Cricket is a bat-and-ball game that is played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a 22-yard (20-metre) pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. Two players from the batting team (the striker and nonstriker) stand in front of either wicket, with one player from the fielding team (the bowler) bowling the ball towards the striker's wicket from the opposite end of the pitch. The striker's goal is to hit the bowled ball and then switch places with the nonstriker, with the batting team scoring one run for each exchange. Runs are also scored when the ball reaches or crosses the boundary of the field or when the ball is bowled illegally.
The Yorkshire captaincy affair of 1927 arose from a disagreement among members of Yorkshire County Cricket Club over the selection of a new captain to succeed the retired Major Arthur Lupton. The main issue was whether a professional cricketer should be appointed to the post. It was a tradition throughout English county cricket that captains should always be amateurs. At Yorkshire, a succession of amateur captains held office in the 1920s, on the grounds of their supposed leadership qualities, although they were not worth their place in the team as cricketers. None lasted long; after Lupton's departure some members felt it was time to appoint a more accomplished cricketer on a long-term basis.
The Yorkshire committee, prompted by the influential county president, Lord Hawke, approached Herbert Sutcliffe, one of the side's leading professionals. After Sutcliffe's provisional acceptance of the captaincy, controversy arose. Some members objected to the appointment on the traditional grounds that Sutcliffe was not an amateur; others felt that if a professional was to be appointed, the post should be offered to the county's senior professional, Wilfred Rhodes, who had been playing much longer than Sutcliffe. Rhodes himself was offended that he had not been approached. When Sutcliffe became aware of the controversy, he withdrew his acceptance. No offer was made to Rhodes, and the county subsequently appointed amateur William Worsley as captain. He was respected by the team but had little personal success, lasted for just two seasons, and was followed by two further short-term leaders. In 1933 Brian Sellers, a more competent amateur, was appointed and became the long-serving captain that Yorkshire had sought. (Full article...)
Waqar Younis, a retired Pakistanicricketer, took 35 five-wicket hauls during his career in international cricket. 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 only 41 bowlers have taken at least 15 five-wicket hauls at international level in their cricketing careers. A right-arm fast bowler who represented his country between 1989 and 2003, the BBC described Waqar as "one of the most feared fast bowlers in recent cricketing history", while former Pakistan captain Imran Khan said that Waqar was "a thinking cricketer and, at his peak, he was the most destructive bowler the game had seen". The cricket almanack Wisden noted his "pace and swing", and named him one of their Cricketers of the Year in 1992. Waqar was inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame on 9 December 2013.
Waqar made his Test debut in 1989 against India in Karachi, where he took four wickets in the first innings. His first Test five-wicket haul came the following year against New Zealand in a match which Pakistan won at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore. He took a pair of five-wicket hauls in a single match against Zimbabwe at the Defence Stadium, Karachi in December 1993. His career-best figures for an innings were 7 wickets for 76 runs against New Zealand at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad, in October 1990. He went on to take ten or more wickets per match on five occasions. (Full article...)
Taylor made his ODI debut in March 2006 against West Indies at McLean Park, Napier. His first century came in December 2006 against Sri Lanka at the same ground; he scored 128 not out in the match which New Zealand lost by seven wickets. His highest ODI score of 181 not out came against England at the University Oval in March 2018. Taylor's 102 not out (off 70 balls) against Pakistan in February 2015 is the fifth-fastest century by a New Zealander in ODIs. He has not scored any centuries in Twenty20 International (T20I) matches. , Taylor is joint 16th in the list of century-makers in international cricket with 40, and the highest ranked New Zealander. (Full article...)
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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...)
This list is of all members of the England cricket team who have played at least one T20I match. The order is by each player name as they achieved a first Twenty20 cap; achievement by several players during the same match is arranged by surname alphabetically. (Full article...)
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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 fewer than 50 bowlers have taken more than 15 five-wicket hauls at international level in their cricketing careers. Richard Hadlee, a retired New Zealandcricketer, took 41 five-wicket hauls during his career in international cricket. A fast bowler who represented his country between 1973 and 1990, Hadlee was described by the BBC as "one of the greatest bowlers the world has seen". Hadlee was named by Wisden as one of their Cricketers of the Year in 1982. In 2009, the International Cricket Council (ICC) inducted him into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. Hadlee was the first bowler to take 400 wickets in Test cricket.
Hadlee made his Test debut in 1973 against Pakistan at the Basin Reserve, Wellington. His first Test five-wicket haul came in 1976, against India in a match at the same venue which New Zealand won. In February 1980, he took his first pair of five-wicket hauls in a single match against the West Indies at the Carisbrook, Dunedin. By the end of his career, he had claimed five-wicket hauls in both innings of a match on five occasions. He went on to take ten or more wickets in a match on nine occasions. In Tests, Hadlee was most successful against Australia, with fourteen five-wicket hauls. His best bowling figures in an innings were 9 wickets for 52 runs against the same team at the Brisbane Cricket Ground, in November 1985. He followed up in the second innings of that match with 6 for 71 and achieved his best match figures of 15 for 123 to give New Zealand an innings win. (Full article...)
When a player is found by the umpire to have delivered the ball contrary to those rules, the umpire will call a no-ball and he is said to have been called for throwing. Where public opinion is that a player's bowling action appears to be that he routinely throws, he is said to have a 'suspect' or an 'illegal' action, or more derogatorily, is said to be a 'chucker'. The issue is often highly emotive with accusers considering that deliveries with an illegal action are akin to cheating. (Full article...)
Since the team made its first WT20I appearance in 2006, 73 players—including five different captains—have represented India in the format. The list is arranged in the order in which each player won her first Twenty20 cap. Where more than one player won her first Twenty20 cap in the same match, those players are listed alphabetically by surname. (Full article...)
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A One Day International, or an ODI, is an international cricket match between two representative teams, each having ODI status, as determined by the International Cricket Council. An ODI differs from Test matches in that the number of overs per team is limited, and that each team has only one innings.
Graeme Swann, a right-armoff-spinner, represented the England cricket team in 60 Tests, 79 One Day Internationals (ODI), and 39 Twenty20 Internationals (T20I) between 2000 and 2013. He took eighteen five-wicket hauls in international cricket – seventeen in Tests and one in ODIs. 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 only 42 bowlers have taken more than 15 five-wicket hauls at international level in their cricketing careers as of July 2015. The English cricket journalist Scyld Berry described Swann as "the best off-break bowler that England have had for more than half a century", and "the most effective spinner that England’s limited-overs teams have ever had". Swann claimed 255 wickets in Test cricket, second only to Derek Underwood (297) among English spin bowlers.
Swann made his Test debut in December 2008, taking four wickets in a match which England lost against India. His first Test five-wicket haul came early the following year against the West Indies at the Antigua Recreation Ground, when he took five wickets for 57 runs. Once during his career, Swann took five wickets in each innings of a match, against Bangladesh in 2010. This was also the first of three occasions in which he took ten wickets in a match. His career-best figures for an innings were six wickets for 65 runs against Pakistan at the Edgbaston Cricket Ground in August 2010. (Full article...)
Sangakkara made his Test debut against South Africa in July 2000. He scored his maiden Test century in 2001, against India, and his first double-century during the 2002 Asian Test Championship final against Pakistan. Sangakkara's highest score in Test cricket is 319, which he scored against Bangladesh in 2014. During his innings of 287 against South Africa in 2006, he and Mahela Jayawardene set a new world record of 624 runs for the highest partnership for any wicket in Test or first-class cricket. In the following year, he scored back-to-back double-centuries against Bangladesh, the fifth instance of successive double-centuries in Test cricket. He has scored 200 or more runs in a Test match on eleven occasions, surpassing Brian Lara, who has scored 200 or more runs in a Test match on nine occasions; only Donald Bradman (12 double-centuries) has done so more often. He became the ninth batsman and second Sri Lankan to score centuries against all Test-playing nations in December 2007, when he scored 152 against England. He was appointed captain of the Sri Lanka team in March 2009, following the resignation of Mahela Jayawardene, and the first of his seven Test centuries as captain came against Pakistan in July of the same year. Sangakkara has the second-highest batting average—69.60 per innings—for a captain who scored a minimum of 1,500 runs. (Full article...)
Lara scored a Test century for the first time in his fifth Test match in 1993 against Australia. His score of 277 in that match is the fourth-highest maiden century in Test history. The 375 he made against England in 1994 was the highest individual Test score for nine years, until Matthew Hayden surpassed it in 2003. Lara regained the world record in 2004 when he made an unbeaten 400, once again against England. It is also the only quadruple century in Test cricket. The unbeaten 153 he scored against Australia in 1999 was rated as the second-best Test innings of all time by the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack in 2001. He has scored more than 200 runs on nine occasions, the highest after Donald Bradman and Kumar Sangakkara Alongside Sir Donald Bradman, Virender Sehwag and Chris Gayle, he is one of four batsmen who have scored triple centuries on two occasions. Lara scored 34 centuries during his Test career, the highest number by a West Indian player. He is ranked sixth for the highest number of centuries in a career along with Mahela Jayawardene, Sunil Gavaskar and Younis Khan, behind Sachin Tendulkar, Jacques Kallis, Ricky Ponting, Kumar Sangakkara and Rahul Dravid. (Full article...)
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In cricket, a captain is a player who leads the team and has additional roles and responsibilities. The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a professional league for Twenty20 cricket in India, which has been held annually since its first edition in 2008. In the 17 seasons played, 60 players have captained their team in at least one match. Mumbai Indians's Rohit Sharma has won 6 titles as a player and 5 as a captain making him the joint most successful player(with Ambati Rayudu) and joint most successful captain in IPL history. Chennai Super Kings's Mahendra Singh Dhoni also has 5 title wins. With the highest win–loss percentage among successful captains who have captained over 44 matches, MS Dhoni is the captain and player who has played most number of finals and qualified for most times in the playoffs, He is renowned around the world by the moniker Captain Cool. Dhoni has played 226 matches and won the most no. Of matches playing as a captain with 133, and has also lost the most matches playing as a captain with 91, where as Rohit Sharma has a second place with 5 titles. Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara and Steven Smith are the only players to captain three teams: the former has captained Delhi Daredevils, Kings XI Punjab and Kochi Tuskers Kerala, whereas the latter has captained Kings XI Punjab, Deccan Chargers and Sunrisers Hyderabad and the other has captained Pune Warriors India, Rajasthan Royals, Rising Pune Supergiants. (Full article...)
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The ICC Men's Cricket World Cup is an international cricket competition established in 1975. It is contested by the men's national teams of the members of the International Cricket Council (ICC), the sport's global governing body. The tournament generally takes place every four years. Most recently, the 2023 Cricket World Cup, hosted by India, was won by Australia, who beat India. The current trophy was instituted in 1999. It always remains with the ICC, and a replica is awarded to the winning team.
For the 2019 and 2023 World Cups, the host nation and the seven other highest-ranked nations automatically qualify for the World Cup, while other nations including associate and affiliate ICC members play in a qualification tournament, the World Cup Qualifier. Though an associate member is yet to reach the final, Kenya did reach the semi-finals in 2003. Australia is the most successful team in the competition's history, winning six tournaments and finishing as runner-up twice. Twice, teams have won successive tournaments: the West Indies won the first two editions (1975 and 1979) and Australia won three in a row (1999, 2003, and 2007). Australia has played in the most finals (eight out of thirteen: 1975, 1987, 1996, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2015, and 2023). England has lost the most World Cup finals, ending as runner-up in all three final appearances before their victory in the 2019 tournament. (Full article...)
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A cricketer scoring a century (100 runs or more) on their One Day International (ODIs) debut is regarded by critics as a significant achievement. As of December 2023, 16 players from 10 different international teams have accomplished this feat. Players representing nine of the twelve teams that have full member status have scored an ODI century on debut.
England's Dennis Amiss was the first debutant to score a century in ODIs; he scored 103 runs off 134 balls against Australia during the first match of the Prudential Trophy in 1972. His total was surpassed by Desmond Haynes of West Indies when he made 148 against Australia in 1978. As of December 2023, this remains the highest individual score by a debutant in ODIs. In a 1992 World Cup game against Sri Lanka, Andy Flower made 115 not out while making his first ODI appearance, representing Zimbabwe. It remains the only World Cup century by a debutant as of the 2023 tournament. In September 1995, Pakistan's Saleem Elahi set a record for becoming the youngest player to achieve the feat; aged 18, he was yet to play first-class cricket then. Between 1972 and 1995 only four players had scored a century on their ODI debut. However, since 2009, twelve players have achieved the feat. South African Reeza Hendricks holds the record of fastest century by a batsman on ODI debut (88 balls). Of the 16 occasions a cricketer has scored a century on ODI debut, their team has lost only 3 times. (Full article...)
1953 - The Rev. Tom Killick, who played two Tests for England in 1929, dies at the age of 46 while playing in a match between the diocesan clergy of St Albans and Coventry at Northampton.
1959 - Graham Dilley, fast-medium bowler in 41 Tests for England between 1979 and 1989, is born at Dartford, Kent.
... that Cyril Smart, an English cricketer, was such a powerful hitter that he once took a world-record 32 runs off a single over, and held the record number of sixes for his club, Glamorgan?
... that the ball used in women's Test cricket can be up to 13⁄16ounces (23.03 grams) lighter than that used in men's cricket?
Image 3Broadhalfpenny Down, the location of the first First Class match in 1772 is still played on today (from History of cricket)
Image 4 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 5In 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 6New articles of the game of cricket, 25 February 1774 (from Laws of Cricket)
Image 7A 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 9A 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 10Photograph of Miss Lily Poulett-Harris, founding mother of women's cricket in Australia. (from History of women's cricket)
... that Indian gynaecologist and reproductive medicine pioneer Baidyanath Chakrabarty, who performed over 4,000 IVF procedures, was a cricket fan who thought Virat Kohli and Ashwin were "such good boys"?
... that the relatively low standards of player selection for Somerset County Cricket Club in 1883 have been described as being "determined with a nod and a wink over drinks"?
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.