From Backyard To Stadium by Darren G. Burton

Cricket first began centuries ago as a crude and primitive game played by country boys in England. The boys would bowl at either a tree stump or a sheep pen hurdle gate. The gate was made of two uprights with a crossbar placed on top. The crosspiece was called a bail and the gate a wicket. When the wicket was hit, the bail was dislodged.

The very first cricket bats were fashioned out of branches, exhibiting shapes not dissimilar to that of today's hockey sticks. Gradually the shape of the bat was altered and perfected. The bat was straightened, the handle shortened and the blade widened.

Over the years, the length of the pitch used in these "backyard" style games alternated. By 1706 the pitch measured 20 metres (22 yards); the exact dimensions used in cricket today.

The very first recorded game of cricket played under organised rules took place in Sussex, England, in 1697.

In 1774, the modern weight of cricket balls was decided upon. The circumference of a cricket ball was standardised in 1838 and then reduced in 1927.

In 1787, the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) was founded, with its home based at Lord's. The club was responsible for revising the laws of cricket and was also the main source of worldwide cricket legislature.

During the 1700's, batting dominated bowling. This was due mainly to an ignorance of bowling skills and innovations, plus a lack of imagination and improvisation on the bowler's part.

Also during the 1700's, the first leg before wicket decision was made. In these early lbw decisions, umpires were required to determine whether the batsman's obstruction of his stumps was a deliberate move or unintentional. A batsman was only judged lbw if the umpire decided the obstruction was deliberate.

Bowling was all underarm early in the 1800’s. However, during this century the round arm revolution was instigated. In 1864, with the gradual development of overarm bowling, and disobedience to laws stipulating that the bowler's hand not go above his shoulder in delivery, a bowler was officially granted full liberty to bowl overarm.

During the 1800's, bowling continued to increase in pace. Because of this, and the risk of sustaining serious injury if struck, batsmen began protecting themselves with leg pads and batting gloves.

In 1849 it was agreed upon that the batting side should be allowed to have the pitch swept and rolled before the commencement of the innings. The heavy roller was introduced in the 1870's. As a result of this heavy roller somewhat deadening the pitch, fast bowling began to decline and batsmen gained the upper hand.

In order to return some impetus to the bowler, the "off theory" in bowling was developed around this time. This theory involved the bowler placing fielders in strategic positions on the off-side of the batsman and bowling to that side of the wicket. Batsmen counteracted this ploy by not playing at the ball. Matches soon developed into dull, lifeless, dour affairs, and spectators began to lose interest.

But the life of cricket was revived in England by a tour of an Australian team in 1882. The Australians, using a variety of pace and spin bowling, defeated England's best sides. The Australians bowled straighter and utilised better field placings in toppling the English teams.

Cricket spread overseas during the 1800's. Along with Australia, the West Indies, India, Pakistan and South Africa were all playing cricket. 1894 saw the first South African tour of England. And in 1905, the MCC made its inaugural tour of South Africa.

The early 1900's were considered to be cricket's golden age, with batsmen becoming more fluent and versatile in their stroke play, interlaced with a touch of elegance. Batsmen in this period also began to score runs more heavily and freely.

In the 1903-04 season in England, Australian B.J.T. Bosanquet introduced the "googly" on Australia's MCC tour. A googly was an off-break with a leg-break action. Swing bowling developed soon after. Batsmen had to adjust their respective techniques in a move to adapt to this new and foreign bowling innovation. Likewise, the fielding captain had to adjust his field placings.

In 1924-25, the eight ball over was adopted.

1928 saw the once cricketing giants, the West Indies, enter the Test arena. Also in this year, Australia's batting masterpiece, Sir Donald G. Bradman, emerged onto the international cricket scene. Bradman scored a massive 29 Test centuries (19 against England), and finished his career with a Test batting average of 99.94 runs.

New Zealand made its Test Match debut in 1931, with India following suit in 1932.

Interest in the game escalated throughout the 1930's with the advent of radio broadcasting of Test Matches.

The 1930’s also saw one of the black marks blotch the pages of cricket history. England skipper Douglas Jardine, while touring Australia with his team, introduced a new form of attack called "bodyline" bowling. This vicious form of bowling was mostly carried out by Jardine's main strike bowler, Harold Larwood. Jardine would set a predominantly leg-side field and have his bowlers aim their deliveries at the batsman’s body. If the batsman was fortunate enough not to be struck and injured, he would tentatively fend the delivery away and often be caught out by one of the close in leg-side fieldsmen. When Jardine employed bodyline bowling back in his home country after the Australian tour, cricket administrators quickly banished the tactic from the game.

By the start of the Second World War, the international cricketing circuit was well under way, resuming again at the war’s conclusion.

In a bid to make the game more interesting and exciting, one day cricket was launched in England in 1963, with the introduction of the Gillette Cup Knockout Competition. The competition placed a limit on the number of overs a batting side was to receive before its innings was closed. Initially this figure was sixty a side. But now, with only six ball overs in use, the games are usually fifty overs a side. This new smash and bash style of cricket proved an instant hit with spectators.

The 1970's saw South African tours of England cancelled due to fears of anti-apartheid demonstrations and violence breaking out.

Cricket was transported to Australia on the ship Calcutta. Officers aboard the vessel were responsible for introducing the game when the ship anchored in Port Jackson in 1803. The game quickly spread south to Victoria and across Bass Strait to Tasmania.

The first Test Match ever played in Australia, between Australia and England, took place in the summer of 1876-77. The game, which was held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, saw Australia win by 45 runs. Australia managed 245 and 104, to England's 196 and 108. The match sparked off so much public interest that a second Test Match was held a fortnight later. England took the honours in the return clash with a four wicket victory.

In 1878, an Australian team led by skipper David Gregory, left the shores on the country's first tour of England. The tour was highly successful from Australia's point of view. Australia won nine of its allotted first-class games, as well as four draws and only four losses.

After a victory by Australia over England at Kennington Oval, London, in 1882, the "Sporting Times" - a London newspaper - was prompted to publish a notice in the paper's "In Memoriam" column stating that English cricket had died on the day of the Test Match defeat, and that the body would be cremated and the ashes taken back to Australia.

When England returned to Australia for a tour the following season and won the series, English captain, the Honourable Ivo Bligh, was given an urn full of ashes. The urn was honoured and given residence at Lord's. This urn is responsible for initiating the "Ashes” Test Series.

During 1887, Australia introduced the six ball over. Previously overs were comprised of only four balls, then five. In 1918, it was changed to eight balls, and reverted back to six in 1979.

In December of 1960, the first ever tied Test was played out. The match was between Australia and the West Indies in Brisbane. Australia was also involved in only the second tied Test in history, when it tied with India at Madras in 1986.

In 1977, Wor1d Series Cricket emerged onto the scene, in the light of complaints from top players about being underpaid as compared to other sports. Kerry Packer, head of Australian Consolidated Press Ltd and the National Nine Television Network, was responsible for the controversial series of matches. Top players from all cricketing nations eagerly signed up for the series.

Although World Series Cricket demised after only several seasons, it left its mark permanently on the cricketing world. The coloured clothing remained, along with the use of white balls, and day/night matches. Television coverage of cricket took on a whole new degree of excellence. Elite players are now well paid for the show they put on for an international cricket-hungry audience.