Cricket
A sport originating in a small Hampshire village in seventeenth-century England, cricket was introduced to South Asia by the British in the early eighteenth century. The first recorded cricket match in South Asia took place in 1721 in Cambai, western India, between the officers and men of a British ship. Although at first played only by the British, cricket eventually gained a following among local populations. Indians formed their first cricket club, the Orient Cricket Club, in Bombay in 1848. Today cricket is immensely popular throughout the subcontinent and is regarded as a national sport in several South Asian countries.
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players each. Each side takes turns at bat, while the fielding and bowling side attempts to get the opposing batsmen out for the least number of runs. The team with the highest number of runs wins. Most cricket matches are concluded in one day, but games at higher levels of competition may last longer. For example, Test matches (international matches between the top ten cricket-playing nations) are played over five days.
The subcontinent has produced world-famous cricketers, such as Ranjitsinhji (1872–1933), after whom India's Ranji trophy is named, and the Nawab of Pataudi (1910–1952). Both of these players represented England before India was accorded Test status.
In the modern era, India and Pakistan have been the traditional cricketing powers of Asia. In 1983, with stars such as Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar, India won the Cricket World Cup, becoming the first country from South Asia to win this major international competition. Current players such as Sachin Tendulkar are national heroes in India. Pakistan, too, has fielded some excellent national teams, especially in the early 1990s under its legendary captain Imran Khan. Waqar Younis, Shoaib Akhtar, and Wasim Akram are among the current Pakistani stars. In recent years Sri Lanka has performed well in international competition, while Bangladesh attained full Test status in the summer of 2000 (the International Cricket Council determines which countries compete at this highest level of cricket). India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh play regular series against other Test nations (England, the West Indies, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Australia, and New Zealand). These games create intense interest among fans of cricket in South Asia and are widely regarded as highlights of the sporting calendar.
Deryck O. Lodrick
Further Reading
Wright, Graeme, ed. (2001) The Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. Guildford, U.K.: John Wisden & Co., Ltd.
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