The Complete Beginner's Guide to Understanding Cricket

Cricket is played between two teams of eleven players. One team bats — trying to score as many runs as possible — while the other team bowls and fields — trying to get the batsmen out (take wickets) and stop runs from being scored. Teams alternate between batting and fielding across a series of innings. The team with the most runs at the end of all innings wins the match.

At the centre of the oval field is a rectangular strip called the pitch, 22 yards long. At each end of the pitch is a set of three wooden stumps with two small pieces of wood (bails) resting on top — this is the wicket. The batsman defends their wicket against the bowler, who delivers the ball from the opposite end of the pitch.

Runs are the currency of cricket. A batsman scores runs in several ways: by hitting the ball and physically running between the two wickets with their batting partner (each completed run between wickets is 1 run); by hitting the ball to the boundary rope along the ground (4 runs automatically, no running needed); by hitting the ball over the boundary rope without it touching the ground (6 runs).

Teams also receive extras — bonus runs awarded for illegal deliveries (no-balls, wides) or for the ball passing the wicketkeeper without being hit (byes, leg byes). The total runs scored across all innings decides the winner.

Getting a batsman out is called taking a wicket. There are ten possible dismissals: Bowled (ball hits the stumps and dislodges the bails); Caught (batsman hits the ball in the air and a fielder catches it before it bounces); LBW (ball strikes the batsman's body — not the bat — in front of the stumps, and the umpire judges it would have hit the stumps); Run Out (a fielder breaks the wicket with the ball while the batsman is outside their crease during a run); Stumped (the wicketkeeper breaks the wicket while the batsman is outside their crease and not attempting a run); Hit Wicket (batsman accidentally dislodges the bails with their bat or body); Obstructing the Field (which now absorbs Handled the Ball); Hit the Ball Twice; and Timed Out (a new batsman takes too long to be ready).

Bowled, caught, and LBW account for the vast majority of dismissals in professional cricket.

Cricket is played in three main formats, each with a different length and character. Test cricket is the original format — played over up to five days, each team bats twice, no over limit, draws are possible, and it demands the greatest range of skills and stamina.

One Day Internationals (ODIs) are played in one day — each team bats for a maximum of 50 overs (300 deliveries), and a result must be reached. T20 cricket (Twenty20) is the shortest format — each team bats for only 20 overs (120 deliveries), and a match is typically completed in about three hours. T20 is the most popular format for casual audiences due to its pace and high scoring.

The fielding team positions ten of its eleven players (the eleventh is bowling) around the field. Position names describe where each fielder stands relative to the batsman: behind the wicketkeeper is slip or gully; out to the left boundary (for a right-handed batsman) is square leg or fine leg; ahead of the batsman on the off side is cover, point, or mid-off; ahead on the on side is mid-on or mid-wicket.

The wicketkeeper always stands directly behind the stumps at the batsman's end. Fielding positions change frequently throughout a match as the captain adjusts the field for each bowler and each batsman.

Cricket rewards patience — both from players and spectators. Its complexity is part of its appeal: each ball is a contest between bowler and batsman, each over a tactical battle, each day of a Test match a shifting landscape of momentum. Start by watching a T20 match for pace and big shots, move to ODIs for strategy, and when you are ready, Test cricket will reveal itself as the deepest and most rewarding form of the game.