Cricket is undoubtedly one of the most popular, interesting, and oldest sports in the world today. The sport gets millions of people worldwide glued to their screens during major events. Besides, cricket attracts more people every day. Who would not love the sport referred to as the “gentleman’s game”?
If you’re one of the people who recently became interested in cricket, here are some interesting facts about the game you should know.
- Cricket originated in England
No one knows the definite date or year when cricket was invented, but experts generally agree that the sport may have been invented by children living in southeast England. In 1611, there was the first reference to cricket being played as an adult sport.
The sport earned its nickname of the “gentleman’s game” in the earliest years it was played because the first English cricketers came from affluent backgrounds. Such players were generally believed to have gentlemanly virtues. Interestingly, cricket has retained the nickname to date, and that’s not surprising; it’s a sport of fair play. No one needs to get dirty playing cricket.
Although a dictionary described cricket as a boys’ game in 1611, the first match in Women’s cricket was played in Surrey in 1745. A year before the match—in 1744—the first rules of cricket were written and amended in 1774.
- Cricket has been played in the Olympics once
This may surprise you, but cricket has been played at the Olympics once. More interestingly, that one time is not even in the modern age. The Olympics introduced the sport in 1896, and it made an appearance at the 1900 Games in Paris. The appearance involved only two teams and witnessed Great Britain win gold.
Of course, officials have tried to restore cricket to the Olympics, but India’s mighty governing body has proven itself to be a stumbling block. There have been talks of cricket’s inclusion in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, but nothing is set in stone as of the time of writing.
- The first cricket ball was made from wool
While it is hard to pinpoint when cricket became a thing, it is known that the first ball was made of wool. We bet the bowlers’ speed was probably unreachable, but the earliest cricketers made do with what they had.
- Cricket bats are made using white willow
One of the most important qualities of a cricket bat is its lightness. That’s why willow is the go-to material for cricket bat manufacturing, thanks to the wood’s lightness. Specifically, cricket bats are made from white willow, also known as cricket bat willow—a nod to the wood’s most important use.
White willows are native to Central and West Asia. The light wood helps hitters to hit the balls more accurately.
- The longest cricket match lasted for 14 days
Here is another unbelievable fact. Yes, the longest cricket match did last for a whopping 14 days. Test cricket is a variety of the sport currently played for five days, but there was a time when there was no time limit for the format. That time includes 1939, when England and South Africa played a test match.
The match was played without any time limit. So, it went on and on for 14 days. Interestingly, the match did not result in a winner despite the extraordinary length of the game. Instead, it finished as a draw because the ship taking the English cricket team home from Durban, South Africa, was due.
Don’t worry; today, you won’t have to wait that long to collect returns from your cricket bets wherever you play. And if you are in India and struggling to find a reliable betting site, you can have a great experience with any of the top betting sites in India.
- Cricket is played in three formats competitively
Competitive cricket has three varieties; test match cricket, one day international (ODI) cricket, and T20. The test match is the traditional format that lasts five days. Even though it might seem too long for a novice, cricket enthusiasts consider the test match format the purest form of the sport.
The T20 cricket format is a type of limited overs cricket that involves two teams. Each team has single innings and bats for a maximum of 20 overs. In contrast, the ODI format is another form of limited overs cricket played between two teams with international status. However, ODI matches last a maximum of 50 overs.
Essentially, the T20 format is the fastest variety, where games don’t last more than a few hours.
- The oldest living test cricketer is 96 years old
This is another interesting fact. South Africa’s Ronald Draper played his last test match in 1950, but he is still alive to date. Born December 24, 1926, Draper is almost 97 years old.
Meanwhile, the oldest person to play the game competitively was Wilfred Rhodes. He took over 4,000 wickets during his playing years and played his final test match aged 52 in 1930.
- 111 is an unlucky score… for most cricket fans
If you’ve learned a few things about cricket, you probably know that 111 is enough for a team to achieve. However, most cricket fans consider the score unlucky. To those people, 111 indicates that something could change in the future because the number looks like a wicket without bails (a batsman is dismissed if the bails are knocked off their wicket).
- Only one batsman has smashed a six from a test match’s first ball
Chris Gayle is the only batsman to hit a six off a test match’s first ball. The West Indies opener created the record against Bangladesh in November 2012. Gayle smashed 18 in the first over. The victim was Bangladesh off-spinner, Sohag Gazi.
- Shortest test match was between England and Australia
The shortest test match based on actual playing time was between England and Australia. The match was played at Trent Bridge on June 12, 1926. The game witnessed only 50 minutes of play.