England’s national summer sport originated as early as the thirteenth century, though its complex rules (known as “Laws”) were not put into writing until 1744.

Cricket revolves around two “wickets,” each comprised of three upright stakes (“stumps”) upon which two sticks (“bails”) are balanced. The wickets are centered at opposite ends of a long and narrow strip of land (the “pitch”). Over the course of two innings, a pitcher (the “bowler”) tries to knock loose the bails with a ball, while a batter (the “striker”) attempts to hit the ball with a flat-fronted bat. The striker is out (“dismissed”) under a number of scenarios, such as the bowler knocking loose the bails. If the striker hits the ball into play and it is not caught, the striker and a teammate at the opposite wicket (the “nonstriker”) can try to score one or more runs by exchanging positions. The batting team’s innings (always plural) ends when 10 batsmen have been dismissed.

Cricket also is prominent in Australia (which defeated England in the first recorded international contest in 1877), New Zealand, South Africa, the West Indies, India and Pakistan. “Test matches” between these national teams historically have represented the highest level of cricket competition. However, the length of Test matches – some lasting several days and featuring scores in excess of 300 runs – has sparked a movement in favor of one-day international matches.

PostScript: The United States Cricket Association was organized in 1961. Two years later, the United States played Canada, now its regular opponent, for the first time.