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TEST
SERIES & ONE DAYS STILL CONTINUE TO EXCITE…….. |
What with the World Cup Cricket just round the corner…
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Cricket is a
sport played by both men and women using a ball and a wooden
bat. Rounders, the predecessor to cricket, was already a popular
sport in 13th century England, during the reign of King Edward
I. The first major official match was held between the counties
of Kent and Middlesex in 1719, and the first rules were written
in 1744. The Marylebone Cricket Club, founded in 1787, became
the club of reference for the code of ethics employed in
cricket, and remains so to this day. The foundation of this club
marked the adoption of the sport by the rich and the nobility.
Throughout the first half of the 20th century, the game spread
to other Commonwealth countries, including the British West
Indies in 1920, and New Zealand and India in 1932. Cricket is
administered worldwide by the International Cricket Council (ICC),
which organized the ICC Trophy every 4 years. There are 11
test-playing countries and more than 25 associated or
non-test-playing countries who are members of the ICC. The first
World Cup was held in 1975; it is normally held every 4 years.
This time the 9th edition of the World Cup will be held in the
West Indies. There are 16 teams vying for this prestigious
trophy. |
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HOW A MATCH IS
ORGANIZED
Two teams of 11 players and a spare play alternately on a field
with a rectangular strip (the pitch) located between 2 wickets in
the center. The choice of the team batting or fielding is
determined by a toss of a coin between the 2 captains, who have
previously selected which positions on the field each team member
will play. The bowlers and batsmen are positioned at each end of
the wickets. At the umpire's signal, the fielding team takes its
place on the field around the pitch, while the first 2 batsmen for
the opposition team take their positions in front of their
wickets. The remaining 9 team members wait in the clubhouse for
their turn to bat. This marks the beginning of an inning (or time
at bat), which ends once 10 batsmen in one team are out. The
bowler bowls the ball towards the wicket in order to make the
bails fall off the wicket (called breaking the wicket). If he
succeeds, the batsman is out. Batsmen have to defend their wickets
and attempt to hit the ball out of reach of their opponents in
order to have enough time to run from one wicket to the other,
while passing each other (called a run). The batsmen attempt to
score as many runs as possible before the ball is returned. The
other members of the field team try to stop the batsmen from
scoring runs by recovering the ball as quickly as possible and
throwing it at one of the 2 wickets in an attempt to break it
before the batsmen complete the run. A run is completed when the 2
batsmen cross each other and reach their opposite ends. A series
of bowls (minimum of 6) is called an over. The bowler switches
position with one of the players in his team once his over is
completed. After an over, the field team changes ends. The winning
team is the one who has the most runs. |
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 UMPIRES:
Two umpires supervise the match. One stands at the bowler's
wicket, the other perpendicular to the batsman's wicket. The
umpires determine if the batsman is bowled, stumped, hit-wicket,
run-out or even whether he has been caught legitimately. He also
determines the case of LBW (leg before wicket), leg-byes, no-ball
and wide-ball. Whenever umpires are doubtful in cases of run-out,
the 3rd umpire is consulted and forms his opinion. |
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Looking Ahead & Beyond
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INDIA AT THE WORLD CUP 2007 …………
Indian cricket team needs to pull their weight all along
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 The Indian
cricket team reached its zenith when they lifted the World Cup
in 1983. Even though we reached the finals once when we lost to
Australia, the Indian cricket team's current performance has
left much to be desired. The recent tours to Sri Lanka, West
Indies and South Africa have brought out a disappointing picture
of our batsmen and bowlers from time to time. Consistency and
mental toughness should be the ,name of the game. India's former
captain Saurav Ganguly's second coming has opened the doors for
others like Irfan Pathan and Mohd. Kaif to uplift their
abilities in performing for the country. While other nations
have finalized their world cup squad, India is still in the
experimenting stages. The World Cup combination should have been
announced by now allowing the players to settle down firmly in
their respective positions and if possible promote flexibility
to enhance the overall performance. Let's wait and see if the
inclusion of Joginder Sharma, Robin Uthappa and Ramesh Powar can
strengthen and uplift the present squad.
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