed if:
1. Ten out of eleven batsmen are 'out' (dismissed) the team are said to be all out.
2. The team has only one batsman left who can bat again, the team are said to be
all out.
3. The team batting last reaches the score required to win the match.
4. The predetermined number of overs are bowled (in a one-day match only, usually
50 overs).
5. A captain declares his team's innings closed (this does not apply to one-day
limited over matches).
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