Cricket

In cricket two teams of eleven take turns to bowl and to bat; after hitting the ball the batters score runs by running between two wickets. There are three main formats: five-day Test matches, one-day internationals (ODI) and three-hour T20 games.

History

Cricket arose in sixteenth-century England and spread with the British Empire to India, Pakistan, Australia, South Africa and the Caribbean. The first Test match was played between Australia and England in 1877, and the International Cricket Council (ICC) was founded in 1909. Cricket's only Olympic appearance so far was in Paris in 1900; it returns in T20 form in 2028.

Major competitions

The ICC Cricket World Cup (since 1975), the T20 World Cup (since 2007), the World Test Championship, India's IPL and the Ashes series between England and Australia.

Cricket in the Turkic world

Türkiye (since 2008) and Hungary (since 2012) have been ICC members and have been Associate Members since 2017. Their national teams play in international T20 competitions in Europe, and the game is growing especially among communities of South Asian origin.