Currently India is hosting the International Cricket Council Men’s World Cup competition. The game started on October 5, and the final will be on November 19 at 2:30 a.m. Ten teams from four continents are participating, though half of the teams are from Asia.
There has been a transformation of the cricket game. When England initiated the game long ago, it was a 5-day game called test cricket, and it is still continuing. But now there are one day games (ODI) – 50 over each inning and also a shorter form of cricket — half a day game (T20) – 20 over each inning is getting popular too. Cricket is now the 2nd most popular game in the world after football (soccer).
I understand Americans are not very interested in this game. Cricket is a bat and ball game, so is baseball. In the US, the most popular game is (American) football followed by basketball and then baseball. Cricket is not that popular in the US, and it is far behind baseball. However, a college level cricket league is active here. The players are mostly Asian immigrants.
Excitingly, cricket was included in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and a USA team will be participating.
More than two billion people around the world are watching this Cricket World Cup. In some of the games – especially when India is playing – the stadium becomes full of spectators. In addition, TV telecasts everywhere in the world. Willow channel in the US is dedicated to cricket.
In this World Cup, each team has to play with nine other teams and then whoever has the higher points will go for semifinals. For the last few weeks, I have been watching every match, though not the full game because our timing is not favorable for us. Plus, I teach every weekday.
There are a few games in this Cricket World Cup which are considered “do or die” by the spectators but not by the team players. For example, in the India and Pakistan game, it’s like a war for the spectators, however the Pakistan team lost to the Indian team. Similarly, a match between Afghanistan and Pakistan, resulted in a Pakistan loss to Afghanistan. In fact, this time unfortunately the Pakistan team didn’t qualify for the semifinal. Neight did our Bangladesh team. Even England couldn’t qualify.
Out of 10 teams, the current leaders are India, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. The host country, India, became an unbeaten semifinalist. The first semifinal between India and New Zealand will take place on November 16 at 2:30 a.m. local time, and the 2nd semifinal will be the next day at the same time. One can watch a few hours in the morning.
To me cricket is a very artistic and skillful game. The postures of batters are wonderful to watch. The bowlers are dancing while bowling the balls. The fielders are jumping in the sky to catch a ball. It is indeed amazing to watch a game of cricket.
Jiben Roy, a native of Bangladesh, teaches chemistry and pharmaceutical sciences at Mississippi University for Women. He writes occasional column in the Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
Jiben Roy, a native of Bangladesh, teaches chemistry and pharmaceutical sciences at Mississippi University for Women. His email address is [email protected].
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 30 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 30 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
Join the Discussion