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 Cricket is a team sport. Sometimes referred to as the "gentleman's game", cricket originated in its formal form in England, and is popular mainly in the countries of the Commonwealth. In the countries of South Asia, including India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, cricket is by far the most popular participatory and spectator sport, while it is a major summer sport in places such as the United Kingdom, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand.
The rich jargon of cricket can often leave those unfamiliar with the game confused; the rules are of similar complexity to those of its cousin baseball. The length of the game (a game can last over 6 or more hours a day for up to five days) and the numerous intervals for lunch and tea and more only add to the confusion of someone not familiar with the sport. Cricket fosters die-hard aficionados, for whom matches provide passionate entertainment. Occasionally, rival nations have lampooned each other over cricket matches, provoking diplomatic outrage.
Objective and summary
Cricket is a bat and ball sport played between two teams of eleven players. The object of the game is to score more runs (points) than the opposing team.
A match is divided into innings. During an innings, one team bats while the other team bowls and fields. (Note: when referring to "a team's innings," one usually means that team's turn to bat, i.e. batting innings.) There are two types of cricket played at the international level: Test cricket, consisting of two innings per team, played over five days, and One day internationals (ODI), consisting of a single innings per team.
The team which is batting aims to score runs, either to set a total or chase a target set by the opposition. The bowling team tries to limit the runs scored by the batting team and at the same time to get the opposition players out – dismiss them, so that they cannot bat further in the innings.
In an ODI match, the team which has scored the most runs, after the completion of both innings, is the declared winner. In Test cricket, the winner is declared after totalling the scores of each team's two batting innings. If both teams have scored the same number of runs, the match is a tie. If the innings cannot be completed before the allotted time for the match expires, the result is a draw in Test cricket, or no-result (N/R) in an ODI.
Players and officials
Each team consists of eleven players. Depending on his primary skills, a player can be classified as a specialist batsman or bowler. A balanced team usually has five or six specialist batsmen and four or five specialist bowlers. A player who excels equally in both fields is known as an all-rounder. One player of the team that is currently bowling takes up the role of a wicket-keeper — a highly specialised fielding position.
The batsmen are entrusted the task of scoring runs with the bat. Bowlers bowl (hurl) the ball to the batsmen and have to try and reduce the runs scored by the batsmen, with the aid of the fielders.
Two on-field umpires preside over a match. One umpire will stand behind the stumps at the end from which the ball is bowled, and adjudicate on most decisions. The other will stand near the fielding position called square leg, which offers a side view of the batsman, and assist on decisions for which he has a better view. In some professional matches, they may refer a decision to an off-field 'third' umpire, who has the assistance of television replays. An off-field match referee ensures that play is within the Laws of Cricket and the spirit of the game. Match referees may use their ex-cathedra powers to reprimand players who breach the ICC Cricket Code of Conduct. In some matches, a reserve umpire is kept on hand if something untoward happens to one of the other umpires.
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