History of cricket : Invention, origin, three formats

The sport of cricket has a known history beginning in the late 16th century, here’s the history of cricket with it’s origin and invention.

History of cricket : Invention, origin, three formats

Having originated in south-east England, it became an established sport in the country in the 18th century and developed globally in the 19th and 20th centuries.

International matches have been played since the 19th-century and formal Test cricket matches are considered to date from 1877. 

Cricket was introduced to North America via the English colonies in the 17th century, probably before it had even reached the north of England. In the 18th century it arrived in other parts of the globe.

It was introduced to the West Indies by colonists and to India by East India Company mariners in the first half of the century.

As it arrived in Australia almost as soon as colonisation began in 1788. New Zealand and South Africa followed in the early years of the 19th century.

Cricket never caught on in Canada, despite efforts by the upper class to promote the game as a way of identifying with the “mother country”. Canada, unlike Australia and the West Indies, witnessed a continual decline in the popularity of the game during 1860 to 1960.

Linked in the public consciousness to an upper-class sport, the game never became popular with the general public. In the summer season it had to compete with baseball.

During the First World War, Canadian units stationed in France played baseball instead of cricket.

History of cricket Invention

Cricket is believed to have been invented in South England. Some researchers claim that the game was played from as early as the 13th century, in  the early days, cricket was played by children in the countryside.

A stone was used in the place of a ball, and the players used a simple bat shaped from a branch. A tree stump or a wooden stool acted as the wicket.

As time passed the game developed and the tools used during matches evolved as well.

But The game’s popularity grew throughout England and later spread to other parts of the world.

The earliest bats used in matches were like hockey sticks, which were long and heavy. The ball was bowled along the ground in the early stages of the game, unlike today where it is tossed in the air.

And The earliest cricket match ever recorded took place at Kent in 1646. The basic rules of the game were modified and recorded in 1744.

The game of cricket grew in popularity in many parts of England in the 17th and 18th centuries. Major cricket clubs were formed in London, Dartford, Slindon, Hadlow, and Bromley.

Cricket advanced in the 19th century with the mode of playing being modified several times. It also reached other countries such as the United States, Australia, and South Africa.

Origin 

In the 18th century, the game was developed. In London, cricket was prominent from 1707, in the middle of the century, huge crowds spectated matches on the Artillery Ground in Finsbury.

Technique of the game changed. Bowlers used to roll or skim the ball, and they started to pitch it towards the batsman.

With the shape of the bat needs to change due to those moderations in the game’s style.

In the 1760s’, the Hambledon Club was created. It was the centre of cricket and the greatest club in the sport until Marylebone Cricket Club was formed and Lord’s Old ground was opened in 1787.

Also the new club became a premier club and the custodian of the Laws of Cricket.

The 19th century saw underarm bowling superseded, first by roundarm and then overarm bowling.

Both developments were controversial as in Sussex, there were eight new clubs, and they created the first County Championship.

Three formats 

There are three formats of cricket played at the international level – Test matches, One-Day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals.

Also These matches are played under the rules and regulations approved by the International Cricket Council, which also provides match officials for them.

Test cricket is the traditional form of the game, which has been played since 1877 and now settled in a five-day format which comprises two innings each.

One Day Internationals, also known as ODIs, are a pacier format which started in 1971 but gained in popularity from the 1980s.

These are one-innings matches of 50 overs per side, in which teams with a blend of technique, speed and skill are expected to do well, the ICC’s pinnacle event, the ICC Cricket World Cup, is contested every four years in this format.

Twenty20 Internationals are the newest, shortest and fastest form of the game.

This format of 20 overs per side has brought in new audiences since its advent in 2005 and also triggered new skill sets and innovations.

A Twenty20 International match is usually competed in three hours and with huge hitting, skillful bowling and amazing fielding it has been hugely popular with fans right around the world.