Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field, at the centre of which is a 22-yard (20-metre; 66-foot) pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails (small sticks) balanced on three stumps. Two players from the batting team, the striker and nonstriker, stand in front of either wicket holding bats, while one player from the fielding team, the bowler, bowls the ball toward the striker's wicket from the opposite end of the pitch. The striker's goal is to hit the bowled ball with the bat and then switch places with the nonstriker, with the batting team scoring one run for each of these exchanges. Runs are also scored when the ball reaches the boundary of the field or when the ball is bowled illegally.
William Joseph O'ReillyOBE (20 December 1905 – 6 October 1992) was an Australian cricketer, rated as one of the greatest bowlers in the history of the game. Following his retirement from playing, he became a well-respected cricket writer and broadcaster.
O'Reilly was one of the best spin bowlers ever to play cricket. He delivered the ball from a two-fingered grip at close to medium pace with great accuracy, and could produce leg breaks, googlies, and top spinners, with no discernible change in his action. A tall man for a spinner (around 188 cm, 6 ft 2 in), he whirled his arms to an unusual extent and had a low point of delivery that meant it was very difficult for the batsman to read the flight of the ball out of his hand. When O'Reilly died, Sir Donald Bradman said that he was the greatest bowler he had ever faced or watched. In 1935, Wisden wrote of him: "O'Reilly was one of the best examples in modern cricket of what could be described as a 'hostile' bowler." In 1939, Wisden reflected on Bill O'Reilly's successful 1938Ashes tour of England: "He is emphatically one of the greatest bowlers of all time." (Full article...)
Graeme Smith's five double centuries is a record for South Africa Graeme Smith is a retired South African cricketer who played international cricket between 2002 and 2014. In a career spanning 12 years, he scored centuries (100 or more runs in a single innings) on 27 and 10 occasions in Test and One Day International (ODI) matches respectively. As of October 2016, his tally of 37 international centuries places him fourth among his countrymen, behind Jacques Kallis (62), Hashim Amla (53) and AB de Villiers (45).
Smith made his Test and ODI debuts against Australiaduring the 2001–02 home series. His maiden century—200 against Bangladesh—came in October 2002. During South Africa's tour of England in 2003, he scored double centuries—277 at Edgbaston and 259 at Lord's—in consecutive Tests. Smith's performances in the season led to him being named one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 2004. His three centuries in consecutive Tests were instrumental in ensuring South Africa's series win against the West Indies in 2005. In Tests, Smith made centuries against all teams except India and Sri Lanka. He was most successful against England with seven centuries. With five double centuries he leads the list among South African cricketers as of May 2014. As of October 2015, Smith's four centuries in the fourth innings of a Test match is the second highest by any player, only behind Younus Khan, who has scored five centuries in the fourth innings of a Test. Of his 27 Test centuries, 25 came while captaining the side, and South Africa lost none of its matches on any such instance. (Full article...)
Arif Butt was the first Pakistani player to take a five-wicket haul on his Test debut, he took six wickets for 89 runs against Australia in 1964. Mohammad Nazir and Mohammad Zahid are the only bowlers to have taken seven wickets each. Butt and Tanvir Ahmed have taken six wickets each and six others have taken five wickets on debut. Zahid took seven wickets for 66 runs, the best bowling figures by a Pakistani bowler on debut, against New Zealand in 1996, at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. He accumulated 11 wickets for 130 runs in the match, the only Pakistani to take 10 or more wickets in a Test match on debut. Amongst the bowlers, Bilal Asif is the most economical, with 1.67 runs per over, and Zahid has the best strike rate. As of 2021, the most recent bowler to achieve the feat was Nauman Ali. He took five wickets for 35 runs against South Africa in 2021 at the National Stadium. (Full article...)
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In cricket, a batsman reaches a triple century if they score 300 or more runs in a single innings. The Ranji Trophy is the premier first-class cricket championship played in India. Conducted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, it was founded in 1934 as "The Cricket Championship of India". As of January 2020[update], a triple century has been scored on 46 occasions by 41 different batsmen in the Ranji Trophy.
Marcus Trescothick is one of two players to have won the Men's Player of the Year award three times. The PCA Player of the Year Awards are a set of annual cricket awards. Awards are given for the Men's Player of the Year, Women's Player of the Year, Men's Young Player of the Year and Women's Young Player of the Year, presented to the player who is adjudged to have been the best of the year in their respective category. The winner is chosen by a vote amongst the members of the players' trade union, the Professional Cricketers' Association (PCA).
The Men's Player of the Year award was first awarded in 1970, whilst the Men's Young Player of the Year award began in 1990. An award named the Women's Player of the Summer was first awarded in 2014, presented to a member of the England women's cricket team who was adjudged to have been the best during that summer. However, in 2021, the awarded was opened up to domestic players, and named the Women's Player of the Year. Finally, the Women's Young Player of the Year award was established in 2021. (Full article...)
Pietersen made his Test debut against Australia in July 2005, when he was called into the team to replace Graham Thorpe for the first Test of the 2005 Ashes series. He made his first century during the fifth Test of the series at The Oval; his 158 in the third innings enabled England to draw the match and win the series 2–1. His career best score of 227 also came against Australia in the second Test of the 2010–11 Ashes series at the Adelaide Oval. Pietersen has scored centuries against all Test cricket playing nations, with the exception of Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. He is most successful against India, against whom he has scored six centuries. He is joint twenty-third among all-time Test century makers,[A] and second in the equivalent list for England. (Full article...)
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Clarke scored 36 centuries for Australia in international cricket. Michael Clarke is an Australian former cricketer and captain of the Australia national cricket team. He scored centuries (100 or more runs in a single innings) in Test matches and One Day International (ODI) matches on 28 and 8 occasions respectively during his international career. He played 115 Tests and 238 ODIs for Australia, scoring 8,643 and 7,981 runs, respectively. Journalist Peter English wrote that "Clarke could do anything with the bat, but he has matured into one of the game's most professional, reliable and focussed players". He was named by Wisden as one of their Cricketers of the Year in 2010. Cricket Australia awarded him with the Allan Border Medal in 2005, 2009, 2012 and 2013.
The Ashes urn, which remains at the MCC Museum at Lord's. A replica urn is presented to the winning captain.
The Ashes is a Test cricket series played between England and Australia. The series have varied in length, consisting of between one and seven Test matches, but since 1998 have been consistently five matches. It is the sport's most celebrated rivalry and dates back to 1882. It is generally played biennially, alternating between the United Kingdom and Australia. Australia are the current holders of the Ashes, having retained them with a draw in the 2023 series. (Full article...)
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As of May 2021[update], 54 international five-wicket hauls have been taken at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, 34 in Tests, 18 in One Day Internationals and two in Twenty20 Internationals. The Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, formerly known as the Mirpur Stadium, is a sports ground in Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh. The ground has hosted international cricket matches since 2006. It is named after A. K. Fazlul Huq, the first Prime Minister of Bengal, who was accorded the title Sher-e-Bangla ("The Tiger of Bengal"). The venue was taken over by the Bangladesh Cricket Board in 2004, replacing the Bangabandhu National Stadium as the home of both the men's and women's national teams. The first international match on the ground, a One Day International (ODI), was played between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe in 2006, with the first Test match played the following year between Bangladesh and India. The first Twenty20 International (T20I) match on the ground was played in 2011. Women's One Day International and Twenty20 International cricket has been played on the ground.
A five-wicket haul (also known as a "five-for" or "fifer") refers to a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded as a notable achievement. (Full article...)
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Pakistan's Umar Gul was the first player to take a five-wicket haul in a T20I match.
A five-wicket haul (also known as a "five-for" or "fifer") refers to a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded as a notable achievement, especially in the Twenty20 format, as bowlers can bowl no more than four overs in an innings. The first five-wicket haul in a T20I match was taken by Pakistan's Umar Gul while playing against New Zealand at The Oval during the 2009 ICC World Twenty20. Malawi's Moazzam Baig is the only bowler to have taken 3 five-wicket hauls. (Full article...)
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Mohammed Shami has the most five-wicket hauls (four) across all World Cup tournaments.
In cricket, a five-wicket haul (also known as a "five–for" or "fifer") refers to a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded by the critics as a notable achievement, and there have been only 71 instances of a bowler taking a five-wicket haul in World Cup tournaments. The Cricket World Cup is the international championship of One Day International (ODI) cricket. The event is organised by the sport's governing body, the International Cricket Council (ICC), and is held once in every four years. In addition, players from four associate members of the ICC have taken five-wicket hauls in World Cups.
Starting with the inaugural edition in 1975, a total of 59 players have taken five-wicket haul in the championship as of 2023. Australia'sDennis Lillee became the first player take a five-wicket haul when he took five wickets for 34 runs against Pakistan in the third match of the world cup. His compatriot Gary Gilmour picked up two consecutive five-wicket hauls—in the semi-final against England and the final against West Indies—in the edition. The first of the two, six wickets for 14 runs, was named the "Best Bowling Performance" in ODIs in an all-time list released by the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack in 2002. Joel Garner is the only other player to take a five-wicket haul in a World Cup final. He took five wickets for 38 runs against England in the 1979 tournament final; the performance ensured West Indies' victory and helped them retain the title. (Full article...)
To date, 48 players have represented the United States in ODI matches. (Full article...)
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Former Australian captain, Richie Benaud.
In cricket, a five-wicket haul (also known as a "five–for" or "fifer") refers to a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded as a notable achievement, and as of October 2024[update], only 54 bowlers have taken 15 or more five-wicket hauls at international level in their cricketing careers. Richie Benaud, a leg spinner and former captain of the Australia cricket team, played 63 Tests for his country between 1952 and 1964. He took 248 wickets at an average of 27.03, including 16 five-wicket hauls. The cricket almanack Wisden named him one of their Cricketers of the Year in 1962. He was inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame in 2007, and into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame as one of the inaugural members in January 2009. Leo McKinstry, a cricket writer, in 1998 described Benaud as "one of cricket's greatest legends" and "one of the great all-rounders", and further noted him being the first to take 200 wickets and make 2,000 runs in Tests.
Benaud made his Test debut in January 1952 against the West Indies at the Sydney Cricket Ground, a match Australia won by 202 runs. His first Test five-wicket haul came in the first match of the 1956–57 series against India at the Corporation Stadium. He took 7 wickets for 72 runs in the first innings of the match, his best bowling figures for an innings. Benaud took his solitary pair of five-wicket hauls in the third Test of the series at the Eden Gardens. He accumulated 11 wickets for 105 runs in the match, his career-best performance in Test cricket. Benaud claimed his 16 five-wicket hauls against five different opponents, and Australia never lost any of the games on such instances. He was most successful against India and South Africa, taking 5 five-wicket hauls against each side. Benaud took his five-wicket hauls at 12 cricket grounds, including 11 at venues outside Australia. As of August 2014, he is thirty-first among all-time combined five-wicket haul takers. (Full article...)
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Meg Lanning of Australia has scored the most centuries in WODIs with 15. A women's One Day International (WODI) is an international cricket match between two teams, each having WODI status, as determined by the International Cricket Council (ICC). In a WODI match, the two teams play a single innings, each of which is restricted to a maximum of fifty overs. The first WODI matches were played as part of the Women's Cricket World Cup in 1973 held in England, two years after the first men's One Day International was contested between Australia and England in January 1971. A century is a score of one hundred or more runs by a batsman in a single innings. This is regarded as a notable achievement. As of October 2024[update], 298 centuries have been scored by 108 different players from over 1,400 WODI matches.
The first two centuries in WODIs were scored as part of the opening round in the 1973 Women's World Cup. England's Lynne Thomas and Enid Bakewell both achieved the feat as part of their team's victory over the International XI. Thomas and Bakewell are two of only eight players to score a century during their WODI debut, the others being Nicole Bolton of Australia, India's Reshma Gandhi and Mithali Raj, Natthakan Chantam of Thailand, Zimbabwe's Mary-Anne Musonda, and United States' Chetna Pagydyala; Thomas, Bakewell, Chantam and Musonda's centuries all came in their teams' maiden WODIs. Raj and Gandhi centuries came in a match against Ireland in 1999 which saw Raj become the then youngest player to score a century, aged 16 years 205 days. This record stood for 22 years before it was broken by Ireland's Amy Hunter who scored hers on her 16th birthday against Zimbabwe in 2021. Raj and Gandhi's centuries are one of 41 occurrences where two or more centuries have been scored in a WODI. The oldest player to score a WODI century is New Zealand's Barbara Bevege who was aged 39 years and 48 days when she reached 101 against the International XI during the 1982 Women's World Cup. (Full article...)
The following are images from various cricket-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1A 1793 American depiction of "wicket" being played in front of Dartmouth College. Wicket likely came to North America in the late 17th century. (from History of cricket)
Image 2In men's cricket the ball must weigh between 5.5 and 5.75 ounces (155.9 and 163 g) and measure between 8.81 and 9 in (22.4 and 22.9 cm) in circumference. (from Laws of Cricket)
Image 3A wicket consists of three stumps, upright wooden poles that are hammered into the ground, topped with two wooden crosspieces, known as the bails. (from Laws of Cricket)
Image 4A wicket can be put down by throwing the ball at it and thereby dislodging the bails. (from Laws of Cricket)
Image 5Photograph of Miss Lily Poulett-Harris, founding mother of women's cricket in Australia. (from History of women's cricket)
Image 7Plaquita, a Dominican street version of cricket. The Dominican Republic was first introduced to cricket through mid-18th century British contact, but switched to baseball after the 1916 American occupation. (from History of cricket)
Image 8A Game of Cricket at The Royal Academy Club in Marylebone Fields, now Regent's Park, depiction by unknown artist, c. 1790–1799 (from History of cricket)
Image 9The boundary can be marked in several ways, such as with a rope. (from Laws of Cricket)
Image 11 First Grand Match of Cricket Played by Members of the Royal Amateur Society on Hampton Court Green, August 3rd, 1836 (from History of cricket)
Image 15Afghan soldiers playing cricket. Afghan refugees in Pakistan brought the sport back to Afghanistan, and it is now one of the most popular sports in the country. (from History of cricket)
Image 16Broadhalfpenny Down, the location of the first First Class match in 1772 is still played on today (from History of cricket)
The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the international governing body of cricket, and produces team rankings for the various forms of cricket played internationally.
Test cricket is the longest form of cricket, played up to a maximum of five days with two innings per side.
Matches is the number of matches played in the 12–24 months since the May before last, plus half the number in the 24 months before that. See points calculations for more details.
![Image 1 Muttiah Muralitharan has taken the highest number of wickets in Test cricket. Taking 300 or more wickets across a playing career is considered a significant achievement in Test cricket. First accomplished in 1964 by Englishman Fred Trueman, as of October 2024[update] the feat has been achieved by only 39 cricketers in the history of the game. Seven players from Australia and India, six from South Africa, five from England, four from New Zealand and the West Indies, and three from Pakistan and Sri Lanka have crossed the 300-wicket mark in Tests. Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Ireland and Zimbabwe are yet to see a player reach the 300 mark. As of March 2024, former Sri Lankan cricketer Muttiah Muralitharan has the highest aggregate with 800 wickets. He also holds the record for the most five-wicket hauls (67) and ten-wicket hauls in a match (22); his 16 wickets for 220 runs against England in 1998 is the fifth-best bowling performance by a player in a match. Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin crossed the 300-wicket mark in the lowest number of matches (54), whilst South African Kagiso Rabada did so in the fewest deliveries (11,817). The late West Indian player Malcolm Marshall has the best bowling average (20.94) among those who have achieved the milestone. Fellow West Indian Lance Gibbs is the most economical player with 1.98 runs per over, while South African fast bowler Kagiso Rabada has the best strike rate of 38.5 balls per wicket. India's Anil Kumble has the second-best bowling figures in an innings (10 wickets for 74 runs against Pakistan in 1999); they are the second-best in the history of Test cricket after English off-spin bowler Jim Laker's 10 for 53 (against Australia in 1956). (Full article...)](/wiki/File:Blank.png)
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