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 holding bats, 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 with the bat 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.
His strike rate is amongst the highest in the history of both ODI and Test cricket; his 57 ball century against England at Perth in December 2006 is the fourth-fastest century in all Test cricket. He was the first player to have hit 100 sixes in Test cricket. His 17 Test centuries and 16 in ODIs are both second only to Sangakkara by a wicket-keeper. He holds the unique record of scoring at least 50 runs in successive World Cup finals (in 1999, 2003 and 2007). His 149 off 101 balls against Sri Lanka in the 2007 World Cup final is rated one of the greatest World Cup innings of all time. He is one of only three players to have won three World Cup titles. (Full article...)
Jacques Kallis is a South African cricketer who plays as an all-rounder. He has been described as "the greatest cricketer ever", and is considered one of the best all-rounders of all time, along with Sir Garfield Sobers. He has scored 45 centuries (100 or more runs in a single innings) in Test cricket, the most by any South African, and 17 centuries in One Day International (ODI) matches. He leads all South African batsmen in runs in both Test and ODI cricket.
Kallis made his Test debut against England in December 1995. He scored his maiden Test century just over two years later, in his seventh Test match, making 101 against Australia. In the 2003–04 series against the West Indies, Kallis scored a century in each of the four Test matches, becoming the first cricketer to pass 100 in every match of a series lasting more than three Tests. His feat also marked the first time a South African player scored centuries in four consecutive Test matches, a run he extended in his next match, scoring 150 not out against New Zealand, to become the second player, after Sir Donald Bradman, to pass 100 in five consecutive Tests. Kallis passed Gary Kirsten as South Africa's leading run-scorer in Test cricket when he reached his 22nd century during the 2004–05 tour of the West Indies. His achievements during the 2004–05 and 2005 cricket seasons, during which time he scored six Test centuries, resulted in him being named as Test Player of the Year by the International Cricket Council (ICC). In October 2007 he became the fourth South African to reach 100 in both innings of a Test match when he did so against Pakistan. He scored a century in each of the following three Tests, tallying five centuries in four Test matches. In doing so, he joined Bradman, Matthew Hayden and Ken Barrington as one of just four players to have scored centuries in four consecutive Test matches on two occasions. Kallis scored his first double century in Test cricket in December 2010, scoring an unbeaten 201 in the first Test against India. Prior to his double century, Kallis had been the only player in the top 15 Test run-scorers not to have reached 200. Later during the same series, Kallis struck centuries in both innings of a match for the second time in his career, becoming the first South African to achieve the feat on two occasions. He reached his second double century, and his highest score, in 2012 against Sri Lanka, making 224. (Full article...)
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Shane Warne, a late Australian international cricketer, had taken 37 five-wicket hauls during his career playing for the Australia national cricket team. 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 five bowlers have taken more than 30 five-wicket hauls in their Test cricket careers. Warne has the second most five-wicket hauls in Test cricket, behind Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan. Despite this, he has only taken a single five-wicket haul in One Day Internationals (ODI). He was one of the most experienced Australian cricketers, and the second leading wicket taker in Test cricket history, with 708 wickets, again behind Muralitharan. He is twelfth on the all-time list of ODI wicket takers. In 2000, Warne was named the fourth of five Wisden Cricketers of the Century, behind Don Bradman, Garfield Sobers and Jack Hobbs.
Warne made his Test debut against the Indian team at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) in January 1992, and took his first five-wicket haul later that year, against the West Indies team at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. He has taken ten or more wickets in a match 10 times in his career, and is second in the all-time list behind Muralitharan, with 22. Warne's career-best bowling figures in an innings is 8 wickets for 71 runs, which he accomplished in 1994 against the English team at the Brisbane Cricket Ground, while his best match figures are 12 wickets for 128 runs, achieved in 1994 against the South Africa team in Sydney. Warne has been most successful against England, taking 11 five-wicket hauls against them, the first in 1993 and the last in 2006, and was most prolific at the SCG, where 5 of his 38 five-wicket hauls were taken. Warne retired from international cricket in January 2007, having taken 708 Test and 293 ODI wickets in his career. He announced his retirement from all forms of cricket in May 2011. (Full article...)
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Saqlain Mushtaq, a former Pakistanicricketer, took 19 five-wicket hauls during his career in international 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 cricket critics as a notable achievement, and fewer than 50 bowlers have taken more than 15 five-wicket hauls at international level in their cricketing careers. A right-arm off break bowler who represented his country between 1995 and 2004, Saqlain was described by the BBC as "a revolution in the art of attacking off-spin bowling". Saqlain was named by Wisden as one of their Cricketers of the Year in 2000.
In cricket, a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings is known as a five-wicket haul or fifer, and is regarded as a notable achievement. Fewer than 40 bowlers have managed to take 15 or more in their international cricketing careers. Chaminda Vaas, a former Sri Lankan cricketer and current fast bowling coach of the Sri Lankan team, has a total of 16 five-wicket hauls to his name, with twelve in Tests and four in One Day Internationals (ODIs). As a left-arm fast-medium bowler, he was accurate and particularly skilled in bowling both swing and reverse swing. Vaas often played a supporting role to Muttiah Muralitharan, Sri Lanka's off spinner and leading wicket taker. In the period from 1995 to their retirement from international cricket, the two bowlers accumulated 1,155 Test wickets and paved the way for many of Sri Lanka's victories.
Having made his Test debut in August 1994 against Pakistan, Vaas took his first five-wicket haul seven months later in March 1995 against New Zealand. He repeated the feat in New Zealand's second innings, taking a total of 10 wickets and led Sri Lanka to their first ever overseas Test win. His career-best bowling is the seven wickets he took against the West Indies for 71 runs in November 2001. He had taken another seven wickets in the first innings of the same match, bringing the total to 14 and making it the highest number of wickets he has taken in a single match. It is also the second-best bowling performance by a Sri Lankan bowler after Muralitharan's 16 wickets for 220 runs in 1998. Vaas is ranked third among Sri Lankan bowlers by the number of Test five-wicket hauls, behind spinners Muralitharan and Rangana Herath. (Full article...)
, Pakistan have faced ten teams in Test cricket, with their most frequent opponent being England, playing 86 matches against them. Pakistan have registered more wins against New Zealand than any other team, with 25. In ODI matches, Pakistan have played against 18 teams; they have played against Sri Lanka most frequently, with a winning percentage of 61.25 in 148 matches. Pakistan have defeated Sri Lanka on 92 occasions, which is their best record in ODIs. The team have competed against 18 different teams (including World XI) in T20Is, and have played 25 matches against New Zealand and 21 against Sri Lanka. Pakistan have defeated New Zealand on 15 occasions and Sri Lanka on 13 occasions in T20Is. They have lost to England nine times in this format of the game. (Full article...)
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Ricky Ponting is a retired Australian cricketer and former captain of the Australia national cricket team. He has scored centuries (100 or more runs) on 41 occasions in Test cricket and 30 times in One Day International (ODI) matches, both of which are Australian records. In Test matches, Ponting has scored hundreds against all Test playing countries. He is third (41) in the list of Test century-makers, behind Sachin Tendulkar (51) & Jacques Kallis (45). Ponting's first Test century was achieved against England at Headingley in 1997, when he scored 127. His highest innings is 257, scored against India in late-2003 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Ponting, among 41 centuries, has scored 6 double centuries, while his Test centuries have been made at 21 cricket grounds, including 15 at venues outside Australia. Ponting has been dismissed four times in the nineties, along with 96 on his Test debut. Ponting has scored centuries in both innings of a Test three times, equalling the record set by Sunil Gavaskar. This included a century in each innings of his 100th Test match thus becoming the only player in history to achieve that feat. In that match he also guided Australia to a successful run chase against South Africa on the final day. In 2006, Ponting scored seven centuries, the most by an Australian in a year.
In ODIs, Ponting has scored 30 centuries against 11 opponents. He has scored centuries against all cricketing nations that have permanent One Day International status and is the first ever batsman in the world to achieve this feat in ODI cricket history. His first ODI century was against Sri Lanka in the ninth match of the Benson & Hedges World Series, held in the Melbourne Cricket Ground in 1996. His highest ODI score is 164, which he scored against South Africa at the Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg in 2006. This propelled Australia to a new ODI world record score, although this mark lasted only a few hours before South Africa overhauled their target in the last over of the match. Ponting is third in the list of century-makers, behind Tendulkar (49) and Kohli (44). Ponting has scored 12 centuries at home grounds and 16 centuries at away or neutral venues. Seven centuries were hit at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. He has been dismissed four times in the 90s. Ponting previously held the highest score in a World Cup final with 140 not out against India in 2003, before it was broken by Adam Gilchrist in 2007. He has scored five World Cup centuries, along with Kumar Sangakkara, both are behind Tendulkar with six. His 145 against Zimbabwe in 1998 equalled Dean Jones' Australian record score, but this was surpassed in early-1999 by Adam Gilchrist's 154. (Full article...)
The hall of fame opened with ten inaugural members, ranging from Fred Spofforth, a pace bowler who retired from Test cricket in 1887, to Dennis Lillee who played his last Test match in 1984. , the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame comprises 61 members. All twelve members of the Australian Cricket Board Team of the Century are included, six of them amongst the inaugural members. The vast majority are men; Belinda Clark was the first woman admitted to the hall when she was inducted in 2014 (three years after she was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame). Five female Test captains have been admitted, along with 21 of their male counterparts. In December 2020, Johnny Mullagh became the first Indigenous Australian to be inducted into the hall of fame. Regarded as a standout player of the Aboriginal team which toured England in 1868, Mullagh is also the only member to have not played Test cricket for Australia. (Full article...)
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. 18 players have taken five-wicket haul twice. (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.
The Trans-Tasman Trophy is awarded to the winner of the Australia–New ZealandTest match series in cricket. The trophy is awarded to the team that wins a Test series, or one-off Test match, between the two nations. If the series is a draw, the holder retains the trophy. It was first competed for in the 1985–86 season, although six Test series between the nations were contested before the trophy's instigation.
, Australia hold the trophy following their 3–0 series win in the 2019–20 series in Australia. Australia also lead in overall wins, winning 11 of the 18 series, while New Zealand (nicknamed the Black Caps) have won 3, the remaining 4 ending in draws. Australia's Allan Border is the most successful batsman in the history of the trophy, scoring 1,356 runs in 25 innings at an average of 61.63. New Zealand's Ross Taylor holds the record for the highest score in the trophy's history, with 290 in the second innings of the second Test of the 2015–16 series in Australia. Taylor's score surpassed the previous record set in the same Test; Australian David Warner struck 253 in the first innings. Australian spin bowlerShane Warne has taken the most wickets in the trophy, with 103 in 20 matches at an average of 24.37, while New Zealand's Richard Hadlee has the best bowling figures with 9 wickets for 52 runs which he took in the first innings of the inaugural Test. Former Australian captainMark Taylor has taken the most catches, with 25 in 11 matches, while fellow countryman Ian Healy is the most successful wicket-keeper, making 42 dismissals in 11 matches. (Full article...)
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The Pakistan women's national cricket team represents Pakistan in international cricket and is a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) with Test and One Day International (ODI) status. They first competed in international cricket in 1997 when they played an ODI against New Zealand. Pakistan lost the match by 10 wickets. They recorded their first ODI win against the Netherlands, in April 2001 at the National Stadium. , Pakistan has played 150 ODI matches; they have won 44 matches and lost 104 matches, whilst two had no result. They have faced 13 teams in ODI cricket, with their most frequent opponent being Sri Lanka, playing 30 matches against them. Pakistan registered more wins against Ireland than any other team, with 12. They have lost to Sri Lanka in 21 matches. Pakistan has participated in three editions of the Women's Cricket World Cup: 1997, 2009 and 2013. In the 2009 edition, they defeated Sri Lanka in the group stage match by 57 runs. They also defeated West Indies in the "Super Six" match by four wickets, and finished at sixth losing in the fifth place playoff to the same team by three wickets.
Pakistan played their first Test match against Sri Lanka in April 1998, a match they lost by 309 runs. They have played three Test matches against three different opponents: Ireland, Sri Lanka and West Indies. , Pakistan has played 82 Twenty20 International (T20I) matches since their first such contest in 2009 against Ireland, winning 32 matches and losing 47; they also tied two match, whilst one had no result. They have competed against 10 different opponents, and their first win in the format came against Ireland at the Vineyard in May 2009. The team has played most frequently against Ireland, in 13 matches, and defeated them in 11 matches. Pakistan has participated in all the editions of the ICC Women's World Twenty20. They lost all of their games in 2009 and 2010 editions, and in the 2012 edition, they registered their solitary win over India. Pakistan lost the final of the 2012 Women's Twenty20 Asia Cup to India by 18 runs. In the 2014 ICC Women's World Twenty20, Pakistan finished at seventh place defeating Sri Lanka by 14 runs in the playoffs. (Full article...)
India played their first Women's One Day International cricket (WODI) match against England in the 1978 World Cup, which they hosted. They finished at the bottom of the table as they lost the remaining two games of the group stage. In the 1982 World Cup, they won their first ever WODI match when they beat the International XI by 79 runs at McLean Park, Napier. India's first overseas WODI series win came at the 1994–95 New Zealand Women's Centenary Tournament. They won the WODI series during their tour 1999 of England. They were the runner-up at the 2005 and the 2017World Cup tournaments. , they have played 301 WODIs against twelve different opponents, and have the fourth highest number of victories (164) for any team in the format; They have recorded 81 wins and have been the fifth most successful team in the T20 format. Since their first Women's Twenty20 International (WT20I) against England in August 2006, India have played 151 matches. They have been most successful against Bangladesh with eleven wins against them. They were among the semi-finalists in the 2009 and 2010ICC Women's World Twenty20 tournaments. (Full article...)
Anderson took a five-wicket haul on his Test debut in 2003 against Zimbabwe at Lord's Cricket Ground. He took 5 wickets for 73 runs in the match which England won by an innings and 92 runs. In July 2010, he took five-wicket hauls in both innings of a Test match against Pakistan at the Trent Bridge. In total, he took 11 wickets for 71 runs, which remains his best bowling figures in a Test match . He took another pair of five-wicket hauls at the same venue, against Australia in the first Test of the 2013 Ashes series. Anderson's career-best figures for an innings are 7 wickets for 42 runs against West Indies at Lord's Cricket Ground, in September 2017. , he has taken 32 Test five-wicket hauls at 11 cricket grounds, and has been most successful against India with six five-wicket hauls against them. (Full article...)
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A women's Test match is an international four-innings cricket match held over a maximum of four days between two of the ten leading cricketing nations. The first women's Test was played between England and Australia in 1934. As of 2014, the Pakistan women's team have played three Test matches since their first appearance in 1998, against Sri Lanka at the Colts Cricket Club. Pakistan have lost two matches, while one resulted in a draw. Twenty women have played Test matches for Pakistan.
As of 2014, four players have made the most appearances for Pakistan in Women's Test cricket, playing in all the three matches. Five players have appeared in two matches each, and eleven have played in one match each. Shaiza Khan has captained the side in all the three matches. Kiran Baluch has scored the most runs in total, making 360 from 6 innings. Her score of 242, made against West Indies in March 2004, is the highest total by any batsman in Women's Test cricket as of 2014. Khan has taken more wickets than any other Pakistani bowler in this format of the game, dismissing 19 batsmen over 3 matches. She has the best bowling figures in an innings among Pakistani bowlers, 7 wickets for 59 runs. Her 13 wickets for 226 runs in a match is the best performance by any bowler in the format. Khan, Urooj Mumtaz, and Batool Fatima have taken the most catches with three each. Fatima holds the record for the most Test cricket dismissals for Pakistan with five. (Full article...)
The only bowler to have taken three ODI hat-tricks is Sri Lanka'sLasith Malinga. Five other bowlers— Pakistan's Wasim Akram and Saqlain Mushtaq, Sri Lanka's Chaminda Vaas, New Zealand's Trent Boult and India's Kuldeep Yadav—have taken two hat-tricks in the format. Hat-tricks are dominated by spinners. Vaas is the first and only bowler to claim a hat-trick on the first three balls of any form of international cricket; he achieved the feat against Bangladesh during the 2003 World Cup. Malinga is the only player to claim four wickets in consecutive balls; he achieved the feat against South Africa in the 2007 World Cup. Four players have taken a hat-trick on their ODI debuts: Bangladesh's Taijul Islam against Zimbabwe in 2014, South Africa's Kagiso Rabada against Bangladesh in 2015, Sri Lanka's Wanindu Hasaranga against Zimbabwe in 2017, and Sri Lanka's Shehan Madushanka against Bangladesh in 2018. India's Chetan Sharma was the first cricketer to take a hat-trick in a World Cup match. Eleven hat-tricks have been taken in World Cup matches. (Full article...)
The following are images from various cricket-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1In 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 2New articles of the game of cricket, 25 February 1774 (from Laws of Cricket)
Image 3 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 4Afghan 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 5Photograph of Miss Lily Poulett-Harris, founding mother of women's cricket in Australia. (from History of women's cricket)
Image 6Plaquita, 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 7A 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 9A 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 10A 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)
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.