Friday, May 24, 2013 4:11 PM EST

Cricket

Overview

Cricket is a bat-and-ball team sport that is first documented as being played in southern England in the 16th century. By the end of the 18th century, cricket had developed to the point where it had become the national sport of England. The expansion of the British Empire led to cricket being played overseas and by the mid-19th century the first international matches were being held. Today, the game's governing body, the International Cricket Council (ICC), has 104 member countries. With its greatest popularity in the Test playing countries, cricket is the world's second most popular sport after Association football.

The rules of the game are known as the Laws of Cricket. These are maintained by the ICC and the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), which holds the copyright. A cricket match is played on a cricket field at the centre of which is a pitch. The match is contested between two teams of eleven players each. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible without being dismissed ("out") while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the other team’s batsmen and limit the runs being scored. When the batting team has used all its available overs or has no remaining batsmen, the roles become reversed and it is now the fielding team’s turn to bat and try to outscore the opposition.

There are several variations in the length of a game of cricket. In professional cricket this ranges from a limit of 20 overs per side (Twenty20) to a game played over 5 days (Test cricket). Depending on the form of the match being played, there are different rules that govern how a game is won, lost, drawn or tied.

Headlines Around the Web

Getting the vote out: Former Financial Post staffer spearheads drive for cricket fields

Dec 07 - Financial Post

Cricket in stealthy pitch at US market

Oct 06 - Financial Times

Branding it with net stars

Jul 10 - The Times of India

Fila ropes in Sehwag as brand ambassador, to hike prices

Jul 03 - The Times of India

FINANCE - SCANDAL: Financier Stanford gets 110 years for $7 bn Ponzi fraud

Jun 15 - France24

Interest in Dempo: Can Shah Rukh Khan save the football business in India?

Jun 10 - The Times of India

How M&M's Anand Mahindra could be India Inc's Tiger Pataudi

Jun 03 - The Times of India

US carrier offers first iPhone on prepaid plan

Jun 01 - France24

Cricket mogul found guilty of $7 bn Ponzi scheme

Mar 07, 2012 - France24

FINANCE - SCANDAL: Financier Stanford found guilty of $7 billion Ponzi scheme

Mar 07, 2012 - France24

Stanford guilty in $7 bln ponzi scheme: US jury

Mar 07, 2012 - France24

Stanford's greed led to $7 bln Ponzi scheme: US trial

Mar 01, 2012 - France24

Cricket Australia in India tobacco ad row

Feb 07, 2012 - France24

India cricket team lose chief sponsor

Feb 04, 2012 - France24

India in Australia: Team India needs to turn it around like corporates

Jan 30, 2012 - The Times of India

Davos, ethics, two countries and a tax worth mentioning

Jan 28, 2012 - Financial Times

Bad run puts Team India on slow ad pitch

Jan 28, 2012 - The Times of India

Stanford's $7 bln fraud built on lies: prosecution

Jan 25, 2012 - France24

Now, Team India’s TV ratings go for a toss

Jan 16, 2012 - The Times of India

Biscuit maker's pretty crummy Tassie deal

Jan 13, 2012 - News.com.au

Articles About Cricket

Woolwich Terror Attack: Help for Heroes Website Crashes on Surge in Donations [VIDEO]

By IBTimes UK

Charity website unable to cope with wave of sympathy following murder of fusilier Lee Rigby. (2:42 am)

Musical Campus Flirting is Theme of New Samsung Galaxy S4 Ad; Cricket Wireless to Sell S4 on June 7 at $600 (VIDEO)

By IBTimes AU

Expect the buzz about the Samsung Galaxy S4 to be louder as another U.S. carrier announced the availability of the best-selling smartphone of the South Korean tech giant and amid a new TV advert that will surely catch the attention of young people. (12:22 am)

MORE TOPICS: SAMSUNG, SMARTPHONE, GRAMMY AWARD, ANDROID, CONGRESS

IPL Spot Fixing: Sreesanth’s Cameo in Malayalam Film Deleted

By IBTimes IN

Indian medium pace bowler Sreesanth faces another career setback as a Malayalam director has decided to delete portions of a film that featured the cricketer. (7:34 pm)

Is Chennai Super Kings CEO Involved in Spot-Fixing? BCCI Chief's Son-in-law under Scanner

By IBTimes IN

Giving a new twist to the on-going investigation of the spot-fixing scandal, the Mumbai Crime Branch Police are in Chennai to question Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Chennai Super Kings (CSK) CEO Gurunath Meiyappan, sparking off speculations i... (7:15 pm)

IPL 2013 Results: CSK Thrash Mumbai Indians to Enter Fifth Final in Six Seasons

By IBTimes IN

Was there ever really any doubt? The Lean Mean Yellow Machine aka Chennai Super Kings put in another brilliant IPL performance to pummel the Mumbai Indians by 48 runs in Qualifier 1 at the Feroz Shah Kotla and seal yet another place in the final. (May 22)

Pune Warriors India Pull Out of IPL after BCCI Encashes Bank Guarantee; Sahara Urges to Stop Sponsoring Indian Cricket Team

By IBTimes IN

Pune Warriors India (PWI) has pulled out of the Indian Premier League after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) encashed the bank guarantee following non payment of the full franchise fees for IPL 6. It is also reported that Sahara has urged to stop sponsoring the Indian Cricket Team. (May 21)