Cricket is a bat-and-ball game that is played between two teams of eleven players on a field, at the centre of which is a 22-yard (20-metre) pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. Two players from the batting team (the striker and nonstriker) stand in front of either wicket holding bats, with one player from the fielding team (the bowler) bowling the ball towards 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 exchange. Runs are also scored when the ball reaches or crosses the boundary of the field or when the ball is bowled illegally.
The franchise was established in 2015 as a result of the formation of PSL by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). The team's homeground is Bugti Stadium. The team is captained by Rilee Rossouw. Shane Watson is the head coach and Moin Khan is the team's manager. and Abdul Razzaq is the assistant coach.
Sangakkara made his Test debut against South Africa in July 2000. He scored his maiden Test century in 2001, against India, and his first double-century during the 2002 Asian Test Championship final against Pakistan. Sangakkara's highest score in Test cricket is 319, which he scored against Bangladesh in 2014. During his innings of 287 against South Africa in 2006, he and Mahela Jayawardene set a new world record of 624 runs for the highest partnership for any wicket in Test or first-class cricket. In the following year, he scored back-to-back double-centuries against Bangladesh, the fifth instance of successive double-centuries in Test cricket. He has scored 200 or more runs in a Test match on eleven occasions, surpassing Brian Lara, who has scored 200 or more runs in a Test match on nine occasions; only Donald Bradman (12 double-centuries) has done so more often. He became the ninth batsman and second Sri Lankan to score centuries against all Test-playing nations in December 2007, when he scored 152 against England. He was appointed captain of the Sri Lanka team in March 2009, following the resignation of Mahela Jayawardene, and the first of his seven Test centuries as captain came against Pakistan in July of the same year. Sangakkara has the second-highest batting average—69.60 per innings—for a captain who scored a minimum of 1,500 runs. (Full article...)
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Test cricket is the oldest form of cricket played at international level. A Test match is scheduled to take place over a period of five days, and is played by teams representing full member nations of the International Cricket Council (ICC). England was a founding member of the ICC, having played the first Test match against Australia in March 1877 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. , they have played more Test matches than any other team, and of their 1071 games, have won 392, drawn 355 and lost 324. With 36.6 per cent of matches won, this makes England the third most successful team in the history of Test cricket, behind Australia on 47.8 per cent and South Africa on 38.36 per cent.
Opening batsman and former captainAlastair Cook holds several England Test cricket records. Playing between 2006 and 2018, he scored 12,472 runs, making him the first England player to score 10,000 Test runs. He scored a record 57 half-centuries and 33 centuries. As a slip fielder, Cook has also taken the most catches for England with 175 and holds the England record for the most catches taken in a Test series with 13. Cook also holds the Test record for the most consecutive matches played with 159. (Full article...)
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AB de Villiers is a former South African cricketer who captained the national team between 2012 and 2017. A right-handed batsman, he scored 47 centuries (100 or more runs in a single innings)—22 in Tests and 25 in ODIs—over his playing career. He reached the top of the ICC Test batting rankings in March 2012.
De Villiers made his Test debut in December 2004 against England, scoring 28 and 15. He made his first Test century the following month, scoring 109 in the drawn fifth Test at Centurion. His first double-century came in April 2008 against India when he scored 217 not out in a man-of-the-match performance in Ahmedabad. He has scored 22 Test centuries and holds the record for the second-highest individual score by a South African batsman, with 278 not out against Pakistan. De Villiers has the fourth-highest number of centuries in Tests for South Africa. (Full article...)
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Somerset County Cricket Club are an English cricket club based in Taunton, Somerset. The club was founded in 1875 after a match between "Gentlemen of Somerset" and "Gentlemen of Devon" in Sidmouth, Devon. Somerset played their first undisputedfirst-class cricket match in 1882 against Lancashire. After missing the first season of the official County Championship, Somerset was admitted for the second in 1891, and have participated in the competition ever since. The club have played one-day cricket since its introduction to the English game in 1963, winning their first trophy in the 1979 Gillette Cup. All players who have played in 100 first-class or List A cricket matches are listed below. Only four players have made over 100 appearances in Twenty20 cricket for Somerset, James Hildreth currently holds the record for the most matches in the format for the club, having made 205 appearances.
Brian Langford holds the record for the greatest number of first-class appearances for Somerset. Between 1953 and 1974 the right-arm off break bowler played 504 times for the club. Only three other players have made more than 400 appearances for Somerset, and no-one has reached the milestone since Langford. Jack White, one of the three, is the club's leading wicket-taker in first-class cricket, claiming 2,165 dismissals for the county between 1909 and 1937. Harold Gimblett's tally of 21,142 first-class runs is the most by a Somerset cricketer, over 1,000 more than the next, Marcus Trescothick. (Full article...)
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From their first match in 2006 to their final match in 2009, 37 players represented the Bermuda cricket team in One Day Internationals (ODIs). A One Day International is an international cricket match between two representative teams, each having ODI status, as determined by the International Cricket Council (ICC). An ODI differs from Test matches in that the number of overs per team is limited, and that each team has only one innings.
The Bermuda Cricket Board was formed in 1948, when the Somers Isles Cricket League amalgamated with the Bermuda Cricket Club to form the Bermuda Cricket Board. They were admitted to the ICC as an associate member in 1969, and in the 2005 ICC Trophy they gained ODI status and qualified for the World Cup for the first time. Bermuda played its first ODI against Canada in May 2006. In the 2007 World Cup, Bermuda struggled against the Test playing nations in their group and against India they recorded what remains the largest margin of defeat in a World Cup match, losing by 257 runs at Queen's Park Oval, Trinidad and Tobago. Bermuda lost all their matches in the World Cup, which began a decline in Bermudian cricket and eventually led to them losing their ODI status during the 2009 World Cup Qualifier, in which they finished 9th. Bermuda have not managed to regain this status and now play in World Cricket League Division Three, having also lost their first-class status they had held since 2004. (Full article...)
Since the team made its first WT20I appearance in 2006, 73 players—including five different captains—have represented India in the format. The list is arranged in the order in which each player won her first Twenty20 cap. Where more than one player won her first Twenty20 cap in the same match, those players are listed alphabetically by surname. (Full article...)
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Since their first match in 2006, 68 players have represented Ireland in One Day Internationals (ODIs). A One Day International is an international cricket match between two representative teams, each having ODI status, as determined by the International Cricket Council (ICC). An ODI differs from Test matches in that the number of overs per team is limited, and that each team has only one innings. Where more than one player won his first ODI cap in the same match, those players are listed alphabetically by surname.
Ireland have played 201 ODIs, resulting in 80 victories, 103 defeats, 3 ties and 15 no results. Ireland played their maiden ODI on 13 June 2006 against England. Ireland lost by 38 runs, although the match drew interest and was played in front a full capacity crowd at the Civil Service Cricket Club in Belfast. (Full article...)
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Sydney Barnes was a professionalcricketer who played for England in 27 Test matches between 1901 and 1914. He claimed 24 five-wicket hauls (five or more wickets in an innings) during his Test career. A five-wicket haul is regarded as a notable achievement, and as of 2014 fewer than 50 bowlers have taken more than 15 five-wicket hauls at international level in their cricketing careers. Barnes had only played seven first-class matches when he was chosen by Archie MacLaren to tour Australia, and played only 47 County Championship matches throughout his entire career, opting to play Minor Counties and Lancashire League cricket instead. He based his decision upon two main criteria – playing club cricket was more financially rewarding, and he was worried about having to bowl too much in first-class county cricket, and suffering from burnout.
Barnes is generally regarded as one of the best bowlers to have played international cricket, and finished his Test career with 189 wickets at an average of 16.43; his average places him among the top-ten bowlers in Test cricket. At the start of his career, he was a fast bowler who endeavoured to swing the ball, which was the common style of bowling at the time. However, Barnes experimented with bowling a little slower and cutting the ball, and developed both an off cutter and a leg cutter that he concluded were far more effective than swinging the ball. Despite his bowling talent, Barnes did not play any Test cricket between July 1902 and December 1907, as he was considered a "prima donna" who would only put in the effort when he was in the right mood, and being suitably paid. After his recall to the England side, he played regularly until the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, and was named by the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack as one of their Cricketers of the Year in 1910. (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...)
Border made his Test debut against England in December 1978 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. His first century came three months later against Pakistan at the same venue. Border's 27 Test hundreds were scored at 14 different grounds; 14 hundreds were made at venues outside Australia. In Tests, he was most successful against England accumulating eight centuries. Border's highest score of 205 – one of his two double centuries – came against New Zealand at the Adelaide Oval in 1987. As of 2012, he is thirteenth overall in the list of most hundreds in Test cricket. (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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Glenn McGrath, a retired international Australiancricketer, took a number of five-wicket hauls during his 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 fewer than 40 bowlers have taken more than 15 five-wicket hauls at international level in their cricketing careers.
McGrath made his Test debut in November 1993, against New Zealand, but it was not until March 1995 that he took his first five-wicket haul in Australia's victory over the West Indies in Barbados; his performance earned him the man of the match award. He followed that three weeks later with six wickets in a defeat in Trinidad. McGrath took 10 of his 29 Test five-wicket hauls in The Ashes (the traditional name for Test matches between Australia and England). During the 1997 Ashes series, McGrath "humiliated" England, taking eight wickets in a single innings at Lord's and restricting England to 77, the lowest total in any Test match at the ground since 1888. A month later, he dismissed seven English batsmen in the first innings at The Oval but despite these performances, Australia did not win either Test match. The 2001 Ashes series saw McGrath make four five-wicket hauls in consecutive matches. He twice took five-wicket hauls in both innings of a Test match – in March 1999 he dismissed five West Indian batsmen in each innings of the first Test of the Frank Worrell Trophy; in the following year, he took ten wickets against India at the Sydney Cricket Ground. (Full article...)
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The Kensington Oval is a 15,000-capacity sports stadium located in Bridgetown on the island nation of Barbados. Used mainly for cricket, the Kensington Oval hosted its first Test in 1930 and its first One Day International (ODI) in 1985. The ground has seen 51 Tests—all including the West Indies—along with 30 ODIs, and has been the scene of 108 Test and 14 ODI centuries. Additionally, the ground hosted a pair of World Series Cricket one-day games and a Supertest between the WSC West Indies and WSC Australian teams.
West Indian Clifford Roach became the first player to score a century at the venue, managing 122 runs in the ground's inaugural match. Two other batsmen, Andy Sandham and George Headley from England and the West Indies respectively, also scored centuries in this match. However, it took a further four Tests until West Indian Clyde Walcott scored the next hundred, 220 in 1954. The innings was also the first double century to be scored at the Kensington Oval. PakistaniHanif Mohammad's score of 337, which was achieved in 1958, remains the highest score seen at the ground, while West Indian Lawrence Rowe is the only other batsman to score a triple century at the venue, hitting 302 against England in 1974. Desmond Haynes, Clive Lloyd and Shivnarine Chanderpaul are the only players to score four Test centuries at the Kensington Oval, while Garry Sobers, Viv Richards and Brian Lara have all stuck three hundreds. As of January 2019, 9 batsmen have scored double centuries and two triple centuries has scored at the venue. (Full article...)
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A One Day International (ODI) is an international cricket match between two representative teams, each having ODI status, as determined by the International Cricket Council (ICC). An ODI differs from Test matches in that the number of overs per team is limited, and that each team has only one innings. , 41 players have represented the Hong Kong national team in ODIs, since its debut in 2004. Many of these players are of South Asian origin, a demographic which comprises only a small fraction of the overall population of Hong Kong.
Hong Kong gained ODI status in its own right following the 2014 World Cup Qualifier, but had previously been accorded ODI status twice on a temporary basis, when it participated in the Asia Cup. The team's first ODI came against Bangladesh in the 2004 Asia Cup, with the team then playing one further match in that competition, against Pakistan. At the 2008 Asia Cup, Hong Kong again played two matches, against Pakistan and India, although it lost heavily in all matches played. After gaining full ODI status in 2014, the team's first matches in that format came in the 2014 ACC Premier League tournament, against Afghanistan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Hong Kong did not win an ODI until its tenth match, in November 2015, when it defeated the UAE by 89 runs as part of the World Cricket League Championship. (Full article...)
Anniversaries...
On this day in cricket
England
1924 - Jack MacBryan fields for two-and-three-quarter hours for England in the fourth Test against South Africa at Manchester. The rest of the three-day Test is then rained off and MacBryan, a specialist batsman, neither bowls nor bats – and is never picked again for a Test match.
1949 - Brian Close makes his Test debut, a record for the youngest Englishman to do so, at 18 years and 149 days old.
Image 2Photograph of Miss Lily Poulett-Harris, founding mother of women's cricket in Australia. (from History of women's 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 4In 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 5A 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 8Broadhalfpenny Down, the location of the first First Class match in 1772 is still played on today (from History of cricket)
Image 9A 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 10New articles of the game of cricket, 25 February 1774 (from Laws of Cricket)
... that the English-Australian cricketer Bailey Wightman made his County debut for Kent whilst playing club cricket for Tunbridge Wells after an outbreak of COVID-19?
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.