Cricket is a beloved sport by all Guyanese. It is a simple game played with a bat and a ball. Memories from my childhood are scattered with moments of playing cricket with my father, holding my miniature bat, and trying, with all my six-year-old strength to hit the ball as far as my tiny arms would allow. During cricket tournaments bars and rum shops would be filled with people watching matches, placing bets on their favorite team, and making merry (Needless to say sometimes things can get a bit heated and relationships may be ruined temporarily in the process).
Origins
Cricket is thought to have started as a game in which village lads bowled at a tree stump or at the hurdle gate into a sheep pen as early as the 13th century. The first record that shows cricket being played by adults was in the 15th century in the year 1611 (I know, that year sounds quite unreal in my head as well). Cricket gained popularity in England in the 18th century and quickly became a favourite sport. The sport was played with a hockey-like stick and the ball would be rolled on the ground instead of being tossed in the air. The changes to bat and pitch were established after the 1760s. Cricket was introduced to countries all over the world when colonization began during the 18th century.
Photo showing an early cricket match. Photo Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_cricket_to_1725#:~:text=The%20earliest%20known%20organised%20match,been%20organised%20between%20recognised%20teams.
Fun Fact: The first Women’s Cricket dates back to 1745.
Etymology Of The Word ‘Cricket’
There are many different origins for the word cricket and to be certain of which was the most influential on today’s spelling isn’t quite sure. Heiner Gillmeister, a University of Bonn expert in European languages, claims that the word “cricket” is derived from the Middle Dutch idiom for “hockey,” mit de (krik ket) sen (i.e., “with the stick chase”).
Cricket in the Caribbean
The British military brought cricket to the West Indies. Military leaders built cricket clubs, such as the St. Annes Garrison Club, and incorporated cricket fields into Caribbean garrisons. In the Barbados Mercury and Bridgetown Gazette dated June 1806, there is thought to have been the earliest mention of cricket in the West Indies. The Africans and Coloured people became quite fascinated by the game and would watch as the Whites play and they began to learn how to play and came up with their own strategies and techniques.
During the colonial period, the slaves were granted permission to play cricket along with the military officers as a positive reinforcement method. They had to prepare the wickets and were allowed to bowl and retrieve batted balls from the fields.
Some black cricketers were given the chance to play for clubs as long as the majority of the players were white as official cricket clubs started to emerge. Many cricket clubs, however, continued to be completely white, which prompted black players to create their own organizations that would only accept other blacks as members. In contrast to Jamaica’s Melbourne Cricket Club, which was founded in the late nineteenth century, clubs like the Barbados Cricket Committee (BCC), which was founded in the same year, maintained an all-white team policy.
Fun Fact: The first inter-island matchup between Demerara and Barbados took place in the Garrison Savannah in 1865.
Cricket in Guyana
Georgetown Cricket Club in Bourda. Photo Source: http://wikimapia.org/1953479/Georgetown-Cricket-Club-Bourda-Oval
Cricket is said to have been introduced to Guyana by the British colonizers, although the exact date is unknown. A significant development was the establishment of teams and subsequently organized clubs, which at first were based solely on ethnic lines, which helped and strengthened the developing significance of cricket in nineteenth-century British Guiana. The emergence of teams and clubs fueled competition in the local game, which at first and for a very long period after that comprised of “friendly matches.” Local team contests were first conducted in the twentieth century. It should be noted that the majority of the matches which were held were predominantly white team-mates.
The Parade Ground, which is located in Georgetown across from the Promenade Gardens and was given its name because parades and other military events were held there, was initially the only location for first-class cricket in Guyana. The Town Council controlled the land, which was renamed Independence Park after the colony declared its independence from Britain in 1966. The Georgetown Cricket Club (G.C.C. ), which was founded in 1858 and was exclusively composed of white people, was granted special permission to utilize the Parade Ground for its operations.
Fun Fact: Cricket is one of the most popular sports in the West Indies.
Caribbean Premier League (CPL)
The Caribbean Premier League was established in 2013 to replace the Caribbean Twenty20 cricket tournament in the Caribbean. It comprises of seven teams: Guyana Amazon Warriors, Jamaican Tallawahs, Barbados Royals, St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots, Saint Lucia Kings, Trinidad and Tobago Knight Riders, and Antigua Hawksbills.
How Cricket Is Played?
Photo of men playing cricket. Photo Source: https://www.pexels.com/photo/men-playing-cricket-3800541/
In the game of cricket, each team comprises of 11 persons who alternately take turns batting and scoring runs while the other team bowls and fields the ball to prevent the opponent from scoring. In cricket, scoring as many runs as you can against the opposition is the main goal. The captains of both sides will toss a coin prior to the game, and whoever wins will get to choose which team will bat and field first.
Each innings in a cricket match lasts for a certain amount of time, which is usually one or two. The number of innings each team will have is decided before the match. One team bats the ball during an inning while the other tries to field. Batting and fielding are alternated between the two teams.
Only two members of the batting team may be on the field while the game is in progress; however, all 11 members of the fielding team must be present. The bowler is a player chosen from the fielding squad; the other nine players are referred to as fielders. The wicket-keeper is the fielder who is positioned behind the wicket to catch any balls that might miss the wicket while the bowler attempts to hit it with the ball.
The opposing team’s batsman will try to hit the bowled ball before it strikes the wicket. Once the batsman has struck the ball, the remaining fielders must go after it. The batsman’s job is to bat the ball away in order to stop it from hitting the wicket. Additionally, after a ball is struck, both batsmen must run as many times as they can from their respective wickets to the other in order to score a run.
Here is a short instructional video on how to play cricket:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwII4y5vpyU
Cricket is not only a sport but it is a way for people to connect and bond. There are many heartaches that may be caused when viewing a match and many euphoric instances as well. The anticipation and thrill of the game is alluring, keeping many folks on their toes. Many other sports have been played in Guyana but none are quite as fascinating as Cricket. Who knew what once was a lowly children’s game would have such a historical impact across the Caribbean?
Article References:
- https://www.icc-cricket.com/about/cricket/history-of-cricket/early-cricket#:~:text=Cricket%20was%20introduced%20to%20North,British%20East%20India%20Company%20mariners.
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_cricket
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_cricket_to_1725#:~:text=The%20earliest%20known%20organised%20match,been%20organised%20between%20recognised%20teams.
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cricket_in_the_West_Indies
- https://www.myactivesg.com/sports/cricket/how-to-play/cricket-for-beginners/rules-of-cricket#:~:text=Cricket%20is%20played%20by%20two,as%20possible%20against%20the%20opponent.
- https://www.landofsixpeoples.com/news602/ns1062855.htm
