Forms of cricket
is a multi-faceted sport with different formats, depending on the standard of play, the desired level of formality, and the time available. One of the main differences is between matches limited by time in which the teams have two innings apiece, and those limited by number of overs in which they have a single innings each. The former, known as first-class cricket if played at the senior level, has a scheduled duration of three to five days ; the latter, known as limited overs cricket because each team bowls a limit of typically 50 overs, has a planned duration of one day only. A separate form of limited overs is Twenty20, originally designed so that the whole game could be played in a single evening, in which each team has an innings limited to twenty overs.
Double innings matches usually have at least six hours of playing time each day, with formal intervals on each day for lunch and tea, and additional brief informal breaks for drinks. There is also a short interval between innings. Limited overs matches often last at least six hours, with similar intervals and breaks, whilst the more streamlined Twenty20 matches are generally completed in under four hours. T10 cricket is a newer version of the game, based on the principles of other limited overs formats, but with only 10 overs per innings, and the total playing time limited to 90 minutes.
Local club cricket teams, which consist of amateur players, rarely play matches that last longer than a single day; these may loosely be divided into
- declaration matches, in which a specified maximum time or number of overs is assigned to the game in total and the teams swap roles only when the batting team is either completely dismissed or declares
- limited overs matches, in which a specified maximum number of overs is assigned for each team's innings individually. These will vary in length between 30 and 60 overs per side at the weekend and the 20-over format in the evenings.
At still lower levels, the rules are often changed simply to make the game playable with limited resources, or to render it more convenient and enjoyable for the participants. Informal variants of the sport can be played almost anywhere, if there is enough space.
Professional cricket
Four forms of cricket have been played at what may be termed the highest international or domestic level of the game. Three are contested currently and one is historic. There is no official term for this level of cricket collectively, although the individual forms do have official designations and are defined by the International Cricket Council. In the past, before any official definition was agreed upon, highest standard matches were routinely described as "great" or "important" or "top-class"; or even "first-class" before this became the official term for one type of cricket. Note that "minor cricket" is a term used officially in England and Wales at least.Matches played at the highest international and domestic levels are those in which players and/or teams of a recognized high standard are taking part. In modern domestic cricket, it includes first-class cricket, List A cricket and top-class Twenty20 competitions for both men and women. Test cricket, One Day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals are variations of those forms within the international sphere. Historically, top-class matches were those held by substantial sources to have historical significance including single wicket and those double innings matches without statistical significance: i.e., lacking scorecards and other statistical data.
The oldest known English county teams are Kent, Surrey and Sussex, all of which have histories commencing in the early 18th century. These counties had achieved a high standard long before their modern county clubs were founded, and so they have always had first-class status. Following a meeting in May 1894 of Marylebone Cricket Club and the County Championship clubs, the concept of "first-class cricket" was officially defined. By 1895, several other counties had also been recognized as having first-class status, as had MCC itself from its foundation in 1787. Top-class limited overs cricket began in 1963 when the County Championship clubs took part in the first seasonal knockout tournament, which was won by Sussex. Hence, like all the other first-class counties, Sussex for example is classified as a List A team from 1963; and as a top-class Twenty20 team since 2003.
First-class matches
is a form of the game in which teams of a recognized high standard compete. Test cricket is first-class at international level; the term "first-class" is habitually applied to domestic matches only, although a player's Test statistics are included in their overall first-class statistics. A first-class match must have eleven players per side, two innings apiece and a scheduled duration of at least three days. Historically, however, there have been instances of first-class matches being arranged for less than three days, and there have been others with twelve or thirteen players per side; these are exceptional cases and form a tiny percentage of the whole. If the game is not completed within the allotted time then it is drawn, regardless of who has scored the most runs when time expires. Limited overs matches in which the teams have only one innings each are not first-class and these cannot result in a draw.Test matches, other games between two Test nations, games between two domestic teams deemed first-class in countries holding full membership of the ICC, and games between a Test nation's national side and a first-class domestic team from a Test nation, are deemed to be first-class. A match between a leading ICC associate member and another team adjudged first-class would be granted first-class status, but domestic matches in the associate member country are minor.
The origin of the term "first-class cricket" is unknown but, along with other terms, it was used loosely for top-class eleven-a-side matches before it acquired its official status in 1894. Subsequently, at a meeting of the Imperial Cricket Conference in May 1947, it was formally defined on a global basis. A key omission of both the MCC and ICC rulings was any attempt to define first-class cricket retrospectively and it was stipulated in the ICC ruling that the definition "will not have retrospective effect". Many historians and statisticians have subjectively classified chosen pre-1895 matches as first-class but these are unofficial ratings and differences of opinion among the experts has led to variations in published cricket statistics. The main problem with "first-class cricket" is that it can be a misleading concept as it is essentially statistical and may typically ignore the historical aspect of a match if statistical information is missing, as is invariably the case with matches played up to 1825. Nevertheless, the recognition of any match as first-class by a substantial source qualifies it as such and it follows that the teams, venues and players involved in such matches before 1895 are the equivalent of first-class teams, venues and players since 1895. Substantial sources interested in 18th and 19th century cricket include Arthur Haygarth, F. S. Ashley-Cooper, H. T. Waghorn, G. B. Buckley, H. S. Altham, Roy Webber, John Arlott, Bill Frindall, the ACS and various internet sites. Writing in 1951, Roy Webber drew a line between what is important historically and what should form part of the statistical record when he argued that the majority of matches prior to 1864 "cannot be regarded as first-class" and their records are used "for their historical associations".