Cricket
2019 was a fantastic year for cricket and English cricket in particular.
With thanks to England Cricket for the use of this video.
England won the Men’s World Cup and Ben Stokes won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year and has just been awarded an OBE by HM The Queen!
With thanks to England Cricket for the use of this video.
This month it’s the Women’s T20 Cricket World Cup.
With thanks to England Cricket for the use of this video.
All the action is taking place in Australia, and during term time, so it’s tricky for us to watch any of the action live but we are here to give you the main facts and the latest results.
Unfortunately, the incredible Sarah Taylor retired from international cricket in September. Sarah was a member of the winning Women’s 2017 World Cup team and here’s a great video from the ECB of her career highlights.
With thanks to England Cricket for the use of this video.
The England cricket team, however, still includes one of bsporty magazine’s favourite cricketers – Tammy Beaumont. We interviewed Tammy for the first edition of our magazine in 2019 and she is also part of the upcoming Hundred. Here are the best bits of that interview:
HOW OLD WERE YOU WHEN YOU FIRST STARTED PLAYING CRICKET?
I played my first proper game with a hard ball when I was eight years old but that wasn't the first time I'd tried! My dad and my brother both played and I used to love going to their cricket club and getting involved. We played lots of games in the back garden before that point, but eight years old was the first time when I gave it a proper go. I loved it!
WAS IT ALWAYS A SPORT YOU WERE INTERESTED IN OR DID YOU PLAY OTHER SPORTS FIRST?
I think because of my dad and my brother it was always the sport that I was most pulled towards, but I loved playing lots of sports, especially gymnastics and hockey. I think it's really great to try your hand at lots of different sports and give everything a go. Lots of different sports help you in lots of different ways and I'm sure there are skills that I've taken into cricket from other sports.
DO YOU HAVE A PRE MATCH ROUTINE?
The most important thing for me on a match day is not being rushed. I want to stay relaxed and focused. I like to have a hit before the game to practise what I need to do in the game but apart from that I don’t do anything too superstitious.
WHICH OTHER SPORTS DO YOU ENJOY WATCHING?
I like watching lots of sports but I'm what's known as a "cricket badger"! That means someone who really loves cricket and knows lots and lots about it, so I tend to watch a lot of it on TV.
WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE CRICKETER OF ALL TIME?
Kumar Sangakkara is probably my favourite player. He’s just such an elegant batter, it’s lovely to watch him doing his thing.
CRICKET HAS SOME FUNNY WORDS LIKE DILSCOOP, DOLLY AND YORKER...DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE?
Cricket has so many good words! It’s like we have our own language. That can seem weird at first but you soon get used to all of the terms. My favourite is ‘googly’. A ‘googly’ is when you bowl the ball in such a way that it looks like it will spin one way but actually you’ve cleverly disguised how the ball is spinning so it turns the other way and confuses the batter. And obviously it’s a great word.
WHAT'S YOUR TOP TIP FOR BOYS AND GIRLS WANTING TO PLAY CRICKET?
Enjoy it! Get stuck in, have a laugh, enjoy playing with your teammates and celebrate each other's success. It's all about having a fun time, it doesn't need to be too serious, but always try and think about what you need to do to get better.
With thanks to England Cricket for the use of this video.
This is a T20 World Cup so it differs to the main World Cup and takes place every two years.. There are ten teams competing, split into two groups of five. Australia has won four times, England and the West Indies have both won once but Australia holds the current champion title!
Group A
Australia
India
New Zealand
Sri Lanka
Bangladesh
Group B
England
South Africa
West Indies
Pakistan
Thailand
As we write this article India and England are top of their tables. India have won all their three of games and England have played two, having won one and lost one
This month, England play their final group game on 1st March vs West Indies in Sydney at 8 a.m our time. The semi finals are then on 5th March and the finals on 8th March ( a Sunday) at 7 a.m.
With thanks to England Cricket for the use of this video.
England’s men and women prepare for months for huge competitions like the World Cup.
With thanks to England Cricket for the use of this video.
They also like to have some fun!
With thanks to England Cricket for the use of this video.
