Fielding (cricket)
Fielding in the sport of cricket is the action of fielders in collecting the ball after it is struck by the batsman, to limit the number of runs that the batsman scores and/or to get the batsman out by catching the ball in flight or by running the batsman out. There are a number of recognised fielding positions, they can be categorised into the offside and leg side of the field. A fielder or fieldsman may field the ball with any part of his body. However, if while the ball is in play he wilfully fields it otherwise, the ball becomes dead and five penalty runs are awarded to the batting side, unless the ball struck a batsman not attempting to hit or avoid the ball. Most of the rules covering fielders are in Law 28 of the Laws of cricket. In the early days of Test cricket, fielding was not a priority and many players were sloppy when it came to fielding. Fielding became more professional, much with the advent of limited overs cricket matches, saving runs became more important. Fake fielding is the action caused by a fielder when he makes movements of some of his body parts as if he is fielding only to confuse batsmen into making mistakes.
It is now a punishable offence under the new ICC rules. There are 11 players in a team: one of them is the bowler and another is the wicket-keeper, so only nine other fielding positions can be occupied at any time. Where fielders are positioned is a tactical decision made by the captain of the fielding team; the captain may move players between fielding positions at any time except when a bowler is in the act of bowling to a batsman. There are a number of named basic fielding positions, some of which are employed commonly and others that are used less often. However, these positions are neither fixed nor defined, fielders can be placed in positions that differ from the basic positions; the nomenclature of the positions is somewhat esoteric, but follows a system of polar coordinates – one word specifies the angle from the batsman, is sometimes preceded by an adjective describing the distance from the batsman. Words such as "backward", "forward", or "square" can further indicate the angle; the image shows the location of most of the named fielding positions based on a right-handed batsman.
The area to the left of a right-handed batsman is called the leg side or on side, while that to the right is the off side. If the batsman is left-handed, the leg and off sides are reversed and the fielding positions are a mirror image of those shown; some fielding positions are used offensively. That is, players are put there with the main aim being to catch out the batsman rather than to stop or slow down the scoring of runs; these positions include. Short leg known as bat pad, is a position intended to catch balls that unintentionally strike the bat and leg pad, thus end up only a metre or two to the leg side. Wicket-keeper Long stop; this position is sometimes euphemistically referred to as fine leg. Sweeper, an alternative name for deep cover, deep extra cover or deep midwicket defensive and intended to prevent a four being scored. Cow corner, an informal jocular term for the position on the boundary between deep midwicket and long on. On the 45. A position on the leg side 45° behind square, defending the single.
An alternative description for backward short leg or short fine leg. The bowler, after delivering the ball, must avoid running on the pitch so ends up fielding near silly mid on or silly mid off, but somewhat closer to the pitch. Saving one or On the single As close as the fielder needs to be to prevent the batsmen from running a quick single about 15–20 yards from the wicket. Saving two As close as the fielder needs to be to prevent the batsmen from running two runs about 50–60 yards from the wicket. Right on Literally, right on the boundary. Deep, long Farther away from the batsman. Short Closer to the batsman. Silly Very close to so-called because of the perceived danger of doing so. Square Somewhere along an imaginary extension of the popping crease. Fine Closer to an extension of an imaginary line along the middle of the pitch bisecting the stumps, when describing a fielder behind square. Straight Closer to an extension of an imaginary line along the middle of the pitch bisecting the stumps, when describing a fielder in front of square.
Wide Further from an extension of an imaginary line along the middle of the pitch bisecting the stumps. Forward In front of square. Backward Behind square. Additionally, commentators or spectators discussing the details of field placement will use the terms for descriptive phrases such as "gully is a bit wider than normal" or "mid off is standing too deep, he should come in shorter" (meaning he is too far away and should be positi
Slip (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a slip fielder is placed behind the batsman on the off side of the field. They are placed with the aim of catching an edged ball, beyond the wicket-keeper's reach. Many teams employ three slips. A floating slip is sometimes employed in limited over games, who patrols an area in the slip cordon that would ordinarily be occupied by more than one fielder; the slip cordon's distance from the batsman increases with the pace of the bowler. Because of the resulting geometry, spin bowlers have fewer slips in the cordon than a fast bowler would in an equivalent game situation; as fielding in the slips requires quick reflexes and sure hands the most adept catchers in the team will make up the slip cordon. Most slip fielders are top order batsmen. Specialist slip fielders are sometimes called "slippers"; the term slips is used to refer to the area of the field where the slip cordon stands, or nth slip used to refer to one slip fielder's position—e.g. A ball may be described as being edged through third slip if it goes where a third slip would otherwise have been.
With the most number of catches in test cricket, former Indian captain Rahul Dravid is considered one the greatest slip fielders of all time. Mark Waugh would be considered the best of all time, with other brilliant exponents of the craft including Brian Lara, Sunil Gavaskar, Shane Warne, Michael Clarke, Sir Garfield Sobers, Bobby Simpson, Ian Chappell, Jacques Kallis, Brian McMillan, Mark Taylor, Ricky Ponting, VVS Laxman, Mahela Jayawardene, Stephen Fleming, Younis Khan and Matthew Hayden; the gully fielder is an extension of the line of slips and fields square to the batsman. A fielder standing in gully would be standing on the imaginary straight line that extends from the on-side corner of batter's popping crease to middle stump towards the slip cordon; the position of gully was invented in the 1880s by Arthur Jones, who became England captain, at Bedford Modern School in Bedford. It was adopted by EHD Sewell at Bedford School and gained in popularity thereafter. Enticing the batsman to edge and hit a catch to the wicket-keeper or slips is the standard wicket-taking tactic in off theory.
To do so, the bowler tries to make the ball deviate off its expected line away from the batsman's body on the off-side. Outswingers or leg cutters, or the standard leg spinner are delivery types. Unsurprisingly, bowlers bowling these deliveries generally have larger slip cordons than those who are not. On occasion, four or five slips are called for. England used seven slips in the first Test against West Indies in Jamaica in 2004. A fielder in the equivalent position on the on side of the wicket-keeper is known as a leg slip, it is illegal, under Law 41.5, to have more than two fielders in the area between square leg and long stop, to prevent the fielding team from making use of bodyline tactics. Writing in The Cricketers of My Time, John Nyren of Hambledon hints at the origin of the word "slips" when he describes the function of a long stop as a fielder, required to cover many slips from the bat, both to the leg and the off-side, it could be derived from hunting "like greyhounds in the slips" from Shakespeare's Henry V.
The hound would be straining against the slip-lead awaiting its release to chase the quarry. The slip-fielders are readied in the same manner, coiled ready to spring; the Cricket Captains of England by Alan Gibson, ISBN 1-85145-395-4
The Oval
The Oval referred to for sponsorship purposes as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since it was opened in 1845, it was the first ground in England to host international Test cricket in September 1880. The final Test match of the English season is traditionally played there. In addition to cricket, The Oval has hosted a number of other significant sporting events. In 1870, it staged England's first international football match, versus Scotland, it hosted the first FA Cup final in 1872, as well as those between 1874 and 1892. In 1876, it held both the England v Wales and England v Scotland rugby international matches and, in 1877, rugby's first Varsity match, it hosted the final of the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy. The Oval is built on part of the former Kennington Common. Cricket matches were played on the common throughout the early 18th century; the earliest recorded first-class match was the London v Dartford match on 18 June 1724.
However, as the common was used for public executions of those convicted at the Surrey Assizes, cricket matches had moved away to the Artillery Ground by the 1740s. Kennington Common was enclosed in the mid 19th century under a scheme sponsored by the Royal Family. In 1844, the site of the Kennington Oval was a market garden owned by the Duchy of Cornwall; the Duchy was willing to lease the land for the purpose of a cricket ground, on 10 March 1845 the first lease, which the club assumed, was issued to Mr. William Houghton by the Otter Trustees who held the land from the Duchy "to convert it into a subscription cricket ground", for 31 years at a rent of £120 per annum plus taxes amounting to £20; the original contract for turfing The Oval cost £300. Hence, Surrey County Cricket Club was established in 1845; the popularity of the ground was immediate and the strength of the SCCC grew. On 3 May 1875 the club acquired the remainder of the leasehold for a further term of 31 years from the Otter Trustees for the sum of £2,800.
In 1868, 20,000 spectators gathered at The Oval for the first game of the 1868 Aboriginal cricket tour of England, the first tour of England by any foreign side. Thanks to C. W. Alcock, the Secretary of Surrey from 1872 to 1907, the first Test match in England was played at The Oval in 1880 between England and Australia; the Oval, became the second ground to stage a Test, after Melbourne Cricket Ground. In 1882, Australia won the Test by seven runs within two days; the Sporting Times printed a mocking obituary notice for English cricket, which led to the creation of the Ashes trophy, still contested whenever England plays Australia. The first Test double century was scored at The Oval in 1884 by Australia's Billy Murdoch. Surrey's ground is noted as having the first artificial lighting at a sports arena, in the form of gas-lamps, dating to 1889; the current pavilion was completed in time for the 1898 season. In 1907, South Africa became the second visiting Test team to play a Test match at the ground.
In 1928, the West Indies played its first Test match at The Oval, followed by New Zealand in 1931. In 1936, India became the fifth foreign visiting Test side to play at The Oval, followed by Pakistan in 1954 and Sri Lanka in 1998. Zimbabwe and Bangladesh have yet to play a Test match at The Oval; the Oval is referenced by the poet Philip Larkin in his poem about the First World War, "MCMXIV". During World War II, The Oval was requisitioned housing anti-aircraft searchlights, it was turned into a prisoner-of-war camp, intended to hold enemy parachutists. However, as they never came, The Oval was never used for this purpose; the first One Day International match at this venue was played on 7 September 1973 between England and West Indies. It hosted matches of the 1975, 1979, 1983, 1999 World Cups, it hosted five of the fifteen matches in the 2004 ICC Champions Trophy, including the final. The Oval once held the record for the largest playing area of any Test venue in the world; that record has since been surpassed by Gaddafi Stadium in Pakistan, although The Oval remains the largest in Great Britain.
Billionaire Paul Getty, who had a great affinity for cricket and was at one time SCCC President, built a replica of The Oval on his Wormsley Park estate. The famous gasholders just outside the ground were built around 1853. With the gasholders long disused, there was much speculation as to whether they should be demolished. In 2016 the main gasholder was given official protected status as a important industrial structure. On 20 August 2006, The Oval saw the first time a team forfeited a Test match. Pakistan were upset after umpires Darrell Hair and Billy Doctrove docked them five runs and changed the ball after ruling that the team had tampered with it on the fourth day of the final Test against England. Pakistan debated the matter during the tea break and refused to come out for the final session in protest. By the time they relented and decided to resume, the umpires had called time on the match and awarded the game to England by default; the Oval hosted its hundredth Test, against South Africa, on 27 July, 2017, becoming the fourth Test venue in the world after Lord's, MCG and SCG to do so.
Moeen Ali became the first player to take a Test hat-trick at The Oval, bowling out South Afri
Mark Boucher
Mark Verdon Boucher is a former South African cricketer and coach, who played all three formats of the game. Boucher holds the record for the most Test dismissals by a wicket-keeper, with 532 catches and 555 total dismissals, he has represented Border, South Africa, Africa XI, ICC World XI and Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League. He had been a regular feature of the South African side since the 1997/1998 tour to Australia, until his retirement from international cricket in July 2012 after a serious eye injury against Somerset. Born in East London, Boucher was educated at Selborne College. From the time he replaced Dave Richardson until his retirement, Boucher was South Africa's first-choice wicketkeeper, is regarded as one of, if not, the greatest wicketkeepers South Africa has had, he holds the record for the most dismissals in Test cricket. He reached the record when he overtook the former Australian wicketkeeper Ian Healy in the first test of the Bank Alfalah Test Series versus Pakistan in Karachi on 3 October 2007 when he stumped Umar Gul off the bowling of Paul Harris.
He lost the record to Adam Gilchrist before regaining it when he caught Mushfiqur Rahim of Bangladesh in February 2008. Boucher is third on the all-time list in One Day Internationals, he once held the record for the highest score by a nightwatchman in Test cricket with 125 for South Africa v Zimbabwe at Harare in November 1999. On 12 March 2006 he hit the winning runs for South Africa against Australia in what had been the Greatest One Day International played. In 2006, on 20 September, he made his maiden ODI century, hitting an unbeaten 147 against Zimbabwe from a mere 68 balls, his hundred came up off just 44 balls, the second-fastest ODI century by a South African after AB de Villiers. Boucher did benefit, from some poor Zimbabwean fielding, being dropped no fewer than six times during his innings, he has played over one hundred consecutive ODIs for his country and is one of only eleven players, including Hansie Cronjé and Shaun Pollock, to achieve this. In February 2007 he and Jacques Kallis combined to hit Mohammad Asif for 28 runs off an over in an ODI at SuperSport Park in Centurion.
It broke the South African record for most runs off an over, held by both Shaun Pollock and Graeme Smith with 27. However, this was broken by Herschelle Gibbs with 36 runs off one over, the most possible without no-balls or wides. In the period while the team was under Shaun Pollock's leadership, Boucher was the regular vice-captain of the team and lead the team in tests four times; these matches include a victory over an achievement which Pollock could not manage. Boucher started his 2007 Cricket World Cup campaign in good form with a 21-ball half century, the fastest in World Cup history – scoring 75 not out against the Netherlands as South Africa scored 353 for 4 wickets in a rain-shortened World Cup match. However, this was overshadowed by Herschelle Gibbs's six sixes in an over, the 3rd time in world cricket and first time in a One Day International match, thus in the World Cup, he became the first wicketkeeper in the history of test cricket to reach the milestone of 400 dismissals when he caught Danish Kaneria off the bowling of Makhaya Ntini on 10 October 2007 in the second test of the Bank Alfalah Test Series against Pakistan at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore.
Despite being South Africa's consistent wicket-keeper for a long time, age meant that batsman AB de Villiers was given a chance with the gloves and he impressed. However de Villiers is one of the team's best outfielders and therefore Boucher continued to feature in the team, he participated in the 2010 ICC World Twenty20 and the South African coach Corrie van Zyl said that both Boucher and Herschelle Gibbs have the chance to get back in the team. He stated that Boucher will get his chance in the team provided that he performs in the domestic ODI tournament and that both of them had a good chance in playing for the 2011 Cricket World Cup He was however still selected for the Test series against Pakistan and continues to be South Africa's number one test wicket-keeper Also during that time Boucher recovered from his six-week shoulder injury and stated that he is desperate for a return to international cricket, he stated that his main aim was to participate in the 2011 Cricket World Cup Mark Boucher suffered a serious eye injury on 9 July 2012, after being struck on his left eye by a bail.
He was not wearing a protective helmet or glasses when he was struck by the bail after leg-spinner Imran Tahir bowled Somerset's Gemaal Hussain. Following surgery to the eyeball, Boucher was ruled out of the rest of the tour. Due to the severity of the injury, Boucher—who had planned to retire at the end of the tour—retired from International Cricket on 10 July. There was no damage to the retina, so it was felt that there was a chance for Boucher to recover some vision in the damaged eye. After undergoing two operations on his injured eye, surgeons announced that they were "cautiously optimistic". Tributes included comments from Kevin Pietersen. Pollock congratulated him on a great career, while Pietersen called for more support from fans and those involved in sports, saying "Let’s keep it going! Bouch is a fighter!". In May 2017, he was named Coach of the Year at Cricket South Africa's annual awards. South Africa Player of the Year 1998 South Africa Player of the Year 2000 South Africa Player of the Year 2006 Wisden Cricketer of the Year 2009 He holds the record for the most number of dismissals as wicketkeeper in all forms of international c
Run (cricket)
In cricket, a run is the unit of scoring. The team with the most runs wins in many versions of the game, always draws at worst, except for some results decided by the Duckworth–Lewis method. A single run is scored when a batsman has hit the ball with the bat and directed it away from the fielders so that both the striker and non-striker partner are able to run the length of the pitch, crossing each other and arriving safely at the other end of the pitch, before the fielders can retrieve the ball. Depending on how long it takes the fielding team to recover the ball, the batsmen may run more than once; each completed run increments the scores of the striker. A batsman may score 4 or 6 runs by striking the ball to the boundary; the team's total score in the innings is the aggregate of all its batsmen's individual scores plus any extras and penalties. To complete a run, both batsmen must make their ground, with some part of their person or bat behind the popping crease at the other end of the pitch.
Attempting a run carries a risk factor because either batsman can be run out, if the fielding side can break the wicket with the ball before the batsman has completed the run. Scoring runs is the subject of Law 18 in the Laws of Cricket. Boundaries are covered in Law 19. How the Batsman makes his ground is Law 30. Batsmen run singles and "twos" and "threes". If the batsmen run a single or a three, they have "changed ends", so the striking batsman becomes the non-striker for the next delivery, vice versa. If the single or three is scored off the last delivery of the over, the striker, having changed ends, thus retains strike for the first delivery of the next over. There are rare instances of "fours" being all run. A "five" is possible, but arises from a mistake by the fielders, such as an overthrow; the batsman can deliberately play without attempting to score. The batsmen stop running when they judge that the ball is sufficiently controlled by the fielding team to prevent another run, for example when it is returned to the bowler or the wicketkeeper.
If, when turning for an additional run, one of the batsmen fails to ground some part of his person or bat behind the popping crease, the umpire declares a "short run" and the run does not count but if the bat is dropped, runs do count as long as each batsman makes his ground with his bat or person somehow. The act of running is unnecessary. If the ball reaches the boundary having made contact with the ground, four runs are added to the scores of both the batsman and the team. If the batsman succeeds in hitting the ball over the boundary on the full, six runs are added. If the batsmen are running when the ball reaches the boundary, they can stop, their team will be awarded either the number of runs for the boundary, or runs the batsmen completed together, whichever is greater. In addition to runs scored by the batsman, the team total is incremented by extras known as "sundries", which arise because the bowler has delivered a wide or no-ball, or the fielders have caused a no-ball, each of which incurs a one-run penalty, or have failed to control a ball which did not make contact with the bat thus allowing the batsmen to run.
Byes, leg-byes and wides that elude the fielders and cross the boundary score four in addition to the one-run penalty scored for a no-ball or wide if applicable. Extras are not added to the batsman's individual score. Five penalty runs are awarded by the umpires, either to the batting team or to the fielding team as applicable, for infringement of some of the Laws relating to unfair play or player conduct. For example: five runs are awarded to the batting team if the ball hits a helmet on the ground belonging to the fielding team. If the umpire considers a short run to have been a deliberate act he will disallow all runs attempted, impose a five-run penalty on the batting team. In the written records of cricket, "run" is as old as "cricket" itself. In the earliest known reference to the sport, dated Monday, 17 January 1597, Surrey coroner John Derrick made a legal deposition concerning a plot of land in Guildford that when: "a scholler of the Ffree Schoole of Guildeford and diverse of his fellowes did runne and play there at creckett and other plaies".
It may well be. For a long time, until well into the 18th century, the scorers sat on the field and increments to the score were known as "notches" because they would notch the scores on a stick, with a deeper knick at 20; the same method was used by shepherds. In the earliest known Laws of cricket, dated 1744, one of the rules states: "If in running a Notch, the Wicket is struck down by a Throw, before his Foot, Hand, or Bat is over the Popping-Crease, or a Stump hit by the Ball, though the Bail was down, it's out". In the 1774 version, the equivalent rule states: "Or if in running a notch, the wicket is struck down by a throw, or with the ball in hand, before his foot, hand, or bat is grounded over the popping-crease; these are the earliest known references to running as the means of scoring. The change o
Moeen Ali
Moeen Munir Ali is an English international cricketer. A batting all-rounder, he is a left-handed batsman and right-arm off-spinner, who played county cricket for Warwickshire before moving to Worcestershire after the 2006 season; as of 2017, Ali represents England in all formats of the game. He won Warwickshire's NBC Denis Compton Award in both 2004 and 2005 and Worcestershire's NBC Denis Compton Award in 2009, his off-spin is marked by a spun off-break and a well-concealed arm ball. He was named one of the Cricketers of the Year in the 2015 Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. Ali is a Muslim, of Pakistani descent, was born in Birmingham, he belongs to the Mirpuri community. Ali's grandmother was Betty Cox, White British making him mixed-race, he can understand Punjabi. He became known fondly as "the beard" at New Road. Ali's father worked as a taxi driver, as a psychiatric nurse, he grew up on the same street as fellow cricketers Kabir Ali, Naqaash Tahir, Rawait Khan. His brothers Kadeer and Omar are cricketers.
Ali signed for Warwickshire aged just 15, hitting a half-century for the county's Second XI a few days before his 16th birthday. After more games at this level in 2004, a first outing for England Under-19s against their Bangladeshi counterparts he spent the succeeding winter playing for the Under-19s on their tour of India. 2005 saw. He impressed with the bat, making 57 not out in his only innings, sent down two overs for 15 runs. Playing that summer against Sri Lankan Under-19s, he starred in the final "Test" by making 52 not out and 100 not out and claiming seven wickets, he was selected for the 2006 Under-19 Cricket World Cup, held in Sri Lanka, was promoted to captain by coach Andy Pick. He made three half-centuries in the tournament, took seven wickets. Ali received additional opportunities for his county in 2006; the first of these came against Derbyshire, where he dismissed Steffan Jones to claim his maiden first-team wicket. He took his first wickets in first-class cricket, his first three victims were all Test players: Stuart Law, Dominic Cork and Dave Mohammed.
With the bat he scored 68 on his County Championship debut against Nottinghamshire equalled that score against Durham. Ali's opportunities were somewhat limited and Alex Loudon took his place in the side. In July 2006, with the expiry of his Warwickshire contract only months away, Ali brushed off rumours of a move to Worcestershire, saying "I don't know anything about it", but in September it was announced that Ali would indeed be leaving to join that county; the player himself said that he had been impressed by Worcestershire and felt it gave him the best prospects of furthering his career. He made his debut for Worcestershire in their ten-wicket win over Loughborough UCCE on 25 April 2007. Ali's highest first-class score of 250, scored against Glamorgan at New Road, featured a partnership of 219 with Matt Pardoe. At the end of the 2010 season Worcestershire secured promotion to the first division of the County Championship. After he was overlooked by the England Lions and England Performance Programme at the end of the 2010 English season, Moeen opted to play club cricket in Bangladesh at the suggestion of Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan.
Shakib played for Worcestershire as their overseas player in 2010 and the link with the club led to Moeen representing Mohammedan Sporting Club in the Ispahani Premier Division. During the 2011 season, Moeen spent three weeks as Worcestershire's acting captain while the usual club captain, Daryl Mitchell, was injured. Though he had captained England Under-19s, it was the first time; as he was inexperienced, Moeen approached senior players Vikram Ben Scott for advice. Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal was Worcestershire's overseas player for a short time in 2011 and while at the club he encouraged Moeen to try bowling the doosra. Moeen had to wait until July before registering his first century of the season, his first since September the previous year, his innings of 158 runs from 244 balls against Somerset was in vain as Worcestershire succumbed to an innings defeat. The following month Moeen twice scored a century in the Clydesdale Bank 40 only for Worcestershire to lose, against Sussex and the Netherlands.
In the first match against Sussex he passed his previous best score of 136 in List A cricket, scoring 158 runs from 92 balls. In Worcestershire's first season back in the first division, Moeen scored 930 runs in the County Championship, making him the club's second-highest run scorer in the competition behind Solanki. Moeen scored a single century. On the back of his performances for Worcestershire, Moeen was included in the 13-man England Development squad which trained in late 2011. In February 2012, before the start of the English season, Worcestershire's director of cricket Steve Rhodes commented that Ali's doosra was "not too difficult to pick at the moment but he's learning a few tricks and he's got other things up his sleeve. It's a work in progress". After the departure of former England international Vikram Solanki at the end of the 2012 season Ali was handed a new 5-year contract. After performing well, including five consecutive 50s, Ali was called up to the England Lions where he scored 61 runs against Australia with many calling for him to be selected for the full side.
Moeen averaged 62 in Division 2, totalling 1375 runs altogether – the highest of any batsmen in first-class cricket and finished with 4 centuries and 8 fif
Test cricket
Test cricket is the form of the sport of cricket with the longest duration, is considered the game's highest standard. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined and conferred by the International Cricket Council; the term Test stems from the fact of the form's long, gruelling matches being both mentally and physically testing. Two teams of 11 players each play a four-innings match, it is considered the most complete examination of a team's endurance and ability. The first recognised Test match took place between 15 and 19 March 1877 and was played between England and Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, where Australia won by 45 runs. A Test match to celebrate 100 years of Test cricket was held in Melbourne between 12 and 17 March 1977, in which Australia beat England by 45 runs—the same margin as that first Test. In October 2012, the ICC recast the playing conditions for Test matches, permitting day/night Test matches; the first day/night game took place between Australia and New Zealand at the Adelaide Oval, Adelaide, on 27 November – 1 December 2015.
Women's Test cricket is played over four days, with slight differences in format from men's Tests. Test matches are the highest level of cricket, statistically, their data form part of first-class cricket. Matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council; as of June 2017, twelve national teams have Test status, the most promoted being Afghanistan and Ireland on 22 June 2017. Zimbabwe's Test status was voluntarily suspended, because of poor performances between 2006 and 2011. In January 2014, during an ICC meeting in Dubai, the pathway for new potential Test nations was laid out with the winners of the next round of the ICC Intercontinental Cup playing a 5-day match against the bottom ranked Test nation. If the Associate team defeats the Test nation they could be added as the new Test country and granted full membership. A list of matches, defined as "Tests", was first drawn up by Australian Clarence Moody in the mid-1890s.
Representative matches played by simultaneous England touring sides of 1891–92 and 1929–30 are deemed to have "Test status". In 1970, a series of five "Test matches" was played in England between England and a Rest of the World XI; these matches scheduled between England and South Africa, were amended after South Africa was suspended from international cricket because of their government's policy of apartheid. Although given Test status, this was withdrawn and a principle was established that official Test matches can only be between nations. Despite this, in 2005, the ICC ruled that the six-day Super Series match that took place in October 2005, between Australia and a World XI, was an official Test match; some cricket writers and statisticians, including Bill Frindall, ignored the ICC's ruling and excluded the 2005 match from their records. The series of "Test matches" played in Australia between Australia and a World XI in 1971–72 do not have Test status; the commercial "Supertests" organised by Kerry Packer as part of his World Series Cricket enterprise and played between "WSC Australia", "WSC World XI" and "WSC West Indies" from 1977 to 1979 have never been regarded as official Test matches.
There are twelve Test-playing men's teams. The teams all represent individual, independent nations, except for England, the West Indies and Ireland. Test status is conferred upon a group of countries by the International Cricket Council. Teams that do not have Test status can play in the ICC Intercontinental Cup designed to allow non-Test teams to play under conditions similar to Tests; the teams are listed below with the date of each team's Test debut: England Australia South Africa West Indies New Zealand India Pakistan Sri Lanka Zimbabwe Bangladesh Ireland Afghanistan In the mid 2010s, the ICC evaluated proposals for dividing Test cricket into two tiers, with promotion and relegation between Tier-1 and Tier-2. These proposals were opposed by others; these proposals were not implemented. A standard day of Test cricket consists of three sessions of two hours each, the breaks between sessions being 40 minutes for lunch and 20 minutes for tea; however the times of sessions and intervals may be altered in certain circumstances: if bad weather or a change of innings occurs close to a scheduled break, the break may be taken immediately.
Today, Test matches are scheduled to be played across five consecutive days
South Africa
Australia
India
West Indies
England
Sri Lanka
Pakistan
New Zealand
Bangladesh
Afghanistan