The basics of cricket: A cricket field is centered around a rectangular path, called the "pitch." The pitch is where the action of the bowler throwing to the batsmen takes place. At each end of the pitch is the wicket, which is comprised of three wooden posts, each 32 inches long. The batsmen is in effect trying to defend the wicket from the bowler -- if the bowler hits the wicket, the batsman is out.When he hits the ball the batsmen can attempt to run to wicket at the other end of the pitch; at the same time, the runner at the opposite wicket (who is the next batsmen) runs to the other end, so that they basically swap sides. If the defense gets the ball to a wicket before the runner or batsmen successfully reaches it, he is out. Each successful run to the other wicket counts as one run. How cricket is similar to baseball:
How cricket is different from baseball:
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"The cricket bat has a very distinct middle to it so that when the ball is hit there it will really fly," says Fox, manager of the Milwaukee United Cricket Club (MUCC).
Baseball terms are frequently employed when describing the sport of cricket to Americans (teams score runs, the match is divided into innings, hitting the wicket is like a strikeout). Like baseball, the focus of the action involves a match-up of a pitcher (called a bowler in cricket) throwing to a batter.
It's no surprise that cricket bears a resemblance to baseball -- baseball is in fact a descendant of cricket. Baseball developed in the 19th century from two sports that were off-shoots of cricket: rounders and townball.
In a season that stretches from early May until early October, the MUCC plays cricket matches almost every weekend at Lindsay Park on the northwest side of Milwaukee.
Formed three years ago from two smaller clubs, the MUCC has an entry in the Midwest Cricket Conference. The league consists of over 45 teams, most in the Chicago area. It is considered the top league in the region according to Fox, who moved to Milwaukee from his native Yorkshire, England seven years ago.
The MUCC has grown substantially since its inception, mostly due to the recent influx of software professionals from India to Milwaukee. Fox says membership is over 70 this season, up from about 40 a year ago.
To create an opportunity for everyone to play, the club created the Regal Series, in which the club members are divided into four teams that compete against one another. The Regal Series matches are held on weekend days on which a Midwest Cricket Conference league match is not scheduled.
The MUCC members are all immigrants from countries where cricket is popular - Great Britain and its former colonies. The majority of the team consists of recent arrivals from India. Fox is one of two Englishmen on the team. Other nations represented on the MUCC include Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.
The MUCC welcomes those who are new to cricket to join their club and learn the sport. Currently there are no Americans on the club. But Shiv Gopalkrishnan, captain of the MUCC league team, thinks that an American with a baseball or softball background could make a quick transition to the sport.
"If you are a baseball player you pretty much have your catching skills, your fielding skill nailed down, you have good eye-hand coordination," says Gopalkrishnan, a native of India. "I can see anybody with these skills fitting onto a cricket team very easily."
Fox notes that other clubs in the Midwest Cricket Conference league have had Americans on their rosters. He thinks that an American who is "committed" could learn the sport well enough to play in a match within a couple of weeks.
When Fox uses the word committed, he is referring to the amount of time required by participation in the sport. The typical cricket match lasts four to five hours. The club practices that are held every Friday last three to four hours. For a player who plays in a both Regal Series match and a league match, this can require up to fourteen hours within one weekend.
Such a time commitment is not conducive to attracting adults accustomed to softball leagues with a one-hour time limit, and Gopalkrishnan acknowledges it is an obstacle to drawing American participants. Indeed, the only instances in which Americans have played with the club have been during their winter season, when they play an abbreviated version of cricket. These matches, held at an indoor soccer facility in Franklin, are limited to two hours.
{INSERT_RELATED}The MUCC plans to grow the sport by promoting it to boys. "I've gotten calls from parents asking me if there are Little Leagues going on [for cricket]," says Gopalkrishnan. According to Fox, many club members would like their sons to be able play cricket in order to continue a tradition from their heritage. The club is recruiting potential sponsors for a youth league, which they hope to have operating by next summer.
In a country where football is king, and soccer bashing is not uncommon, American sports fans can come across as smug. However Gopalkrishnan and Fox say they have not sensed a condescending attitude from locals regarding their sport.
Gopalkrishnan says both co-workers and neighbors in the Lindsay Park area have expressed an appreciation for cricket. "A lot of people now understand the sport," says Gopalkrishnan. "They've started to enjoy it, a couple of people find it much more interesting than baseball. It's really cool to see people understanding the sport and getting really excited about it."
"Some might think it's a bit odd, but they already think I'm a quirky guy anyways," Fox says about the reaction of co-workers to his cricket playing. "Most people think that it's cool that I'm still able to participate in a sport from my homeland."
According to Fox, one of the frustrations of playing a sport that is not popular here is the lack of an authentic cricket field in the Milwaukee area. The Milwaukee County Parks department cuts a rectangular path in the grass to create a cricket field at Lindsay Park. Club members then lays down a clay surface over the path to create the "pitch" where the action of the bowler throwing to the batsmen takes place.
The club would prefer a pitch like the ones that some of the Chicago teams play on - a concrete strip, covered with artificial turf. "If it's a clay pitch you really don't get the bounce that you should," says Gopalkrishnan. The artificial turf surface "gives you a little bit more evenness in the bounce, whereas with the clay there's too much unpredictability." Gopalkrishnan adds that the grass at Lindsay Park is not cropped as closely as it should be for a cricket field.
Both Fox and Gopalkrishnan say that Milwaukee County Parks Department officials have been cooperative, but they had hoped for better cricket facilities to be established by now. Some of the Chicago teams in their league have had success in convincing park districts to build regulation cricket fields. Fox hopes for the same result here.
Another downside for cricket players on this side of the Atlantic is that equipment is not easily obtainable. There's nowhere in Milwaukee where cricket equipment can be purchased, but Gopalkrishnan says there are stores in Chicago with cricket supplies. Club members can also buy the bats (most players have their own), masks and cricket balls needed for the game on the internet, or when they make visits to their homeland.
Buying the white flannels used as uniforms is not a problem. For something suitable to wear in a cricket match "people can just go K-Mart," says Fox.
Cricket has a traditional tea break between innings. But that term would be a misnomer, it is actually more of a lunch break that the MUCC takes during their matches - no tea is actually consumed.
The MUCC members take turns preparing a lunch for both teams. With the plurality of nationalities on the club, it results in a variety of cuisines, which Fox says he enjoys. "I love Indian food," says Fox. "Some days the games aren't as competitive, and everybody is just waiting for the lunch break to come," says Gopalkrishnan.
Probably all sports have certain aspects that drive the passions of its enthusiasts - for football it's the violent, physical play; baseball fans relish their sports relaxed pace, its celebrated history, and the one-on-one dueling between pitcher and batter. So what is it that compels a boy growing up in England or India to commit to cricket over soccer or tennis as the sport that captures his imagination?
"What I really like the most about cricket is that it's an excellent mix between skill level and temperament," says Gopalkrishnan. "It's not enough if you have a lot of skill and don't have the right temperament to play - you got to have both. I've seen a lot of sports where just pure skill can help you excel at the sport. Cricket is not a game like that."
According to Fox, cricket has a tradition of gentlemanliness that its enthusiasts appreciate.
"I think it probably comes from the British roots of the game," says Fox of cricket's gentlemanly nature. "There's an idea that both teams try to treat each other with as much respect as possible. The aim of the game is not to have arguments on the field. The idea is to always defer to the umpire. It's just kind of the general spirit of the game."
For more information, see the Milwaukee United Cricket Club's website at www.milwaukeecricket.org, or the Midwest Cricket Conference website at www.midwestcricket.org.
