Indoor cricket
|
|
| Highest governing body | World Indoor Cricket Federation |
|---|---|
| First played | 1970s |
| Characteristics | |
| Team members | 8 players per side |
| Mixed gender | Mixed gender until under-13 upwards. |
| Type | Team, Bat-and-ball |
| Equipment |
Indoor cricket ball, cricket bat, collapsible wicket |
| Venue | Indoor cricket court |
Indoor cricket is a variant of and shares many basic concepts with cricket. The game is most often played between two teams each consisting of six or eight players.
Several versions of the game have been in existence since the late 1960s, whilst the game in its present form began to take shape in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Conventional cricket has been played indoors at Docklands Stadium in Melbourne, Australia. The codified sport of indoor cricket is not to be confused with conventional cricket played indoors, or with other modified versions of cricket played indoors (see other forms of indoor cricket below).
In terms of the concept of the game indoor cricket is similar to cricket. Like its outdoor cousin, indoor cricket involves two batsmen, a bowler and a team of fielders. The bowler bowls the ball to the batsmen who must score runs. The team with the highest score at the end of the match wins. Despite these basic similarities, the game itself differs significantly from its traditional counterpart in several ways, most notably on the field of play and the means by which runs are obtained.
The length of an indoor cricket pitch is the same as a conventional cricket pitch, and has 3 stumps at each end, but there the similarities end. The arena is completely enclosed by tight netting, a few metres from each side and end of the pitch. The playing surface is normally artificial grass matting. Whilst the pitch is the same length, however, the batsmen don't have to run the entire length. The striker's crease is in the regulation place in front of the stumps, but the non-striker's crease is only halfway down the pitch.
Indoor cricket is played between 2 teams of 8 players. Each player must bowl 2 eight ball overs, and bat in a partnership for 4 overs. A faster version of the game exists, where each side is reduced to 6 players and each innings lasts 12 overs instead of 16.
The stumps used in indoor cricket are not, for obvious reasons, stuck in the ground. Instead, they are collapsible spring-loaded stumps that immediately spring back to the standing position when knocked over. The ball used in indoor cricket is a modified cricket ball, with a softer centre. The ball also differs in that it is yellow in colour so to make it more obvious to see indoors against varied backgrounds. Both traditional outdoor cricket bats or more specialised lighter-weight indoor cricket bats may be used. The gloves are typically lightweight cotton with no protective padding on the outside. The palm-side of the gloves usually have embedded rubber dots to aid grip.
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Wikipedia