Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players each on a field at the center of which is a 22-yard pitch with a wicket at each end, comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The game has various formats, ranging from Test matches, which last up to five days, to Twenty20 (T20), where each team plays a single innings of 20 overs.

Key Elements of Cricket

1. Players and Teams:

• Two teams of 11 players each.
• Each team takes turns to bat and bowl.

1. Equipment:

• Bat: Made of wood, flat on one side and humped on the other.
• Ball: Hard, leather-seamed ball.
• Wickets: Three stumps and two bails.

1. Match Formats:

• Test Cricket: Played over five days with each team having two innings.
• One Day International (ODI): Each team has 50 overs.
• Twenty20 (T20): Each team has 20 overs.

1. Basic Rules:

• Batting: The batting team aims to score runs by hitting the ball and running between the wickets or by hitting boundaries (four or six runs).
• Bowling: The bowler delivers the ball to the batsman, aiming to dismiss them by hitting the stumps, having the ball caught by fielders, or trapping the batsman in front of the wicket (LBW).
• Fielding: The fielding team attempts to prevent runs and dismiss batsmen.

1. Scoring:

• Runs: Scored by running between wickets or hitting the ball to the boundary.
• Extras: Including wides, no-balls, byes, and leg-byes.

1. Dismissals:

• Bowled: The ball hits the stumps.
• Caught:The ball is caught by a fielder without bouncing.