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or cricket as it more commonly known. For those not au fait with the game here is a brief precis.
Cricket is probably one of the few games that not only has a sporting basis but also a signicant impact socially.
For the longest while it has been based on class, hence the distinction between gentleman( batsmen) and players ( bowlers ( or a lower social class).
Nowhere was this more prevalent than in the West Indies where the game remained the domain of the white plantocracy but it gave the black slave descendents the ability to compete for once on a more equal footing. Such a situation remained until the late 50's when Sir Frank Worrel allowed the game to give the disparate caribben people a sense of identity.
I can't comment about the other regions but one can also see a similar picture between the rivalry between England and Australia.There was an excellent BBC Radio 4 documentary seriesl entitled " The Game of Empire". I would advise everyone to download it.
Comments
Pushing. Shit. Uphill.
they were the first profesionals. thats why you saw soo many gentlemen Vs players matches. the players trained but the gents couldnt due to the social status that they had. This meant the gent had to win to show they were superior to the lower clas players.
this happened a lot in sports such as running, rowing and various other sports such as tennis.
(source, my PE A level ;))
I would say that in Australia it may have had pretensions towards class, but these have largely been unsuccessful. Indeed, the birth of the Ashes was driven as much by Australian cultural Cringe as much as by English embarrassment. This would likely be very similar to India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka as well.
In England itslef, the game owes its appeal to village entertainment much more than to genteel society. If we are to consider Aubrey as a fair chronicler of the times of Nelson's Navy, then we should note that during quiet periods ashore, the sgip's company would often indulge in a game, with divisions relating solely to ability, rather than commission.
New Zealand of course, has two islands that just happen to be 22 yards long, so that was convenient.
Intersting facts about World Cricket:
There is a Pro Cricket League in the USA. Curiously, the one place in the US where cricket has a rather long and illustrious history is the Hollywood Cricket Club. Started by C. Aubrey Smith some 70 years ago, it is still going strong. A recently selected side includes:
Hasan Amin | Divyesh Bhakta | Prabjoth Singh | Aditya Thayagarajan | Nikhil Iyer
Anup Desai | Thilan Indrasena | Ankit Parmar | Moin Rafae | Mohit Sang | Jignesh Ahir. All good Americans, I'm sure.
Cricket was first played in Spain in 1809, but it wasn't until 1982 that the first club was formed.
Spearheaded by the Marsa Sports Club, is the very healthy Malta Cricket Association.
There are Cricket Associations in Italy, Germany, Holland, Austria, and pretty much everywhere that our members are represented.
Cricket is allowed in Iraq, but Chess is not. Iran has a very strong club network, but is not allowed to be a member of the ICC.
It's a good game too.