04/19/24
August 04, 2006
Cricket explained from an American perspective.: I've always been a bit baffled by cricket, and news reports of matches do little to help. If you've ever wondered what's going on, this explains things pretty well.
Most everything I know about cricket comes from watching the movie Lagaan.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 10:41 AM on August 04, 2006
YYM - I've heard that's fantastic - what did you make of it?
posted by JJ at 11:22 AM on August 04, 2006
That's a pretty fair surmation of a sport that is damned difficult to explain to people who a) haven't seen cricket and b) have seen baseball. The "when he hits it, he doesn't have to run" has always been a particularly thorny one to explain. Decent link, Rocketman.
posted by Mr Bismarck at 01:01 PM on August 04, 2006
I've read several links explaining cricket and this one is probably the clearest for somebody with limited exposure to the game.
posted by Joey Michaels at 02:08 PM on August 04, 2006
Hey, rocketman, that was a great post. It really "knocked me for 6". I had some rudimentary knowledge of cricket, but the finer points always escaped me (extras among them). I lived in Egypt for a little more than 3 years. We had a pretty good slow pitch softball league there in Cairo among the American expatriates, a few Egyptians, a scattering of Canadians, and several Brits, with enough players at one time for 16 men's teams and 8 women's teams. I played, coached, and umpired. My greatest challenge as a softball coach was trying to teach a cricket player how to bat. He kept trying to run up in the batter's box as the pitch was delivered, twisting his body into some incredible contortions, and managing to be called out once or twice for striking the ball while his foot was outside the batter's box. Once he got the hang of it, he did well, but I sure had a frustrating couple of months trying to rein him in. I'll bet I ruined him for cricket forever, though.
posted by Howard_T at 02:12 PM on August 04, 2006
thanks so much for this link. As an American who enjoys European football & likes watching Sky Sports News for the footy recaps, I have always flipped the channel when the Cricket highlights come on. I may have to read this article 3 more times beofre I watch some cricket highlights.
posted by mateo71 at 02:12 PM on August 04, 2006
Thanks, blarp, for finding this description (and rocketman for bringing it up again). I'm still learning the game as well, and the occasional test match broadcast on the AZN network isn't quite enough to whet my appetite. Save this link. This conversation will come up again.
posted by chicobangs at 04:17 PM on August 04, 2006
If anyone is interested in beginning to understand cricket, then I'd highly suggest trying to watch a game of 20/20 instead of a test match. 20/20 probably makes the purists weep, but it's highly entertaining. Each side gets just 20 overs (120 deliveries each), so runs come thick and fast. It's fast-paced, there's plenty of big hitting, the matches are often very tight, and the crowd atmosphere is excellent. Test matches, on the other hand, can be kinda dull. I noticed during the football world cup that a lot of people disliked the fact that football matches often ended in a tie... I guess they will also dislike the fact that test matches go on for five whole days and still end in a draw.
posted by afx237vi at 04:24 PM on August 04, 2006
I think it's next to impossible to describe a sport in words alone. I've read a couple articles on cricket, the rules, how its played, the different positions and I still don't truly understand it. I didn't really get rugby until I watched it. So if any cricket playes in the New York area are having a pick up game, let a brother know.
posted by HATER 187 at 04:26 PM on August 04, 2006
YYM - I've heard that's fantastic - what did you make of it? Well as a first warning its all in Hindu, but if you're okay with subtitles then that's fine. Overall I thought it was a very good movie, I don't know much about cricket but it seemed well and accurately played in the movie. There are also a few songs for those who are musically inclined.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 04:32 PM on August 04, 2006
I think it's next to impossible to describe a sport in words alone. Obviously there's a strong visual aesthetic for any sport, but coming from a baseball background, I really enjoyed this translation. It gave me a framework from which to appreciate the sport a bit further, though I haven't a clue how I'd ever see a game outside of pure chance.
posted by rocketman at 05:15 PM on August 04, 2006
I'm not a big fan of baseball, but one of the things that has always appealed to me about the sport is that its length and occasional dead spots mean the commentators have to almost add a slice of story-telling to their style, to fill the time with back story of players and stuff happening outside of what you can see on the screen. Now take a baseball game and make it last eight hours a day for five days. Commentators vary in ability and some of them can be annoying, but I love switching a test match on at 10am and leaving it until close of play. One thing the cricket commentators seem to be able to do that the baseball commentators don't, though, is shut up, for long periods of time. It's not unusual for tv coverage of test cricket to go without any commentary at all for several minutes.
posted by Mr Bismarck at 06:14 PM on August 04, 2006
That link was great. The BBC's cricket scores will now mean something as I drive home from work. What are the chances of catching televised cricket in the US? None? I may have to rent that movie because I really want to watch a match.
posted by apoch at 09:36 PM on August 04, 2006
This link and thread are great. I can now pencil you all in for the upcoming Ashes tipping competition? I have made plans. Coming to this site in November.
posted by owlhouse at 12:52 AM on August 05, 2006
oooooooooo - I'm in!
posted by JJ at 06:18 AM on August 05, 2006
Groovy. Now I get it. Googily.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 11:50 AM on August 05, 2006
I watch AZN a lot (too much free time). I watch cricket on the channel to waste time. A few years back, I asked an Indian friend to explain cricket to me, I got more confused. Anyways, the upcoming Cremate your Relative within three hours competition (mock) on AZN will be easier to understand.
posted by Joe88 at 12:30 PM on August 05, 2006
See also here, (including the first comment). :)