Equipment


Cricket equipment consists of a cricket ball, bat, wickets, stumps, and bails. The protective gear consists generally of pads, gloves, and helmets. We have given brief descriptions of each type of equipment below.

Ball: The official weight of a new cricket ball is between 5½ - 5¾ ounces. It is and the size shall measure not less than 8 13/16 inches and not more than 9 inches in circumference. The ball is very hard, being made of cork and string that is covered with leather. It resembles a baseball in size and hardness, however the leather covering is thicker than that of a baseball. The ball is joined in two hemispheres, by slightly raised stitches. The seam acts almost like an equator. The ball is traditionally dyed red and the stitching white; however nowadays, white white balls are used. This provides visual aid during night games and those that are played under artificial lighting.

Bat: The official length of the bat is not more than 38 inches in length. The base or blade of the bat is made of wood only and is no more than 4 1/4 inches at the widest part. The blade is made of willow and is flat on one side and humped on the other. This hump adds strength. The handle of the bat is very sturdy and usually made of wood as well. The handle and blade together gives the entire bat a maximum length of 38 inches.





Wickets: We learned earlier that 2 wickets are situated on either length of the pitch on a Cricket field. Each wicket is made up of 3 stumps. The top of each stump is dome-shaped with exception of the grooves of the bails, and is 28 inches above the playing surface. There are 2 bails on each wicket. The bails are a ½ inch in size and are placed on top of the 3 stumps at each end. Each stump is 1 inch in diameter and 32 inches high. The base of each stump is a spike which is hammered into the ground in an evenly spaced row. The outside edges of the outermost stumps are 9 inches apart so a cricket ball cannot pass between them.


Bails: These are the 2 wooden crosspieces that sit in grooves atop the adjacent pairs of stumps. You can see a clear picture of the bails if you click on the image of the wicket above.

Uniform: A cricketer’s uniform consists of long pants, a long or short-sleeved shirt depending on the weather conditions, and, sometimes, a sleevless or long-sleeved woollen pullover to accomodate cold climates. If a game is being played using a red ball, then the uniform must consist of white or cream. If a white ball is being used, the uniform must contain the team’s colours in a solid form only. The shoes are made of leather and the soles are sometimes spiked to grip the grass, which is most useful when making runs or in pursuit of a ball. A hat or cap may be worn to keep off the sun. Pads, gloves, and helmets are worn by the batsmen to prevent possible injury if struck by the ball.

Now that we’ve got through the basics, it’s time to learn about the layout of the field and how to play the game.

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