Whether you’re just curious about how cricket works, how to play cricket, or are a complete beginner, this article will help you understand the game.This national sport of Australia can seem to be a little bit confusing at times. Not knowing what is going on in the game or how the rules work can make it a hard sport to watch.So let’s start with some of the simple and basic rules of cricket that you probably know. This prestigious sport is played by two teams. Each of the two teams has a total of 11 players. These players consist of a batsman, bowlers, and players that are given the term all-rounders. The equipment that is used in the game of cricket is a bat, a round ball, wickets, and a length of flat ground. Cricket is played traditionally wearing protective equipment like pads in order to stop any upcoming injuries that may occur while facing the bowler. Protective gear is quite important as a bowler can throw the ball up to 161 kph (100 mph) over a pitch measured at only 22 yd (20.12 m). What is considered to be the very core of cricket, is quite simple to follow. The bowler and the batsman stand opposite to one another on a strip in the center of the field. The batsman must try to hit the ball that the bowler bowls. Let’s keep reading more to find out more about how to play cricket and the details of this popular sport! After reading all about how to play cricket, do check out how do trees grow and how do telescopes work?How is the cricket game played?A batsman hits the ball to prevent a bowler from hitting the wicket and score runs. The bowler obviously, tries to knock down the bail of the wicket. In the field, two batsmen are seen to be on the pitch. After the ball is hit, the batsmen can run after it. Each time the batsmen change places in the field, a run is scored. To win the match, a team has to have the highest number of runs.You have probably heard the terms of four runs and six runs. What these mean is the following: four runs are a ball that is hit out of the field on a bounce whereas six runs mean a ball hit out of the field on a fly.There are also some terms of dismissal that one must be aware of in the game of cricket, whether it is test, one-day, or T20. In cricket, ‘bowled out’ refers to a bowler knocking over the wicket with the ball. On the fly, when a fielder catches a batted ball, it is referred to as a caught out. The term ‘run out’ refers to a fielder catching the ground ball and throwing it at the wicket. This knocks it down before the batsman gets there. And lastly, a leg before a wicket refers to a batsman’s body interfering with a bowled ball that would eventually hit the wicket. The game is said to be over when sides take turns fielding and batting. An ‘over’ is a period of six bowls by the bowler. To end the innings, the fielding team must dismiss or retire 10 batsmen. A limit of 50 overs per inning and one inning per team are present in world cup matches. A non-elimination match is limited to one day and an elimination match is allowed a second day if needed.What are the basic rules of cricket?Before we dive into the numerous rules of cricket matches, it is important to know from where they originated. The game originated in England in the 16th century where it was called ‘cricc’ or ‘cryce’ meaning ‘crutch’ and an Englishman, WG Grace, is known as the father of cricket. The prestigious sport is played all over Australia and loved by millions all over the world. It is also a popular sport in several other countries. It is quite a fun and simple game that can be played by both women and men alike. Cricket is played often with friends, which helps develop their skills and improve their overall game over the years. With that, let’s dive into the various rules of playing the game that one has to follow.Cricket has 11 players in each of the two teams. Since the game comprises at least one innings, each team takes its turn in bowling and batting. In the game of cricket, the bowler in the fielding team bowls the ball to the batsman. The batsman, in turn, tries to hit the ball with their cricket bat. In order to get the batsman out, the fielding team takes a lot of measures. When bowling, the fielding team tries to hit the wickets with the ball. They also try to catch a batsman’s shot on the full and also hit the batsman’s leg in front of the wicket during their bowling. Lastly, the fielding team tries to hit the wickets before the batsman can run all the way to the other end of the pitch. Now that we know the tricks of the bowler, let’s look at what the batting team does! They usually do the basic trick of hitting the ball and running immediately to the other end of the pitch before the fielders can hit the wicket themselves with the ball. One run equals running one whole length of the pitch. They can score as many runs as they can if they have the time. The batting team can also hit the ball to the boundary along the ground for four runs or hit the ball over the boundary on the full to equal six runs. 10 batsmen must be out by the fielding team before they can start batting. Scoring as many runs as possible is the aim as the team with the most runs wins the game.How do you score runs in cricket?From what we have discussed so far, we know that runs are quite a vital part of the game of cricket as it is the main part of winning the game. A batsman is often seen to keep the bowler from hitting the wickets while at the same time, hitting the ball hard enough to score a run. A run here refers to the batsman running all the way to the other end of the field before anyone from the fielding team picks the balls and hits the wickets.A batsman is dismissed when a wicket is broken by the wicket-keeper or a bowler with a ball in his hand. All this has to be done before either of the batsmen are on their ground or if they cannot be dismissed. It is important to note that a striker does not have to necessarily run after hitting the ball. It also doesn’t count if the striker misses the ball or if his body is struck by it. If the batsman has gotten a good hit and thinks that a run could be scored, the batsman races to the opposite wicket while the other batsman runs towards him. When the cricket bat is touched beyond the popping crease at the opposite end, it is as a run recorded by the striker. If there is still some time left, they can take the score as many runs as they can. If an odd number of runs are seen to be scored, the non-striker will then be at the wicket opposite of the bowler and face the next ball. However, if an even number of runs are scored, then the striker will receive the next ball.Why does cricket only have 11 players?The main reason for the game of cricket to have 11 players of it being one bowler and 10 players to cover the ground was quite enough. It was considered to be a standard number to cover all the fielding space that is there on the ground. Hence, 11 was set as the standard number of players for the two teams playing against each other in the game of cricket.In this sport, there are substitute players also available for playing who are only allowed to bowl or bat. This is provided only if the player that is being replaced has not already used up its complete allowance of overs or is being dismissed. Previously, substitutes were not allowed to keep wickets. In the 2017 edition of The Laws of Cricket, this restriction was lifted. No substitute player can be used in any specialist position and can strictly only be allowed to field. If a substitute player is seen to hang onto a catch, in the scorebook, it will go down as caught by the sub. Substitute players are usually used when a player gets injured during the course of the match.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for how do you play cricket, then why not take a look at bantam breeds, or bedbug size and identification.
Whether you’re just curious about how cricket works, how to play cricket, or are a complete beginner, this article will help you understand the game.
