Cricket

Cricket is a bat-and-ball team sport that originated in southern England. The earliest definite reference is dated 1598, and it is now played in more than 100 countries. There are several forms of cricket; at its highest level is Test cricket. Test cricket is followed in rank by One Day International cricket, the format of the Cricket World Cup. The last World Cup was televised in over 200 countries to a viewing audience estimated at more than two billion viewers.

A cricket match is contested by two teams, usually of eleven players each and is played on a grass field in the centre of which is a flat strip of ground 22 yards (20 m) long called a pitch. A wicket, usually made of wood, is placed at each end of the pitch and used as a target.The bowler, a player from the fielding team, bowls a hard leather, fist-sized, 5.5-ounce (160 g) cricket ball from the vicinity of one wicket towards the other, which is guarded by the batsman, a player from the opposing team.
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Meanwhile, the other members of the bowler's team stand in various positions around the field as fielders, players who retrieve the ball in an effort to stop the batsman scoring runs, and if possible to get him or her out. The batsman—if he or she does not get out—may run between the wickets, exchanging ends with a second batsman (the "non-striker"), who has been stationed at the other end of the pitch.

Each completed exchange of ends scores one run. Runs are also scored if the batsman hits the ball to the boundary of the playing area. The number of runs scored and the number of players out are the main factors that determine the eventual match result.There are several variations as to how long a game of cricket can last.