It probably ranks second-least popular at that bar after soccer, and both are the low men on the totem pole as far as popularity here in the US is. They will never supplant baseball, which was, is and always will be the national pastime. Play ball!
Cricket’s a great sport. I became a fan during the 1994 baseball strike and have stuck with it. I love both sports, although I have to laugh at baseball fans who call cricket “boring” even though you’ll see hundreds of runs scored in a cricket match while it’s considered a “slugfest” whenever two baseball teams combine to score 20 runs (which even a marginal cricket batsman will routinely score on his own).
Interesting that today’s strip deals with a scandal in cricket because there was a VERY recent ball-doctoring incident involving Australia’s Test team in South Africa (last week, I believe) and I didn’t know Bill Hinds was that current on these strips.
“Cricket, lovely cricket, at Lord’s where I saw it…”
Cricket is not like baseball. There are two sets of stumps, one at either end of the wicket; the team which is batting must have a man at each set of stumps at all time. There are 11 men per team, so the team is all out when the 10th man is out, as one guy can’t cover both sets of stumps.
The ball is supposed to bounce before it gets to the batsman; if it doesn’t, that’s a no-ball and a run for the hitting side. If the ball gets past the wicketkeeper (‘catcher’) and gets to the boundary, that’s four runs.
Each batsman faces the bowler (‘pitcher’) six times, then the field switches over and the other batsman gets a go. The batsman stays at the batting crease (‘in the batter’s box’) until he’s out or until he has no more partners. In baseball, getting hit by a pitch usually results in a runner getting on base; in cricket, getting hit by a ball can result in being out Leg Before Wicket.
The very best fast bowlers can deliver ‘pace like fire’, a ball making better than 160 kph after it bounces. Good luck hitting that, especially if the bowler put a little spin on it and the ball moves in an entirely different direction after it bounces. Spin bowlers, essentially curve ball bowlers, specialize in making the ball dance. In the late 1970s through the 1980s the West Indies had the four greatest pacemen of all time, and had three of the four greatest batsmen of all time (Holding, Croft, Garner, and Marshall obliterated hostile batsmen with a strait diet of 150 to 170 kph fast balls, while Brian Lara once scored 501 not out and Viv Richards and Richie Richardson wasn’t that far behind him…) The opposition were facing the hitting of the ’27 Yankees and the pitching of four or five, if you add in Roberts, Nolan Ryans. The West Indies has become merely mortal since then.
This latest scandal is Australia being Australia and getting caught.
About the same level as football (i.e.: not American Football.) Though there was some interest when Team USA was in the World Cup and actually looked like they had a chance.
jarvisloop over 6 years ago
I’m 65 and a former extreme baseball fan who is now disgusted with its overpaid, entitled athletes who don’t care about the fans.
For me, cricket is looking better and better all the time.
docforbin over 6 years ago
It probably ranks second-least popular at that bar after soccer, and both are the low men on the totem pole as far as popularity here in the US is. They will never supplant baseball, which was, is and always will be the national pastime. Play ball!
Guilty Bystander over 6 years ago
Cricket’s a great sport. I became a fan during the 1994 baseball strike and have stuck with it. I love both sports, although I have to laugh at baseball fans who call cricket “boring” even though you’ll see hundreds of runs scored in a cricket match while it’s considered a “slugfest” whenever two baseball teams combine to score 20 runs (which even a marginal cricket batsman will routinely score on his own).
Interesting that today’s strip deals with a scandal in cricket because there was a VERY recent ball-doctoring incident involving Australia’s Test team in South Africa (last week, I believe) and I didn’t know Bill Hinds was that current on these strips.
Polsixe over 6 years ago
“Thats just not cricket old boy.” The game is part of the English Language.
Plods with ...™ over 6 years ago
I believe it would be just below team poker.
Painted Wolf over 6 years ago
“Cricket, lovely cricket, at Lord’s where I saw it…”
Cricket is not like baseball. There are two sets of stumps, one at either end of the wicket; the team which is batting must have a man at each set of stumps at all time. There are 11 men per team, so the team is all out when the 10th man is out, as one guy can’t cover both sets of stumps.
The ball is supposed to bounce before it gets to the batsman; if it doesn’t, that’s a no-ball and a run for the hitting side. If the ball gets past the wicketkeeper (‘catcher’) and gets to the boundary, that’s four runs.
Each batsman faces the bowler (‘pitcher’) six times, then the field switches over and the other batsman gets a go. The batsman stays at the batting crease (‘in the batter’s box’) until he’s out or until he has no more partners. In baseball, getting hit by a pitch usually results in a runner getting on base; in cricket, getting hit by a ball can result in being out Leg Before Wicket.
The very best fast bowlers can deliver ‘pace like fire’, a ball making better than 160 kph after it bounces. Good luck hitting that, especially if the bowler put a little spin on it and the ball moves in an entirely different direction after it bounces. Spin bowlers, essentially curve ball bowlers, specialize in making the ball dance. In the late 1970s through the 1980s the West Indies had the four greatest pacemen of all time, and had three of the four greatest batsmen of all time (Holding, Croft, Garner, and Marshall obliterated hostile batsmen with a strait diet of 150 to 170 kph fast balls, while Brian Lara once scored 501 not out and Viv Richards and Richie Richardson wasn’t that far behind him…) The opposition were facing the hitting of the ’27 Yankees and the pitching of four or five, if you add in Roberts, Nolan Ryans. The West Indies has become merely mortal since then.
This latest scandal is Australia being Australia and getting caught.
Alabama Al over 6 years ago
About the same level as football (i.e.: not American Football.) Though there was some interest when Team USA was in the World Cup and actually looked like they had a chance.
Ubermick over 6 years ago
Well, of COURSE people in sports bars don’t know about it – it’s not a sport where a US-based team will be (by default) crowned “World Champions”