Anyone can learn how to play cricket. Providing that you understand the basics first, then build on them, you’ll get maximum enjoyment from this wonderful sport. Whether you’re young or old, male or female, there will be at least one aspect of the game that suits you. And, if there’s a young cricketer in your family, you’ll have a great time supporting them.
The basics of cricket are simple. Two teams of up to 11 players each compete against each other and the team that scores the most runs is the winner. The game has several different formats, but these basics are common to all of them. Of course, this hides lots of detail as you might expect from a game that is over 1000 years old. For more information, try this simplified explanation of how to play cricket.
The game has a rich vocabulary of cricket terms that is available in print and online. One difficulty with most of these resources is that they assume a certain level of cricket knowledge. Amongst them, Wikipedia is a good starting point as it gives the basics as well as providing links to more detailed explanations. And such is the variety of terms, even old hands at the game can still discover new ones – I did!
Saturday afternoon club cricket The picture shows the heart of the action on a cricket field. The two sets of wickets are 22 yards apart, with the cut area of the pitch between them. It takes skilled preparation to produce a pitch that gives true and consistent bounce of the ball.
The visible players are the two batsmen, the bowler, the wicket keeper and slip fielder. The umpire at the bowler’s end is one of two umpires who must adjudicate on all aspects of the match.
With some understanding of the rules of cricket and cricket terms, you’ve made a solid start on learning how to play cricket. Now, there are different paths depending on your aspirations as a player or supporter, or both. Of course, you and your family can have a great time playing garden or beach cricket without any coaching whatsoever. But, developing cricket skills is a whole new journey, for junior and senior players alike.
There is simply no substitute for an experienced cricket coach for improving playing skills. A good coach plans each practice to include some fun drills for developing batting, bowling and fielding skills The session will end with a cricket game that suits the age group. Want to get involved? Ask the coach how you can help him to carry out his plan.
Most cricketing nations have a structured coaching system that didn’t exist even 20 years ago. So, today’s aspiring players have a big advantage, if they’re prepared to listen, learn and practice. Your first step is to find a local cricket club with good practice facilities, a qualified coach or coaches, and a certified child protection policy.
There are some great online coaching resources, providing guidance on how to play cricket. These are a good backup to a club coach, but not a substitute as they can’t give feedback on a player’s performance. A skilled coach provides interactive tips and tricks that you won’t find online or in print. However, his/her main message will be “practice that move 500 times and you’ll get it right every time”. So, dedication is the key.
Although cricket is a team game, only one bowler, two batsmen and one wicket keeper can be part of the action at any one time. Experienced fielders treat every ball in an innings as a big event, where they can gain an advantage over the batsmen. However, it takes years to learn this and junior players can get frustrated if they don’t bat or bowl. So, variations have been developed to give all the team a go at batting and bowling.
For example, Kwik Cricket (age 5-11) and Inter Cricket (age 12-14) are fast and furious games that have been created for beginners. They use special “low impact” equipment to avoid any injury, and to develop confidence. For the bridge into full scale 11 a side cricket, 8-a-side pairs cricket (age 12-14) is an excellent variation for more experienced players, using a hard ball and full match kit.
Want to know more about how to play cricket? This web site gives some top tips that you won't find in most coaching books.
This page describes the basics of how to play cricket, and how to develop this knowledge. Once you and your junior cricketer have started this journey, then you have the key to a lifetime of enjoyment. There’s no greater pleasure than simply being on the field of play, or from experiencing an exciting match in one of the world’s great cricket arenas. Have fun!