I would rather see Hurling coverage, or Gaelic Football, or even Aussie Rules Football than Cricket.

I watch a lot of sports, and I can understand and follow almost any sport that I see...except cricket.

I remember being on an overseas trip and there was cricket on, and I decided I was going to watch until I could figure out what was going on. After 20 minutes all I knew was that guys slap a ball around and run back and forth, and the score was like 149-125 and this was the 2nd day of the match. WTF.

I have an idea: a professional dodgeball league.

It would get about 100 times the interest that cricket would get.

justGreg: I'd bet a cricket league would work, and much for the same reason that MLS works. We're a nation of immigrants and lots of immigrants come from places that play cricket and soccer.

Soccer and cricket are wayyy different. Any idiot can follow soccer and pick up the rules, and it's a great sport for kids to play. Cricket is ridiculously complicated, and not a good sport for kids. Yes, some immigrants understand it, but not nearly enough to support a full league.

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justGreg: I'd bet a cricket league would work, and much for the same reason that MLS works. We're a nation of immigrants and lots of immigrants come from places that play cricket and soccer.

It could, but it would have to be less ambitious. MLS also gets x number of tickets sold to families whose kids play soccer, even though none of them will care when the last kid outgrows the sport. I don't know what "x" is, but for cricket it's zero. A cricket league would have to follow the Women's soccer model, with division III fields, but hopefully better management. A big impediment is that they could never ever afford a major foreign star.

balloot: I remember being on an overseas trip and there was cricket on, and I decided I was going to watch until I could figure out what was going on. After 20 minutes all I knew was that guys slap a ball around and run back and forth, and the score was like 149-125 and this was the 2nd day of the match. WTF.

It's very easy.

In baseball terms:

Each team bats for an "innings" which lasts until 10 people are out.

At any time there are two batters on field. Each batter is at a wicket (base). This is analogous to all bases being loaded all the time. Batters stay on the field until they are out. There are only two wickets/bases.

The bowler (pitcher) pitches at one wicket for 6 balls, then they change to pitch at the other wicket for 6 balls, rinse repeat. They follow this pitching pattern regardless of scoring or whether any batters go out.

Scoring: Each complete run (both batsmen make it to the opposite base) is worth one point. Hitting the ball so it touches the boundary is worth 4 points. Hitting the ball clear over the boundary without bouncing is worth 6 points. There are some penalty points if the pitcher pitches wide.

Going Out: Very similar to baseball. Hit the ball and a fielder catches it before it bounces and you're out. Try to make a run but don't make it to the other base before the fielding side gets the ball there and you're out. Only main difference is if upon pitching the pitcher hits the sticks behind the batsman, knocking off the little sticks balanced on top - in that case the batter is out.

Match Styles:

Twenty 20 - Newish style, each team bats for 20 overs (a set of 6 pitches) or until all their batters are out. Whichever comes first. Faster paced and lasts about half a day. The batting strategy is generally very aggressive as they have a very limited opportunity to score. Team with most runs wins.

One-Day: Each team faces 50 overs. Very similar rules to Twenty20 and similar style of play, but normally a bit slower paced.

Test Cricket: Each team gets two innings and the play is limited to 5 days. Lots of strategy, more complicated rules and very defensive batting styles. Probably not good to start Americans on this one.


How to watch:

Get some mates together.
Get some beer together.
Get some food together. I recommend wings, hotdogs and hamburgers.
Eat food, drink beer, chat with mates and watch cricket.
Then drink more beer.

bangmaid: It would get about 100 times the interest that cricket would get.

You are talking about the second most widely played sport in the world.

Cricket was a big thing in America until two things came along. The first was professional baseball. Cricket was strictly amateur, and a lot of players who played both quit cricket wen they could get paid to play baseball. And then the ICC initially only accepted nations that were part of the Commonwealth or English colonies. So the US was out of that. But cricket is hardly alien to America.

If there's a large immigrant population so devoted to cricket that they would watch bad cricket at 3 a.m. on ESPN 8 "The Ocho", they're probably already watching good cricket on the net.

A) Artificial turf? fark off.

B) I love occasionally seeing the Indian & Pakistani games at Washington Park in Chicago

C) All this is making me want to watch the excellent Indian film Lagaan again. gets you excited about cricket without having to understand too much of it.

Newbaca: If there's a large immigrant population so devoted to cricket that they would watch bad cricket at 3 a.m. on ESPN 8 "The Ocho", they're probably already watching good cricket on the net.

When did Chad Johnson get his own ESPN station?

Damn, Farking While Farking, that's a pretty succinct explanation. Covers the main details without bringing in any of the eyes-hazing-over finer points.
I see you left the lbw rules alone, which is probably a good thing.

/can I steal that to show my American colleague?

JosephFinn

A) Artificial turf? fark off.

Absolutely. The reason cricket is complicated because the ball bounces on the pitch before it reaches the batsman. A good strip is essential to the game.

Farking While Farking: One-Day: Each team faces 50 overs. Very similar rules to Twenty20 and similar style of play, but normally a bit slower paced.

Test Cricket: Each team gets two innings and the play is limited to 5 days. Lots of strategy, more complicated rules and very defensive batting styles. Probably not good to start Americans on this one.

Not to complicate things, but Test Cricket isn't the only multi-day form, there's also List-A, which is played between club teams whereas Tests are played between national teams from one of the 11 nations currently given Test status by the ICC. And as for the One Day, the 50 over can be played by club teams or national teams. And there's also tons of other forms of cricket, including what amounts to one on one cricket.

JosephFinn: B) I love occasionally seeing the Indian & Pakistani games at Washington Park in Chicago

You and me both.

lol at headline

when Sri Lanka played India in the world cup last year, every hindu store merchant n new jersey slowed down selling their chinese products and booze during the match.

No Catchy Nickname: Damn, Farking While Farking, that's a pretty succinct explanation. Covers the main details without bringing in any of the eyes-hazing-over finer points.
I see you left the lbw rules alone, which is probably a good thing.

/can I steal that to show my American colleague?

You most certainly can. Glad people are finding it useful.

WhyteRaven74: Not to complicate things, but Test Cricket isn't the only multi-day form, there's also List-A, which is played between club teams whereas Tests are played between national teams from one of the 11 nations currently given Test status by the ICC. And as for the One Day, the 50 over can be played by club teams or national teams. And there's also tons of other forms of cricket, including what amounts to one on one cricket.

Oh yes, but I find that mentioning those to Americans makes it very complicated. I don't know why given the sports they generally watch.

FreakinB: There's definitely a market for cricket in the U.S., it's just a question of whether it's big enough to support a league. I doubt it for now.

I'm not sure, with a population of ex-pat Brits, Aussies, Caribbean Islanders, Indians and Pakistanis very close to the population of Australia (which supports a domestic cricket league) in a country with a similar size to Australia it could be possible.

I'm just surprised Fort Lauderdale is on the list of potential cities. I'd think somewhere like San Jose or San Francisco (since a lot of Indian ex-pats work in Silicon Valley) would be more appropriate. Toronto is a good choice too, since Canada have actually made the last few cricket world cups.

Farking While Farking: balloot: I remember being on an overseas trip and there was cricket on, and I decided I was going to watch until I could figure out what was going on. After 20 minutes all I knew was that guys slap a ball around and run back and forth, and the score was like 149-125 and this was the 2nd day of the match. WTF.

It's very easy.

In baseball terms:

Each team bats for an "innings" which lasts until 10 people are out.

At any time there are two batters on field. Each batter is at a wicket (base). This is analogous to all bases being loaded all the time. Batters stay on the field until they are out. There are only two wickets/bases.

The bowler (pitcher) pitches at one wicket for 6 balls, then they change to pitch at the other wicket for 6 balls, rinse repeat. They follow this pitching pattern regardless of scoring or whether any batters go out.

Scoring: Each complete run (both batsmen make it to the opposite base) is worth one point. Hitting the ball so it touches the boundary is worth 4 points. Hitting the ball clear over the boundary without bouncing is worth 6 points. There are some penalty points if the pitcher pitches wide.

Going Out: Very similar to baseball. Hit the ball and a fielder catches it before it bounces and you're out. Try to make a run but don't make it to the other base before the fielding side gets the ball there and you're out. Only main difference is if upon pitching the pitcher hits the sticks behind the batsman, knocking off the little sticks balanced on top - in that case the batter is out.

Match Styles:

Twenty 20 - Newish style, each team bats for 20 overs (a set of 6 pitches) or until all their batters are out. Whichever comes first. Faster paced and lasts about half a day. The batting strategy is generally very aggressive as they have a very limited opportunity to score. Team with most runs wins.

One-Day: Each team faces 50 overs. Very similar rules to Twenty20 and similar style of play, but normally a bit slower paced.

Test Cricket: Each team gets two innings and the play is limited to 5 days. Lots of strategy, more complicated rules and very defensive batting styles. Probably not good to start Americans on this one.


How to watch:

Get some mates together.
Get some beer together.
Get some food together. I recommend wings, hotdogs and hamburgers.
Eat food, drink beer, chat with mates and watch cricket.
Then drink more beer.

bangmaid: It would get about 100 times the interest that cricket would get.

You are talking about the second most widely played sport in the world.

So basically, the bases would be loaded all the time, there are two pitchers to cover pitching duties, who take over after throwing the ball six times, any hit off the wall is four runs and a home run is six, the game starts with no outs and must go until the entire batting team has had an opportunity to hit and made an out? Throw on top of that the fact that is no discernable foul territory, so any ball hit anywhere is valid and in play.

Baseball games last for three to four hours, and people complain that's too long. There is no wonder why the most proper cricket game lasts for about a week, and the shortest game version has a pitch limit. I like baseball, but only usually have the games on in the summer for background noise and the occasional peek-in, that may be how cricket should be treated too.

\wonder how Vin Scully would call a match
\\actually, better yet, Harry Caray

And if only baseball players could use the flat thick bat that cricket players use...baseball stats would be slow-pitch softball stats, and slow-pitch softball probably would never end.

Call me crazy ("You're crazy!") but I'm an American who "gets" how cricket works, and no, I didn't grow up with it. Here's a few primer tips:

1. If you start out thinking like baseball, you're in pretty good shape. Cricket, in many ways, is like baseball, in that the goal is to hit a pitched ball to where the players in the field can't get to it. That's the big thing -- if a guy hits a ball that goes somewhere a fielder can't get to it, he's doing it right.

2. Here come the differences. First off, pitching. The pitcher gets a running start. It's a 66-foot distance between pitcher and batter. There isn't really a strike zone because, even if you don't hit the ball, it's in play after it's pitched. Much like in baseball, you have all kinds of pitches -- slow, fast, spinning, etc. -- and most of the time, the pitcher throws the ball in on a bounce (it'll make sense).

3. Basically every play continues until the team in the field gets the ball to a wicket (there's one at both ends of the pitcher/batter path) and uses the ball to knock the wicket off the stand. The wicket is a wood twig, essentially, that stands about three feet off the ground on three small posts.

4. The batter stands in front of the wicket and the pitcher throws at it. If the batter swings and misses and the pitch hits the wicket, the batter's out -- kinda like a strikeout, you could say. That's the bounce thing; you want to keep the ball low.

5. OK, the batter hits it. He's basically in the middle of an oval stadium that has the width of a football stadium, but more length. A cricket ground is usually at least 150 yards the long way, i.e. when measured along the same line the pitcher throws to the batter, and if you put a football field in the middle, the pitcher would essentially be throwing from one 39 yard line to the batter at the other 39. There's no wall to hit it over, but there is a rope on the ground.

6. The team in the field gets 11 guys to cover everything, but there is no foul territory, so the batter can hit it anywhere he pleases, even behind him, and there's a lot more open space than there is in baseball. The batter can even let a pitch go if it seems like it's going to be such a wild pitch that he doesn't think the catcher behind the wicket will be able to get to it.

7. There is a "batting order," but you pretty much bat in pairs and are at bat until you get out, at which point whoever's next in the order takes your spot. If you're hitting, the other batter is akin to a runner on base.

8. Scoring: Runs are scored pretty much every time the ball is put into play. When you hit the ball, both you and your runner take off for the other wicket with your bat. If you get any part of you or your bat across the line in front of the wicket, you get a run. OK, so they haven't gotten the ball back in to knock the other wicket off yet. You and your runner can take off again to go back to the other line to try and get another run. Just don't get caught in the middle, though -- if they knock down the wicket while you are, you're out. A 'two' is a common score on a hit -- one run for both you and your runner.

9. OK, you get a hold of one. If you hit it over the rope barrier on the fly, the cricket equivalent of a homer, you get six runs. If the ball rolls or bounces over the barrier, you get four runs, kinda like a ground-rule double. But be careful -- just like in baseball, a batted ball caught on the fly is an out.

10. With all these 6's and 4's flying around and outs hard to come by, scores get large fast. It's considered a big deal when a batter is responsible for 50 or 100 runs while batting before he gets out.

11. How long does the game go? Well, it depends on what style you're playing. Twenty20 is a newer style that's shorter and meant for manageably timed matches suitable for TV. Regular test cricket, though, basically dictates both teams bat until they get through their batting order, which is why it goes for days. Furthermore, the game is generally played in former British colonies, who picked up their British (i.e. kinda odd) customs, which means the games usually break both for lunch and afternoon tea. [shrug]

That's probably the quickest and simplest way I can put it.

Sorry, started working on this before the above explanation. Good work to whoever posted that.

SnatchMcGillicudy: So basically, the bases would be loaded all the time, there are two pitchers to cover pitching duties, who take over after throwing the ball six times, any hit off the wall is four runs and a home run is six, the game starts with no outs and must go until the entire batting team has had an opportunity to hit and made an out? Throw on top of that the fact that is no discernable foul territory, so any ball hit anywhere is valid and in play.

Pretty much.SnatchMcGillicudy: I like baseball, but only usually have the games on in the summer for background noise and the occasional peek-in, that may be how cricket should be treated too.

That's not too far off how a lot of people watch cricket. Also, beer is often involved.

One cricket tournament in particular - The Ashes - is a series of 5 test matches (25 days total, spread out over a few weeks) played every ~2 years between England and Australia. Worker productivity in the host nation nosedives as everyone has the cricket scores and updates running on their computers or playing on the workplace radio.

Farking While Farking: SnatchMcGillicudy: So basically, the bases would be loaded all the time, there are two pitchers to cover pitching duties, who take over after throwing the ball six times, any hit off the wall is four runs and a home run is six, the game starts with no outs and must go until the entire batting team has had an opportunity to hit and made an out? Throw on top of that the fact that is no discernable foul territory, so any ball hit anywhere is valid and in play.

Pretty much.SnatchMcGillicudy: I like baseball, but only usually have the games on in the summer for background noise and the occasional peek-in, that may be how cricket should be treated too.

That's not too far off how a lot of people watch cricket. Also, beer is often involved.

One cricket tournament in particular - The Ashes - is a series of 5 test matches (25 days total, spread out over a few weeks) played every ~2 years between England and Australia. Worker productivity in the host nation nosedives as everyone has the cricket scores and updates running on their computers or playing on the workplace radio.

Oh, there's beer during baseball too. No sense staying sober the entire time. Also, the bolded part about that tournament, that sounds like March Madness for college hoops (different sports sub-genre, but probably the same productivity), only that happens every year.

\still would have loved to have hear Harry Caray try to announce a cricket match

justGreg: balloot: Cricket is ridiculously complicated, and not a good sport for kids. Yes, some immigrants understand it, but not nearly enough to support a full league.

Stacks up comparably to baseball on both counts really. And you wouldn't have to pay the players $20M per season.

Baseball is not complicated. In fact there are only 10 rules to baseball and very few people actually care about rule 10 (and, in large part rule 9).

Organized baseball is a great sport, pickup baseball is, well, hard just to find enough people and equipment.

SnatchMcGillicudy: And if only baseball players could use the flat thick bat that cricket players use...baseball stats would be slow-pitch softball stats, and slow-pitch softball probably would never end.

And if cricket bowlers could just intentionally pitch around dominant batters, cricket's bowling would have ridiculously low averages.

Evilsmurf: SnatchMcGillicudy: And if only baseball players could use the flat thick bat that cricket players use...baseball stats would be slow-pitch softball stats, and slow-pitch softball probably would never end.

And if cricket bowlers could just intentionally pitch around dominant batters, cricket's bowling would have ridiculously low averages.

You can't get to the next batter (batsman?) that way in cricket, and the game wouldn't move at all. I guess crossing ideas just generally wouldn't work.

balloot: justGreg: I'd bet a cricket league would work, and much for the same reason that MLS works. We're a nation of immigrants and lots of immigrants come from places that play cricket and soccer.

Soccer and cricket are wayyy different. Any idiot can follow soccer and pick up the rules, and it's a great sport for kids to play. Cricket is ridiculously complicated, and not a good sport for kids. Yes, some immigrants understand it, but not nearly enough to support a full league.

Bollocks - cricket is no more complicated than baseball, and in fact there are many similarities between them. You just need to watch with someone who can explain it to you in simple terms.

SnatchMcGillicudy: Evilsmurf: SnatchMcGillicudy: And if only baseball players could use the flat thick bat that cricket players use...baseball stats would be slow-pitch softball stats, and slow-pitch softball probably would never end.

And if cricket bowlers could just intentionally pitch around dominant batters, cricket's bowling would have ridiculously low averages.

You can't get to the next batter (batsman?) that way in cricket, and the game wouldn't move at all. I guess crossing ideas just generally wouldn't work.

You started the comparisons, I just continued them.

I'm okay with this, because then an Aussie Rules Football league could use the cricket grounds during the winter months!

lacrossestar83: I'm okay with this, because then an Aussie Rules Football league could use the cricket grounds during the winter months!

Good point. I think part of the reason why Australian Rules Football has failed to take off in many areas of the world is the fact that pretty much any nation which doesn't play host to top-level cricket has a lack of oval shaped stadiums.