Know the game: what smart fans need to know about Cricket

If you aren’t accustomed to cricket, it can be a challenging game to follow.

It can be almost impossible to understand and follow the game, what strategies the players are seeking, and even questions like “who is actually winning the game?” don’t always have the most obvious answers.

If you know some basics of cricket, the game can be exciting to follow.

Cricket is puzzling to novices.

With its own lexicon of terms, needing a dictionary to understand and equipment vary depending on the type of cricket played – you’ll be forgiven for not wanting to get started.

Compared to other favourite sports like tennis, baseball, basketball and football where the objectives are easily understandable – namely scoring goals and points against the opponent’s team or players, cricket is not so obvious and utterly bewildering.

Originating in South East England during the 16th century, cricket has grown from its earliest known version into a global phenomenon. The earliest reference to cricket dates back to the late 16th century, highlighting its early years as a children’s game in the southeastern counties of England. Early cricket developed from these beginnings, gradually evolving in rules and popularity.

Introduction to cricket

Cricket is a major sport that brings together two teams in a contest of skill, strategy, and endurance. Played with a bat and ball on a large, oval-shaped field, the focal point of every cricket match is the rectangular pitch in the middle, where the action unfolds between two sets of wickets. Each team takes turns batting and fielding, aiming to score more runs than their opponents by hitting the ball and running between the wickets.

Originating in South East England during the 16th century, cricket has grown from its earliest known version into a global phenomenon, with matches played at both amateur and professional levels. Today, cricket matches are held in various formats, including the traditional five-day Test matches, fast-paced One Day Internationals, and explosive Twenty20 games. Whether played in the heart of England or on the world stage, cricket remains a sport that captivates millions with its unique blend of tradition and excitement.

Three types of cricket formats

• Test Cricket – the players wear ‘cricket whites’ and the game takes place over 5 days; where the game ebbs and flows in each team’s favour, and can end in a draw! A Test match is considered drawn if neither team wins after five days of play.
• One-Day International (ODI) – as its name suggests, the game lasts for only one day, with the aim of obtaining as many runs as possible within the limited time available to each team. Players wear colours and have individual player numbers, unlike cricket whites.
• Twenty20 Cricket – An even shorter game, typically played under 3 hours with rules similar to ODIs with the aim to hit the ball as hard as you can, accumulating more runs as quickly as possible. This format is more exciting and explosive. Again, players wear colours.

For the sake of this cricket guide, we’ll be concentrating on Test Cricket rules, as once you get these, both ODI and Twenty20 are easier to follow.

Cricket team: roles and structure

A cricket team is made up of eleven players, each bringing their own strengths to the game. The team is typically divided into specialist batsmen, bowlers, and versatile fielders, with the wicket keeper playing a crucial role behind the stumps. Batsmen focus on scoring runs by hitting the ball, while bowlers aim to outwit the batting side by delivering the ball with skill and precision, trying to take wickets and limit the number of runs scored.

The wicket keeper is a key member of the fielding side, positioned behind the wicket to catch balls the batsman misses and to attempt stumpings and run outs. The captain leads the team, making tactical decisions such as field placements and bowling changes, especially important in the longer format of Test matches and first-class games. In limited overs matches, teams often include players who specialize in either batting or bowling to maximize their impact within the shorter format. The structure and balance of a cricket team can be the difference between winning and losing, making every role vital to the outcome of the match.

Cricket rules

Each team comprises 12 players (the twelfth man is sort of a spare in case a player has to leave the field due to injury or a short period). Only 11 of the fielding team’s players take the field, along with two from the opposing batting team, with two umpires who ensure the teams play to the rules.

Each team takes it in turns to bat, with each team’s batting turn called an ‘innings’.

In test cricket, each side has two innings, whilst in ODIs and Twenty20 there is only one inning per batting team.

Batting takes place on the ‘pitch’ – a strip of earth covered in short grass in the middle of the ground. At each end of the pitch are three wooden stakes stuck in the ground, known as wickets, where each batsman is trying to ‘protect’ when batting.

The two teams take turns at batting, when not batting they field (and bowl).

As the game progresses, each team alternates between batting and fielding, with the action moving forward through each over and at the change of innings. Several members of the fielding team are specialist bowlers, and they ‘deliver’ (throw) the ball at the batsman, who holds a wooden bat and attempts to strike the ball around the field. Batsmen then score runs either by running between the two ends of the pitch after hitting the ball. The fielding team aims to both reduce the number of runs the batting team is trying to score and ultimately, to get the batsmen out.

The cricket ball itself is made of cork and covered in leather with a stitched seam around the diameter of the ball. Test cricket uses red balls, ODI and Twenty20 use white balls.

Cricket in play – batting 

The batsmen begin to score ‘runs’ for their team whilst protecting their wickets. Only one batsman at a time can face a ball from the bowler. Batsmen rotate being on ‘strike’ (awaiting delivery from a bowler) depending on how many runs they accumulate. However, both batsmen must run and get to safety behind their ‘crease’ to count a run.

The batsmen score one run if they run to the end of the pitch after hitting the ball. If the ball is struck and runs across the green outfield and hits the boundary (rope around the edge of the field), then four runs are scored. If the ball is hit with such force that it crosses the boundary without touching the outfield, then six runs are scored.

Hitting ‘fours’ and ‘sixes’ is the fastest way to accumulate runs, plus they aid in conserving the batsmen’s energy when running between the wickets. Batsmen who score 100 individual runs for their team score a ‘century.’ Scoring 50 runs in an innings is known as a ‘half-century,’ which is also considered a significant achievement for a batsman.

Cricket in play – fielding and bowling 

It’s the responsibility of the fielding team to limit the number of runs the batsmen score. They achieve this by placing their fielders in positions where the captain believes they are most likely to stop runs being scored.

Most bowlers are either specialists or all-rounders who bowl in specific spells, with some focusing on speed and others on technique. Bowlers roles are to either knock the wickets out with a direct hit or to make the batsmen play shots that lead to them being caught out. There are two types of bowlers, seam (also known as quick or fast bowlers) and spin bowlers. Spin bowlers use a slow pace to deceive batsmen, relying on guile and accuracy; the latter is a slower ball that spins in the air once thrown, causing a level of unpredictability for the batsmen to strike the ball. The former relies on speed and pace, leaving the batsmen limited time to decide where to hit the ball.

Each bowler bowls a succession of six balls, known as an ‘over’. An over is six legitimate balls (within the rules of bowling), because, for each illegitimate delivery, a run is given to the batting team. A ‘wide ball’ is illegal and is where the batsman cannot reach the ball because it is bowled wide of his reach. A ‘no ball’ is where the bowler has thrown incorrectly or overstepped his run up. Bowlers must deliver the ball with a straight arm to comply with the rules and avoid being called for an illegal action.

Once a bowler has completed his over, a second bowler begins the next over from the wicket at the other end of the pitch. The two bowlers rotate in tandem until they either start to bowl poorly, tire, leak runs to the batting team, or the pitch or ball begins to favour a different type of bowling. It is the captain’s role to determine which other bowlers will replace the incumbent one. Bowlers can only be replaced once they have completed their over.

According to the England Wales Cricket Board, in cricket, there are ten ways in which the fielding team can dismiss a batsman:

• Caught
• Bowled
• Out leg before wicket (lbw)
• Run out
• Stumped
• Hit wicket
• Handled/ling the ball
• Double hit/hitting the ball twice
• Obstructing the field
• Timed out

Once a batsman has been dismissed, they must leave the field, and the next incoming batsmen take their place. Once all ten batsmen are dismissed, in test cricket, the innings have ended.

Cricket scoring

Cricket scoring is written by the number of runs scored in relation to the number of wickets taken. So, for example, if the batting team has scored 89 runs but have lost three wickets, the score will look like 89/3

Innings come to an end once ten out of the 11 batsmen have been given out. The total number of runs scored by them plus runs accumulated from illegitimate deliveries count towards the innings final score. In test cricket, generally there are two innings per team (4 innings in total), but a team’s captain can ‘declare’ if he believes that his team’s core from one innings will outscore both innings combined of the opposing team.

Once an innings has been completed, it is the turn of the opposing team to score as many runs (and outscore the previous innings if possible) so that when their opponents begin their second innings, the total score is insurmountable.

In test cricket, if the team batting first scores 200 runs or more than the opposition, they the captain can choose to enforce a ‘follow-on’. This means that the opposing side must bat first in the second innings. The winning team has the most runs at the end of the second innings. A team can win by a certain number of runs if they bowl out the opposition before they reach the target, which is described as ‘won by n runs’. If the team batting last reaches the target with wickets in hand, the result is described as ‘won by n wickets’. Match results are often expressed in this way, showing how many runs or wickets the team won by.

In ODI and Twenty20 cricket, there are only one innings per team.

Cricket culture

Cricket’s culture is as rich and varied as the countries where it is played.

From the sun-soaked grounds of the West Indies to the bustling stadiums of India and Australia, cricket is more than just a sport—it’s a way of life.

In England, the game’s birthplace, cricket is steeped in tradition, with historic clubs and iconic venues shaping its identity. The influence of the Marylebone Cricket Club and the International Cricket Council has helped standardise the rules and spread the game internationally.

The sport’s cultural impact is evident in everything from literature and music to national celebrations and local rivalries.

Limited-overs matches and leagues, such as Australia’s Big Bash League and England’s T20 Blast have brought a new energy to the game, attracting younger fans and making cricket more accessible than ever.

Whether it’s the carnival atmosphere of a West Indies match or the passionate crowds in India, cricket unites people across continents, creating a shared language of sport and community.

Cricket’s popularity around the world

Although cricket is played by millions of people worldwide, it is far from being a truly global game. Only a handful of nations are permitted to play the highest level of test cricket. A few more are allowed entry into the One-Day and Twenty20 World Cups, which serve as a platform to expand the game’s popularity.

The leading test cricket nations are India, England, Australia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, South Africa, Zimbabwe, New Zealand and the West Indies (a federation of fifteen Caribbean countries). 

Each of these countries is represented by its national team, which competes in international matches. From 2018 both Ireland and Afghanistan were permitted to play their first tests, after being granted test status.

Every year, the world’s leading players (typically though from the test nations mentioned above) play for their countries in international tests, international ODI’s, and a combination of foreign and domestic Twenty20 games and tournaments. Historically, there was a distinction between amateur and professional players in cricket, but today, most top-level cricketers are professional players.

The three formats of cricket help to complement each other.

Twenty20, with its excitement and emphasis on big hitting, attracts the most investment, with World Twenty20 and Indian Premier League the most lucrative tournaments. The Cricket World Cup is the pinnacle of one-day events, held every 4 years and the most prestigious international competition.

Lastly, Test cricket remains the purest form of the sport, determining which cricket nation is superior and ultimately has the best cricketers.

Women’s cricket has also developed significantly, with the International Women’s Cricket Council playing a key role in promoting and organising the women’s game before merging with the ICC.

The future of cricket

Looking ahead, cricket is set to remain a major sport on the world stage, evolving with the times while honouring its storied past. Innovations like the Decision Review System have enhanced fairness and accuracy, while new competitions, including 10-over and 100-ball matches, are making cricket even more dynamic and accessible.

The International Cricket Council continues to drive the sport’s growth, organising world-class events like the ICC Cricket World Cup and the ICC T20 World Cup, which draw teams and fans from around the globe.

As technology and new ideas shape the way cricket is played and watched, the sport’s future looks bright. With its blend of tradition, innovation, and global reach, cricket will continue to inspire teams, players, and fans for generations to come.

How to bet on cricket: know the game

With this guide to cricket, you should have enough to get started watching your first test match. Of course, there is much more to learn but master these basics, and you’ll find yourself begging to know more about the intricacies and strategies of the game.

Cricket is a sport that combines patience, precision, and flair. With formats ranging from five-day Tests to fast-paced Twenty20 (T20) matches, each brings its own tactical approach and betting nuances.

Popular cricket betting markets include:

• Match winner – Bet on which team will win the match.
• Top batsman/bowler – Wager on which player will score the most runs or take the most wickets.
• Total runs – Predict the number of runs scored in an innings or match.
• Over/under markets – Bet on whether certain statistics (like boundaries or extras) will fall above or below a set figure.
• In-play betting – Live markets change ball-by-ball, offering dynamic opportunities.
• Player to score a half-century – Place bets on whether a player will reach a half-century (50 runs) in a match.

Smart cricket bettors consider tips and responsible betting practices:

• Format – Test, One Day, and T20 have very different rhythms and strategies.
• Pitch conditions – Dry pitches favour spin; green tops support seamers.
• Team selection – Injuries, rotation, or resting players can shift odds.
• Toss impact – In some venues, batting first provides a strategic advantage.
• Weather – Rain delays and poor light conditions can significantly influence match outcomes, especially in Test cricket.

Understanding cricket odds is essential. In decimal odds, the lower the number, the greater the likelihood, but the smaller the return. Bettors can win or lose money depending on the outcome of their bets. Spotting value involves assessing performance trends, conditions, and the specific match format.

If you’re new to betting on cricket, check out reputable betting tipsters who specialise in the sport. For experienced bettors, arbitrage betting software can help compare odds across sportsbooks and find profitable mismatches.

With international fixtures, leagues like the IPL, and year-round play, cricket offers something for every fan—whether you’re watching for passion or placing a strategic punt.