Leg cricket is a form of cricket played between two teams of eleven players on a circular ground with a radius between . The game is played in South Asian countries including

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Nepal Nepal (; ne, :ne:नेपाल, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in S ...

Bhutan Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainou ...

and Sri Lanka. Leg cricket involves using legs rather than a bat to propel the ball. The bowler rolls the ball along the ground under arm. The legsman has to kick the ball to score runs. A legsman can score four or six runs by kicking the ball out of the boundary line.

History

Leg cricket is a recreational game. It is mainly played in India with various rules. Leg Cricket was invented at Saint Francis High School in

Aurangabad Aurangabad ( is a city in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Aurangabad district and is the largest city in the Marathwada region. Located on a hilly upland terrain in the Deccan Traps, Aurangabad is the ...

, Maharashtra in 1999 by a local boy named Mehul Sorathiya. In 2005 Mr. S. Nagraj, a physical education teacher in Bangalore, introduced this game to the school children of the town as a source of physical fitness.Mr. Jogender Prasad Verma, a Physical Education teacher in Delhi, introduced the official rule book of leg cricket in 2010. Mr. J. P. Verma and Mr. S. Nagraj are known as the father of leg cricket. Mr. Verma is the present secretary of the International Leg Cricket Council and Leg Cricket Federation of India.

Specifications

Leg cricket is played between two teams of 11 players. It is played on a circular ground with a radius between 80 and 120 feet. The pitch is wide and long, (depending on the age group and category of the players). The distance in stumps is (1 foot). ;Pitch ;Boundary ;Stumps

Federation

At the international level, leg cricket is governed and promoted by the International Leg Cricket Council. This international body is headed by Shri Surender Kumar as President and Shri Joginder Prasad Verma as secretary general. In India, the Leg Cricket Federation of India is the apex governing body, which was formed in 2011. It is registered under

Societies Registration Act, 1860 The Societies Registration Act, 1860 is a legislation in India which allows the registration of entities generally involved in the benefit of society – education, health, employment etc. The British Indian Empire, with a wish to encourage such ...

and affiliated with the International Leg Cricket Council. Apart from India, leg cricket is famous in Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Florida, Ghana, and Pakistan.

Competitions

National Championship in India: In July 2012, the Senior National T-10, Leg Cricket Championship was organised by the Leg Cricket Federation of India at Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in

Bawana Bawana is a census town founded by two Gaur Brahmins Kala and Thukrai in the North West district of Delhi, India. It houses the Bawana Fortress of Zail (also called Bawana Tehsil), a Zail headquarter built by the who were (chief) of Bawana Zai ...

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...

where a total of 24 teams of boys and girls participated. Sh. Surender Kumar, M.L.A. & Parliamentary Secretary to C.M., Delhi was the Chief Guest of Opening Ceremony and

Satpal Singh Satpal Singh (born 1 February 1955), also known as Guru Satpal, is a wrestling coach and former wrestler of India. He was a Gold Medalist in 1982 Asian Games and a Bronze medalist in 1974 Asian Games. Today he is better known as the coach of Ol ...

, an Olympic wrestler and the president of the School Games Federation of India was the chief guest of second day's championship. Since 2012, the Leg Cricket Federation of India has organized 6 National games in various cities and states in India, such as Delhi, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Jharkhand, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pardesh. International Championships: India was the winner of the first Indo-Nepal T-10 Leg Cricket Series, which was held in July 2013. The 5th National T20 leg Cricket Championship was held at

Mathura Mathura () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Mathura district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located approximately north of Agra, and south-east of Delhi; about from the town of Vrindavan, and from Govardhan. ...

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

. In January 2017,

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

won by securing 211 runs, and Odisha secured 3rd position in the 5th National T10 Leg Cricket Championship, held in

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament Ho ...

. Chandan Ray is the present captain of the Indian leg cricket team.

References

{{Reflist, 30em

External links