American (Baseball Fan) Reacts | Cricket Explained for Baseball Fans

England is the home of Cricket, as the English went around colonizing the world they spread the game and taught everyone how to beat them.

As an Australian, my advice to people who are new to cricket is to start with t20 and work your way up to test. Cause test can get pretty boring sometimes.

As an Indian who immigrated to US have seen few baseball games. Trust me they have very boring phases but cricket especially with T20 and ODI formats there are no boring phases.

One correction I want to point out is that at 16:23 target:222 doesn't mean that India scored 222 runs rather it means that India scored 221 runs and now to beat them England has to score atleast 222 runs. Basically, target is the least amount of runs a team has to make to defeat the opponent team which is always one run more than the no. of runs made by the opponent team.

5 days sounds a long time, but it is just a different rhythm. It becomes the background to your life for that time. I like all formats, but the tests are the most epic.

I'm from NYC. Huge baseball city obviously. Never cared, followed or played baseball at all. Then I lived in Australia for about two years. Absolutely fell in love with cricket and still follow all the international matches to this day.

I am a cricket fan and I am very happy that America is following cricket.❤

One key element of all cricket formats is the role of the Captain . Unlike most other sports, coaches have no role once the game gets underway. The Captains decide on tactics, bowler selection and field placings, great captains are tactical geniuses, especially the way they martial bowlers and move fielders to take advantage of the ground's dimensions and exploit the skill sets and vulnerabilities of the batters. For example if a batter is known to prefer the left side of their body for big hits, the captain can ask the bowler to bowl to the batter's right side to restrict scoring chances. Then when the batter gets frustrated the bowler can fire one to the batsman's preffered side and their over exuberance may result in them lofting the ball and being caught out. A good team will have specialised bowlers, there are 2 basic types; Fast bowlers and Spin Bowlers, the fast paced folk can deliver balls in excess of 90MPH, which can be intimidating, but if the batter gets their eye in, they can score many runs from fast bowlers. Spin bowling is a dark art, the ball can swing in the air or bounce left or right so the batter doesn't know where the ball is going to pitch. Good spin bowlers can mix left, right and straight balls in an over, which can become a very intense psychological battle. The Captain who is off the field also plays a role in the game, deciding which player will be out to bat next. Some for example like to alternate left and right handed batters, which causes headaches for the fielding side. It's a game of great subtley. Modern Televised games have a DRS element ,( digital review system), a fielding side appeals for an out and the batting side can challenge this with a DRS. (Bit like a booth review in NFL) It's great fun and adds to the tension, worth searching a video or 2 on the DRS and Hawkeye decisions The ball is about the size of a tennis ball and weighs 5 1/2 ounces and it is very hard, it stings when you catch it (if you have poor technique) only the wicket keeper is allowed to wear gloves. There have been deaths on the pitch when a player has been struck by a fast ball, these days batters are better protected, but broken fingers are not unusual and aggressive body-line bowling can lead to serious bruising. Some limited overs cricket is played with a white ball which is easier to see and works for games at night under food lights. First class cricket uses a red ball, which is harder to see and that in turn helps Captains set up more aggressive field placings. The ASHES the series between England and Australia came from a sporting column in a newspaper, and a trophy was commissioned containing some wood ash and presented to Ivo Bligh in Melbourne Australia the trophy is one of the smallest in the world, it is 4 inches high and made of pottery, it is currently "held" by Australia. after they drew the 2023 series with England in England. It resides more or less permanently in England and has never been an official trophy. The English team will travel to Australia next time to try to win the Ashes in a 5 match Test series. Test matches are played in both Cricket and Rugby, both sports being held in great regard by private schools in England and the old Empire. "Test" comes from the academic roots of the games.

I'm an American and a big fan of Cricket.

As a Brit.. I used to hate cricket… but then I watched a test game where the game was explained to me.. now I love it. It’s so intricate.

I remember when the great West Indies batsman Brian Lara scored 400 not out against England in 2004 during a test match, it was an incredible achievement.

They don't call it TEST cricket for a reason, it is indeed a true test because your technique and batting/bowling ability, stamina, concentration gets tested. But conversely its not exciting unless you truly love the game and/or are truly invested in the team or individuals playing. I live in the Caribbean so I grew up watching the West Indies, and regardless of the format I would watch my team play.

Another aspect of cricket is that it works really well as a radio commentary. You can follow the game pretty well and with much enjoyment with no video. This is in part because the game came with established descriptions of key fielding locations, ball movement, batting strokes, etc. And also, the radio commentators are very good at it.

Fun fact - in Australia, our football (AFL) was invented in the 1850s to keep cricketers fit in the winter, and that’s why AFL games are played on cricket ovals - so they get used all year round.

Very well explained. I’m a New Zealander and Cricket is our main summer sport, if I didn’t know anything about the game I would have learnt a lot. The narrator set out the basics and as he said, the rest are just details.

For your information, first international cricket match was played between USA and Canada (British province) in New York on 24-26 Sept 1844.

It sounds odd, but a five day draw (or a tie, they are different!) can be the most exciting cricket. One team desperately trying not to lose wickets, the other team desperately trying to bowl them out. Every ball bowled could be a turning point. Edge of the seat stuff.

Test cricket is widely regarded as the highest form of the game, and rightly so. As Australian radio commentator Jim Maxwell said, "It has drama. It has theatre. And most of all, wonderful expression of character."

The highest test innings was Sri Lanka vs India. India scored 537 for 8 wickets declared in their first iniings; Sri Lanka replied with a massive 952 for 6 wickets, declared. After all that, (I assume the five days was up) the match was drawn!

Cricket is way older than baseball and has developed as a more complex game. So Cricket>>> Baseball