Even cricket now! And I thought croquet was wild enough! Those wooden balls and mallets, when sent flying around or tossed in frustration, mortal weapons.
Ooooh croquet! LOL well… that IS a nest of vipers and no mistake! :oD OMG the fights we used to have as kids with that game - my mum banned it in the end!
I'm an American. All I know about cricket is they played it in the middle east while I was there and a game took way too long. I also know that Bluey's dad plays cricket. That's it. That's what I know. That's all I know. So this should have been a miss, yet holy hell did I enjoy this. Knowing the concept that it is a game of knights defending the castle actually makes me want to learn and play it. Excellent article.
Cricket is endless fun on and off the field. Other fielding positions include mid on and mid off, either side of the pitch; silly mid on or off, perilously close to the bat but just in front; long leg, long off, behind the bat close to the boundary; long stop, a position behind the wicket keeper used only in school cricket where the wicket keeper is unreliable. We also have a maiden over attributed to a bowler when no runs are scored. There is also a maiden century or half century, the first time a player attains that total playing for a part team. From that we can deduce that maiden actually means virgin.
I inherited my love of cricket from my dad who was a lifelong enthusiast despite being in the Royal Navy where cricket is only possible when not at sea. As a child I loved playing with him using a tennis ball wherever there was space enough for a pitch with one of us either end. We even played in alleyways, like practice nets. I did the same with my own three boys. With the two eldest in Shaftesbury on Abby Walk outside the Abbey museum entrance and on Castle Hill and with my youngest in The Hague. Holland actually has a national team.
I used to live in Wittersham, Kent. A village with the distinction of having a very early depiction of a cricket match on the village green dating from 1830. The players are in white clothes and are in recognizable fielding positions.
I once played cricket in Greece, on Corfu, where the game was played on a car park in the middle of Corfu town. The pitch was a strip of coconut matting. In addition to the usual scoring one could get four runs for hitting a parked car and six for a bus. The home team played visiting teams of tourists. I was told there was only one other pitch in the whole of Greece, in Athens.
I also saw Indian boys play cricket in the South Park Street cemetery in Calcutta, now Kulkota. The had a grave stone as the wicket. I always wondered if ghosts played on the same makeshift pitch when the cemetery was closed and locked up overnight.
“…in a satirical nod…” I take umbrage sir! How dare thou! 😎
LOLOLOLOL
TBF I’ve never heard of the bloke - any clue as to why the Brits have singled him out for satire?
Ricky Ponting (Punter), former Australian Captain, legend.😎
Even cricket now! And I thought croquet was wild enough! Those wooden balls and mallets, when sent flying around or tossed in frustration, mortal weapons.
Ooooh croquet! LOL well… that IS a nest of vipers and no mistake! :oD OMG the fights we used to have as kids with that game - my mum banned it in the end!
Memories ...
:oD
I'm an American. All I know about cricket is they played it in the middle east while I was there and a game took way too long. I also know that Bluey's dad plays cricket. That's it. That's what I know. That's all I know. So this should have been a miss, yet holy hell did I enjoy this. Knowing the concept that it is a game of knights defending the castle actually makes me want to learn and play it. Excellent article.
Cricket is endless fun on and off the field. Other fielding positions include mid on and mid off, either side of the pitch; silly mid on or off, perilously close to the bat but just in front; long leg, long off, behind the bat close to the boundary; long stop, a position behind the wicket keeper used only in school cricket where the wicket keeper is unreliable. We also have a maiden over attributed to a bowler when no runs are scored. There is also a maiden century or half century, the first time a player attains that total playing for a part team. From that we can deduce that maiden actually means virgin.
I inherited my love of cricket from my dad who was a lifelong enthusiast despite being in the Royal Navy where cricket is only possible when not at sea. As a child I loved playing with him using a tennis ball wherever there was space enough for a pitch with one of us either end. We even played in alleyways, like practice nets. I did the same with my own three boys. With the two eldest in Shaftesbury on Abby Walk outside the Abbey museum entrance and on Castle Hill and with my youngest in The Hague. Holland actually has a national team.
I used to live in Wittersham, Kent. A village with the distinction of having a very early depiction of a cricket match on the village green dating from 1830. The players are in white clothes and are in recognizable fielding positions.
I once played cricket in Greece, on Corfu, where the game was played on a car park in the middle of Corfu town. The pitch was a strip of coconut matting. In addition to the usual scoring one could get four runs for hitting a parked car and six for a bus. The home team played visiting teams of tourists. I was told there was only one other pitch in the whole of Greece, in Athens.
I also saw Indian boys play cricket in the South Park Street cemetery in Calcutta, now Kulkota. The had a grave stone as the wicket. I always wondered if ghosts played on the same makeshift pitch when the cemetery was closed and locked up overnight.
Good morning Michael! Thank you for this wonderful account of cricket!