Bats used in the Samoan game of Kilikiti (Kirikiti)

Kilikiti is one of several forms of the game of

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

. Originating in Samoa (English

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introduced their game of cricket in the early 19th century), it spread throughout Polynesia and can now be found around the world in areas with strong Polynesian populations. The game is the national sport of Samoa, and is played in many other Pacific countries, including amongst the Pacific Islander diaspora in New Zealand.

Form of the game

Equipment

The ball is made of a very hard rubber wrapped in

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. Players are not protected by any padding or masks, and will often wear only a

lava-lava A lavalava, also known as an ''ie'', short for 'ie lavalava, is an article of daily clothing traditionally worn by Polynesians and other Oceanic peoples. It consists of a single rectangular cloth worn similarly to a wraparound skirt or kilt. The ...

. The sennit-wrapped wooden bat is modeled on the three-sided Samoan war club called the "lapalapa," which are based on the stalk of coconut fronds. Bats are shaped to individual players' likings and can be over a meter long; because the striking surface of the bat is angled (just as the "lapalapa" club and the coconut frond stalk), the path of a hit ball is extremely hard to predict.

Rules

The rules of kilikiti are flexible. Indeed, the majority of reports written on the game simply say that the rules can only be known by those playing.

Similarities to cricket

There is a batting team, a fielding team, and a pitch (sometimes of concrete). The bowl alternates between two bowlers, one at each end of the pitch; accordingly, there are two wicket keepers (this as opposed to the single wicket keeper in

Major points on which kilikiti differs from cricket

There is no limit to team size, and teams are made up of whoever turns up regardless of gender or age. Tourist accounts mention that strangers are often welcomed. Players are typically all-rounders. A kilikiti game is a multi-day community event full of singing, dancing, and feasting. Entire villages will compete and everyone will be involved, whether as player, cook, or spectator. According to one source, the only universal rule is that the host team forfeits if it cannot provide enough food.

Standardization

The New Zealand Kilikiti Association (NZKA) is working to

standardize In statistics, the standard score is the number of standard deviations by which the value of a raw score (i.e., an observed value or data point) is above or below the mean value of what is being observed or measured. Raw scores above the mean ...

the rules of kilikiti. In 1999 the NZKA started a national tournament, called the Supercific Kilikiti Tournament, and in 2001 it introduced the international World Cup Kilikiti Tournament. Games have been cut to a television-friendly 70 minutes (2

innings An innings is one of the divisions of a cricket match during which one team takes its turn to bat. Innings also means the period in which an individual player bats (acts as either striker or nonstriker). Innings, in cricket, and rounders, is bot ...

, the first being 30 minutes long and the second bowling the same number of balls as the first). The NZKA has also added the scoring of 4s and 6s.

Kilikiti World Cup

2001

The first Kilikiti World Cup was held at Waitakere Athletic Sports Stadium,

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, Auckland, New Zealand in January 2001. Seven teams took part, representing American Samoa,

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, the Cook Islands, New Zealand, Niue, Tokelau and the United States. The final, played over a series of three games, was won by the

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, who beat the

American Samoa Chiefs American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the " United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, ...

two games to one.Daniels, C.,
Kilikiti: We are world's best
" '' New Zealand Herald'', 22 January 2001. Retrieved 18 November 2020.

2002

The 2002 Kilikiti World Cup took place at

Parrs Park Parrs Park is a public recreational and sporting facility in Oratia, West Auckland, New Zealand. The park has lease arrangements with clubs and cultural organisations that have buildings and facilities on the perimeter and share the amenities ...

, Glen Eden, Auckland, New Zealand.

2015

The 2015 Kilikiti World Cup took place at Frank Kitts Park, Wellington, New Zealand.

References

External links

New Zealand Kilikiti Association
* * * *
2001 Kilikiti World Cup highlights
on YouTube {{Forms of cricket Short form cricket Cricket in Samoa Sports originating in Samoa Sport in Tuvalu