Two teams of 11 players each play cricket, each getting to bat and play in the field, just like baseball.
The batter is known as the “batsman,” and the pitcher is known as the “bowler.” Meanwhile, the bowler tries to make an out by knocking down the bail of the wicket—three stumps hammered to the ground. The bails are two smaller sticks on top of the wicket, and the batsman tries to prevent a bowler from hitting them by hitting the ball. Two batsmen are on the pitch at the same time.
Scoring in Cricket is called a run, which requires two of the batters successfully running back and forth to the other end of the pitch as quickly as possible before the fielding team catches the batted ball or a fielder catches the ground ball and throws it at the wicket, knocking it down before the batsman gets back to the pitch.
Another way to cause an out is when the batsman’s body interferes with the ball. This situation is called leg before wicket.
Seneca Valley HS senior Adithya Venkatesh is a cricket player in the DC area who has competed in cricket at a high level.
What team(s) have you played for?
“I have played for many teams, but some of the most recent teams I have played for are Baltimore Royals in Minor League Cricket (Empire State Titans the year before), DMV Warriors or Super Over Sports Academy (SOCA) for some big tournaments, Washington Cricket Club in Washington Metropolitan Cricket Board, Dulles Cricket Club in Washington Cricket League, and SOCA for local youth cricket as well. On top of these teams, I have also played for the USA u19 and u17 teams for the Mid-Atlantic region (Maryland, DC, Virginia, Philadelphia, New Jersey).”
How long have you been playing?
“I have been playing since I was 11, so this is my 8th year playing.”
Only a few people in America know what cricket is, so how do you explain cricket to people who ask?
“Most people know baseball so I just tell them it is like baseball, but there are 2 bases across from each other. Hitting the ball and running to the line is 1 run, back and forth is 2, and so on. Instead of home runs we have 2 different uses for the boundary. Hitting the ground and going over the boundary is 4 runs while hitting the ball completely over the boundary is 6 runs. This gives them the basics and afterwards if they are interested in playing, all of the rules are easier to explain.”
What do you most enjoy doing in Cricket? Can you share something memorable during a game or practice?
“I enjoy the team game. Meeting and playing with so many new people, learning from them, and just enjoying time with them makes the game an amazing thing to look forward to. As a player I really enjoy batting. As a batsman my job is to just score as many runs as possible and batting for a long time is one of the most fun parts of the game.”
What is one of the most challenging aspects of Cricket?
“One of the most challenging and important aspects of cricket is fielding. Bare hands to stop and catch a ball coming at well over 80 or 90 miles an hour with no guarantee of nice bounce or good direction makes fielding a difficult challenge in which anticipation and athleticism are very much important to save more runs. The best fielders are those who can move, dive, slide, and throw in one motion with good accuracy.”
Venkatesh still hopes to play Cricket after college. “ Just as a hobby,” he said.
Article written by Faith Kim of Seneca Valley High School