By cricket we mean a glorious battle of bat-ball. Just as cricket is a game of glorious uncertainty, the history of when and where cricket was first played is uncertain.
The origin of the game of cricket
As far as is known, the game of cricket began in the late sixteenth century. Originally originating in southeast England, it became England’s national sport in the eighteenth century and spread worldwide in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Great Britain is credited with bringing this exciting and popular game to the world. For this reason, Great Britain is called the father of cricket.
Although international cricket matches have been played since 1844, the historically recognized test cricket matches started in 1877. Cricket is recognized as the second most popular sport in the world after football in terms of viewership. The International Cricket Council, an organization with more than a hundred members, is responsible for the global administration of this game, although only twelve member countries play Test cricket. Also, this great game of cricket became very popular in the colonial countries of England at that time, such as the West Indies, Australia, etc.
Children living in the Weald in Saxon or Norman times introduced the game of cricket. The Weald is a dense forest in southeast England between Kent and Sussex. The earliest clearly recorded date for playing cricket is Monday, January 17, 1597 AD (“Old System” Julian date; 1598 AD according to the current calendar).
Perhaps the game of cricket originated from the game of bowls. As bowls is an older game, it is believed that the game of cricket originated from the batsman stopping the ball before its target with the bat and hitting it away.
The game begins in a sheep-grazed field or open space, with the main equipment used as the ball being a ball of sheep’s wool (or even a stone or a small piece of wood); A stick or a crooked stick or farm implement used as a bat; A sitting tool or the root of a tree or a door (eg a wicket door) as a wicket.
Naming of cricket
A number of words have been suggested as possible sources of the name ‘cricket’. The first clear reference to it is called ‘cracket’. It is possible that the name derives from Middle Dutch crick (English krick(-e)), meaning rod; Or from the Old English cricc or cryce, meaning a cripple’s walking stick, or from the French criquet, a wooden pole.
Krickstoel (English krickstoel) is a Middle Dutch word for a long low sitting tool used in churches for kneeling; It is similar to the long low wicket used in early cricket where two stumps were used. According to Heiner Gilmeister, a European linguist at the University of Bonn, the word “cricket” originates from the Middle Dutch word for hockey met de (krik ket (English krik ket)) sen (meaning “to chase with a stick”).
Cricket terms developed from the contemporary language of south-east England and from trade relations with Flanders, particularly when the country was part of the Duchy of Burgundy in the fifteenth century, when many Middle Dutch words entered the spoken language of southern England.
The spread of cricket outside England
Cricket was first introduced to North America through the British colonies in the 17th century. Cricket was probably not popular in the North of England then. By the end of the 18th century, it had spread to other parts of the world.
The game was introduced in the West Indies by colonists and in India by East India Company sailors in the first half of the century. Cricket was introduced to Australia soon after colonization in 1788 and to New Zealand and South Africa in the early 19th century. Despite the efforts of the upper classes, cricket never gained popularity in Canada.
Between 1860 and 1960, the sport gradually declined in popularity in Canada, in stark contrast to Australia and the West Indies. The game was not popular among the common people of Canada either. The sport had to compete with baseball in popularity during the summer. Canadian soldiers stationed in France during the First World War played baseball instead of cricket.
International Cricket Council
Early in the history of cricket, there was no special body for making the rules of cricket, but to fill that gap, the International Cricket Council was established on 15 June 1906, which many call the ICC. Currently its office is located in Dubai.
This body is responsible for making, amending and maintaining the rules relating to cricket. The umpire itself is appointed by the ICC. If we talk about tournaments, various cricket competitions are organized by ICC. Among which ICC World Cup, ICC T20 World Cup, Champions Trophy etc. are notable. A total of 12 national cricket teams have been granted full membership by the ICC.
Bangladesh cricket history
Cricket is a popular and popular sport in Bangladesh. The tide of popularity of cricket in Bangladesh since the 90s has not subsided even today. The journey of cricket in Bangladesh started during the Pakistani era.
Currently, cricket is at the top of the popular sports in Bangladesh. In any international match or tournament, a large crowd of people can be seen in the stadium to watch Shakib Tamim. In terms of success, Bangladesh cricket has not reached much, but there is no shortage of people’s love for cricket. However, Bangladesh cricket has come through various hurdles and obstacles since that beginning.
Cricket in pre-independence Bangladesh
The first cricket was started in Bengal by the hands of the British. The British East India Company was the first to introduce the game of cricket in the region. A match between Governor XI and Gymkhana XI was held in Dhaka Stadium in 1941.
It was the only official match during British rule. Later, after the partition of the country, the practice of cricket gradually started in the then East Pakistan on a regular basis. Since then various crickets at the local level started in the region. A historic cricket match was organized in Bengal in 1950. This match is between Pakistan and Republic of India. Later, since 1960, the use of Dhaka Stadium as an international cricket venue gained fame.
Cricket in post-independence Bangladesh
The Bangladesh Cricket Control Board was established in 1972, just after the independence of Bangladesh. The purpose of this board was to increase the popularity of cricket among the people of the country by overall development of cricket in the country. But this task was not easy for the Bangladesh Cricket Board.
For a country that had just emerged from war, developing cricket was a more challenging task than rebuilding the country. Even at that time the condition of the country’s only international cricket stadium was in bad shape. There were still traces of war.
On 27 December 1976, the Melbourne Cricket Council played a friendly match in Bangladesh. There were about 40,000 spectators in this match. Bangladesh officially became a member of the ICC in 1977. In 1997, Bangladesh qualified for the first World Cup of Cricket.
The Bangladesh cricket team created a big surprise in the 1999 World Cup. Bangladesh defeated Pakistan and Scotland, one of the strongest teams in the tournament. These two wins helped Bangladesh move up in the rankings. As a result, in 2000, Bangladesh officially qualified to play Tests.
Currently, Bangladesh cricket team regularly participates in all three formats. Various international series are held throughout the year. The country also hosts the highly popular cricket tournament Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) every year. Through these, every year many talented players are emerging from different parts of the country.