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 st ...

is one of the most popular

sports Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

, and has been played since the 16th century.

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influe ...

, based at

Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England ...

, developed the modern rules of play and conduct. The sport is administered by the

England and Wales Cricket Board The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is the national governing body of cricket in England and Wales. It was formed on 1 January 1997 as a single governing body to combine the roles formerly fulfilled by the Test and County Cricket Board, ...

and represented at an international level by the England men's team and England women's team. At a domestic level, teams are organised by

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

, competing in tournaments such as the

County Championship The County Championship (referred to as the LV= Insurance County Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales and is organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). It b ...

Royal London One-Day Cup The Royal London One-Day Cup is a fifty-over limited overs cricket competition for the England and Wales first-class counties. It began in 2014 as a replacement for the ECB 40 tournament, which ran from 2010 to 2013. In contrast to its 40-ov ...

, T20 Blast and the Women's Twenty20 Cup. Recent developments include the introduction of a regional structure for women's cricket and the establishment of The Hundred for both men's and women's cricket. Recreational matches are organised on a regional basis, with the top level being the

ECB Premier Leagues The ECB Premier Leagues are a series of regional cricket leagues organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) that form the top tier of club cricket in England and Wales. The ECB published "Raising the Standard" in 1997, the ECB Manageme ...

History

* History of cricket to 1725 * History of cricket (1726–1763) * Overview of English cricket (1816–1863) * History of English cricket from 1919 to 1939

Domestic competitions

In men's cricket, there are eighteen professional county clubs, seventeen of them in England and one in

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. All eighteen counties are named after, and were originally representative of, historic counties. These clubs are heavily dependent on subsidies from the

, which makes its money from television and endorsement contracts and attendances at international matches. The English cricket season traditionally starts at the beginning of April and runs through to the second half of September although in recent years counties have played pre season friendly matches at the very end of March. Each summer the county clubs compete in the first class

, which consists of two divisions and in which matches are played over four days. The same teams also play

one day cricket Limited overs cricket, also known as one-day cricket or white ball cricket, is a version of the sport of cricket in which a match is generally completed in one day. There are a number of formats, including List A cricket (8-hour games), Twenty ...

in the

, and

Twenty20 Twenty20 (T20) is a shortened game format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two teams have a single inn ...

cricket in the Vitality T20 Blast. The

National Counties Cricket Championship The NCCA 3 Day Championship (previously the Minor Counties Cricket Championship) is a season-long competition in England and Wales that is contested by the members of the National Counties Cricket Association (NCCA), the so-called national cou ...

is a season-long competition in England for county clubs that do not have first-class status. There are nineteen teams representing historic English counties along with a Welsh minor counties team. Below the county game, there are a raft of club competitions organised on a regional basis.

being the highest level. There are also non-ECB-affiliated leagues such as the

Bradford Cricket League The Bradford Premier League (currently known as the Gordon Rigg Bradford Premier League for sponsorship reasons) is an amateur cricket competition centred in Bradford, West Yorkshire. It has been described as "arguably England's strongest amate ...

, the Lancashire League and the

Central Lancashire League The Central Lancashire Cricket League (CLCL) was a fifteen team cricket league, traditionally based in Lancashire and the West Riding of Yorkshire. It was then based in Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire. The league ran competitions at Fir ...

. In women's cricket, 36 teams, mainly representing counties, currently compete in the Women's Twenty20 Cup. The Women's County Championship, a one-day competition, was also competed for by counties until it ended in 2019. In 2016 the

Women's Cricket Super League The Women's Cricket Super League (WCSL), known as the Kia Super League (KSL) for sponsorship reasons, was a semi-professional women's Twenty20 cricket competition in England and Wales operated by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). The comp ...

was established, a

competition with six franchise teams. The Women's Cricket Super League was replaced in 2020 with a new regional domestic structure for women's cricket. This included eight teams each representing a region of England and Wales, and competing in the 50-over

Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy The Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy is an English women's cricket domestic competition, named after former England captain Rachael Heyhoe Flint, Baroness Heyhoe-Flint, who died in 2017. The first edition of the tournament took place during August ...

from 2020 and the Twenty20

Charlotte Edwards Cup The Charlotte Edwards Cup, initially named the Women's Regional T20, is an English women's cricket Twenty20 domestic competition organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board. The first edition of the tournament took place in 2021. The tourna ...

from 2021.

First-class counties

The eighteen first-class counties are the top level men's cricket teams. They are named after historic English counties and include one Welsh county,

Glamorgan , HQ = Cardiff , Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974) , Origin= , Code = GLA , CodeName = Chapman code , Replace = * West Glamorgan * Mid Glamorgan * South Glamorgan , Mot ...

. The English first-class counties are: *

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It ...

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The trad ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lor ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant ur ...

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the Englis ...

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avo ...

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

The full name of the cricket team is usually formed from the name of the county followed by the words County Cricket Club, which are often abbreviated as CCC.

Derbies

The following games are considered derbies:- *Roses Match – Yorkshire v Lancashire *Battle of London (Cross-Thames Derby) – Middlesex v Surrey *South Coast Special – Hampshire v Sussex *West Midlands Derby – Warwickshire v Worcestershire *West Country Derby – Somerset v Gloucestershire *East Midlands Derby – Notts v Derbyshire *North Derby – Yorkshire v Durham

MCC

The opening first-class game of an English county cricket season has traditionally been played at

between the MCC and the Champion County (the club that won the County Championship the previous year). When the

(MCC) plays against one of the first-class counties, the game is granted first-class status.

University matches

Oxford and Cambridge universities played their first match against each other in 1827. After the advent of first class cricket, matches between Oxford and Cambridge, and between either of those two universities and another first class side, were considered first class matches, with the status applied retroactively to earlier matches. Counties started playing matches at other universities in the 1980s, the first being Nottinghamshire vs Durham University at

The Racecourse The Racecourse is an open area on the River Wear in Durham, England of total that has been used as a sports ground since at least 1733. It forms part of Durham University's sports facilities as well as hosting local sports clubs. The Racecours ...

in 1981, but these were not granted first class status. The first University Centre of Cricketing Excellence (UCCE) was established at Durham University by Graeme Fowler in 1996. The success of the Durham centre led to it being adopted as a national model by the ECB in October 2000, with the establishment of six UCCE sides (two – Durham and Loughborough – based around a single university; the others bringing together players from multiple institutions) playing from 2001 in a two-day match competition with a final at Lord's. From 2001 the Oxford and Cambridge matches against the counties were no longer considered first class games, but each UCCE played three early-season matches against county sides, which acted as pre-season warm-ups for the counties, and for Oxford, Cambridge and Durham UCCEs these were considered first class. Matches between counties and Loughborough UCCE were considered first class from 2003. The MCC took over funding of the scheme from 2005, and from 2010 the UCCEs were rebranded as MCC University (MCCU) teams.{{cite web, url=https://www.ecb.co.uk/news/691592/ecb-to-resume-university-cricket-funding, title=ECB to resume university cricket funding, date=17 May 2018, publisher=ECB, accessdate=6 August 2022 A further re-arrangement in 2012 granted first-class status to all six MCCUs, but only for two of the three matches against county sides each season. The MCC ceased funding the programme in 2020, with the organisation transferring back to the ECB. The matches between the MCCUs and counties, and the annual

University Match The University Match in a cricketing context is generally understood to refer to the annual fixture between Oxford University Cricket Club and Cambridge University Cricket Club. From 2001, as part of the reorganisation of first-class cricket, ...

between Oxford and Cambridge, were no longer considered first class matches after 2020. No MCCU matches were played in 2020 due to COVID, although the last first class Oxford-Cambridge match was played that September. As of 2022, pre-season matches with first class counties are played under the name of "English University Matches" (according to the ECB website, although Wisden uses the term ECB University Matches), and

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

has been added to the universities participating. Both the ECB and Wisden list the university teams participating in these pre-season matches as MCCUs, but they compete in

British Universities and Colleges Sport British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) is the governing body for higher education sport in the United Kingdom. BUCS was formed in June 2008 following a merger of British Universities Sports Association (BUSA) and University College Sport ...

(BUCS) limited-over matches as UCCEs. Inter-university matches outside of BUCS and the Oxford-Cambridge match have not, as of 2022, resumed after COVID. The university teams that have played first-class cricket, the dates when they held that status, the universities they represented and the number of first class matches played are: Teams representing a single university: * Cambridge University CC: 1817^a–2020, Cambridge University, 1479 matches^b * Oxford University CC: 1827^a–2020, Oxford University, 1366 matches^b * Durham UCCE/MCCU: 2001-2020, Durham University, 48 matches * Loughborough UCCE/MCCU: 2003-2020, Loughborough University, 41 matches ^a Date of earliest first class match listed on the Cricket Archive; formal first class status from 1895.
^b Includes matches prior to 1895 regarded as first class by the Cricket Archive; see {{section link, First-class cricket, Retrospective classification of matches played before the definitions. Teams representing multiple universities: *

Oxford and Cambridge Universities cricket team Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the U ...

: 1839^a–1992, Oxford and Cambridge university; 18 matches^b * Combined Universities/British Universities cricket team: 1993–2006, all UK universities; 13 matches * Cambridge UCCE/MCCU: 2001–2020, Cambridge and Anglia Ruskin universities, 48 matches * Oxford UCCE/MCCU: 2001-2020, Oxford and Oxford Brookes universities, 47 matches *

Cardiff MCCU Cardiff South Wales MCC University, formerly Cardiff University Centre of Cricketing Excellence, commonly abbreviated to Cardiff MCCU, is one of six University Centres of Cricketing Excellence supported by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). It c ...

: 2012-2020, Cardiff, Cardiff Met and South Wales universities, 16 matches * Leeds/Bradford MCCU: 2012-2020, Leeds, Leeds Beckett and Bradford universities and Bradford College, 14 matches ^a Date of earliest first class match listed on the Cricket Archive; formal first class status from 1895.
^b Includes two matches prior to 1895 regarded as first class by the Cricket Archive; see {{section link, First-class cricket, Retrospective classification of matches played before the definitions. The Oxford and Cambridge Universities team played 18 first class matches against touring sides from 1839 to 1992, including two before official first class status started in 1895. The Combined Universities (

British Universities Universities in the United Kingdom have generally been instituted by royal charter, papal bull, Act of Parliament, or an instrument of government under the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 or the Higher Education and Research Act 2017. ...

from 1995) team, formed originally from Oxford and Cambridge but including other universities from 1987, played in the limited overs

Benson & Hedges Cup The Benson & Hedges Cup was a one-day cricket competition for first-class counties in England and Wales that was held from 1972 to 2002, one of cricket's longest sponsorship deals. It was the third major one-day competition established in Englan ...

from 1975 to 1998 and played 13 first class matches against touring sides from 1993 to 2006. The MCC Universities team (formed from the six MCCUs) played various matches from 2007 to 2017, including entering the

Second XI Championship The Second XI Championship is a season-long cricket competition in England that is competed for by the reserve teams of those county cricket clubs that have first-class status. The competition started in 1959 and has been contested annually ever ...

from 2009 to 2017.

Women's Domestic Regional Hubs

The eight women's teams represent "regional hubs" and are partnered with the counties in their region. Each team has at least six professionally contracted players. *

Central Sparks Central Sparks are a women's cricket team that represent the West Midlands region, one of eight regional hubs in English domestic women's cricket. They play their home matches at Edgbaston and New Road. They are captained by Evelyn Jones and ...

–

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouths ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands C ...

Lightning Lightning is a naturally occurring electrostatic discharge during which two electrically charged regions, both in the atmosphere or with one on the ground, temporarily neutralize themselves, causing the instantaneous release of an average ...

–

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-we ...

Loughborough University Loughborough University (abbreviated as ''Lough'' or ''Lboro'' for post-nominals) is a public research university in the market town of Loughborough, Leicestershire, England. It has been a university since 1966, but it dates back to 1909, when ...

Northern Diamonds Northern Diamonds are a women's cricket team that represent the traditional areas of the Northumbria (modern), North East and Yorkshire, one of eight regional hubs in English domestic women's cricket. They play their home matches at Headingley C ...

–

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land ...

North West Thunder North West Thunder, commonly referred to as Thunder, are a women's cricket team that represent Lancashire and North West England, one of eight regional hubs in English domestic women's cricket. They play their home matches at various grounds, in ...

–

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county tow ...

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. ...

South East Stars South East Stars are a women's cricket team that represent the London & South East region, one of eight regional hubs in English domestic women's cricket. They play their home matches at various grounds, including the County Cricket Ground, Bec ...

–

Southern Vipers The Southern Vipers are a women's cricket team that represent the South of England. The Vipers wear an orange and black kit and play their home matches at the Ageas Bowl and the County Cricket Ground, Hove. They are currently coached by forme ...

–

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Ber ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-e ...

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primaril ...

& Isle of Wight Cricket Board * Sunrisers –

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council ...

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to t ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For gov ...

Huntingdonshire Huntingdonshire (; abbreviated Hunts) is a non-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire and a historic county of England. The district council is based in Huntingdon. Other towns include St Ives, Godmanchester, St Neots and Ramsey. The popu ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the Nor ...

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include ...

* Western Storm –

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

& Cricket Wales

The Hundred

{{see also, The Hundred (cricket) Originally scheduled to start in the 2020 season but postponed until 2021 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

, the Hundred is a

100 ball cricket 100-ball cricket is a short form of cricket designed to attract new audiences to the game with simplified rules, which was originally created by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) for its new city-based competition The Hundred. The 1 ...

competition which consists of eight city-based franchise teams, each of which field both a men's and women's team, in a league format. * Birmingham Phoenix *

London Spirit London Spirit are a franchise 100-ball cricket side based in North London. The team represents the historic counties of Middlesex, Essex and Northamptonshire in The Hundred, which took place for the first time during the 2021 English and We ...

* Manchester Originals *

Northern Superchargers Northern Superchargers are a franchise 100-ball cricket side based in the city of Leeds. The team represents the Historic counties of England, traditional areas of North East England (traditional), North East and Yorkshire in The Hundred (crick ...

* Oval Invincibles *

Southern Brave Southern Brave is a franchise 100-ball cricket side based in the city of Southampton. The team represents the historic counties of Hampshire and Sussex in the newly founded The Hundred competition, which took place for the first time during t ...

Trent Rockets Trent Rockets are a franchise 100-ball cricket side based in the city of Nottingham. The team represents the historic counties of Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Leicestershire in the newly founded The Hundred competition, which took place fo ...

* Welsh Fire

Recreational club competitions

The ECB runs a national club knock-out competition, the

ECB National Club Cricket Championship The ECB National Club Cricket Championship is a forty over limited overs knockout club cricket competition in England. The most successful clubs have been Scarborough, from North Yorkshire, with five titles and Old Hill, from Staffordshire, with ...

, and has in place a regional

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Fo ...

pyramid system for recreational

club cricket Club cricket is a mainly amateur, but still formal, form of the sport of cricket, usually involving teams playing in competitions at weekends or in the evening. There is a great deal of variation in game format although the Laws of Cricket are o ...

in England and Wales.{{Citation needed, date=April 2021

Cricket grounds

:''{{See also, List of cricket grounds in England and Wales'' The cricket grounds of England and Wales are smaller than the largest in some other countries, especially

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

, but the best of them have been modernised to a high standard, and two new international grounds have been built in recent years. The largest English cricket ground,

in London, is internationally regarded as the "home of cricket". Test matches have been played at 24 grounds across the country. Five of these grounds have hosted both men's and women's Tests in their history:

The Oval The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since ...

(

South London South London is the southern part of London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the boroughs, in whole or in part, of Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Richmond, Southwark, Sut ...

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wembl ...

(

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

Trent Bridge Trent Bridge Cricket Ground is a cricket ground mostly used for Test, One-Day International and county cricket located in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England, just across the River Trent from the city of Nottingham. Trent Bridge is also ...

(

Nottingham Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...

Headingley Headingley is a suburb of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, approximately two miles out of the city centre, to the north west along the A660 road. Headingley is the location of the Beckett Park campus of Leeds Beckett University and Headingley ...

(

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popul ...

) and

Edgbaston Edgbaston () is an affluent suburban area of central Birmingham, England, historically in Warwickshire, and curved around the southwest of the city centre. In the 19th century, the area was under the control of the Gough-Calthorpe family ...

(

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

).{{cite web , url=https://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/stats/index.html?class=8;filter=advanced;host=1;orderby=start;orderbyad=reverse;size=200;template=results;type=aggregate;view=ground, accessdate=27 November 2021 , website=espncricinfo.com , title=Aggregate/overall records - Women's Test matches{{cite web , url=https://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/stats/index.html?class=1;filter=advanced;host=1;orderby=start;orderbyad=reverse;size=200;template=results;type=aggregate;view=ground, accessdate=27 November 2021 , website=espncricinfo.com , title=Aggregate/overall records - Test matches The other grounds to have hosted a Test match since 2010 are Sir Paul Getty's Ground ( Wormsley Park),

St Lawrence Ground The St Lawrence Ground is a cricket ground in Canterbury, Kent. It is the home ground of Kent County Cricket Club and since 2013 has been known as The Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence, due to commercial sponsorship. It is one of the oldest grounds ...

(

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of t ...

County Ground, Taunton The County Ground, known for sponsorship reasons as Cooper Associates County Ground, and nicknamed Ciderabad, is a cricket ground in Taunton, Somerset. It is the home of Somerset County Cricket Club, who have played there since 1882. The ground, ...

Bristol County Ground The Bristol County Ground (also known as Nevil Road and currently known as the Seat Unique Stadium for sponsorship reasons) is a senior cricket venue in Bristol, England. It is in the district of Ashley Down. The ground is home to Gloucestershir ...

Sophia Gardens Sophia Gardens ( cy, Gerddi Sophia) is a public park in Riverside, Cardiff, Wales, on the west bank of the River Taff. International test cricket matches and county cricket matches are held in the Sophia Gardens cricket ground, the home of ...

(

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...

), the Rose Bowl (

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

) and

Riverside Ground The Riverside Ground, known for sponsorship reasons as the Seat Unique Riverside, is a cricket venue in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, England. It is home to Durham County Cricket Club, and has also hosted several international matches. H ...

(

Chester-le-Street Chester-le-Street (), also known as Chester, is a market town and civil parish in County Durham, England, around north of Durham and also close to Sunderland and Newcastle upon Tyne. It is located on the River Wear, which runs out to sea ...

Governing body

The

(ECB) is the governing body 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 st ...

and

. It was created on 1 January 1997 combining the roles of the

Test and County Cricket Board The Test and County Cricket Board (TCCB) was the governing body for Test and county cricket in Great Britain between 1968 and 1996. The TCCB was established in 1968 to replace the functions of the Board of Control for Test Matches (established ...

(TCCB), the National Cricket Association (NCA) and the Cricket Council. They are full members of the

International Cricket Council The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the world governing body of cricket. Headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, its members are 108 national associations, with 12 Full Members and 96 Associate Members. Founded in 1909 as the '' ...

National teams

{{Main, England cricket team, England women's cricket team In men's cricket, England is a founding

Test cricket Test cricket is a form of first-class cricket played at international level between teams representing full member countries of the International Cricket Council (ICC). A match consists of four innings (two per team) and is scheduled to last f ...

One Day International A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, currently 50, with the game lasting up to 9 hours. The Cricket World C ...

and

nation. England played in the first ever Test match in 1877 (against

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

) and the first ever One Day International in 1971 (also against Australia in Melbourne). Each summer foreign national teams visit England to play Tests, One Day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals. In the British winter the England team tours abroad. The highest profile rival of the England cricket team is the Australian team, with which it competes for

The Ashes The Ashes is a Test cricket series played between England and Australia. The term originated in a satirical obituary published in a British newspaper, '' The Sporting Times'', immediately after Australia's 1882 victory at The Oval, its first ...

, one of the most famous trophies in British sport. In women's cricket, England played in the first Women's Test series against

in 1934–35. They won the first

Women's Cricket World Cup The ICC Women's Cricket World Cup is the sport's oldest world championship, with the first tournament held in England in 1973. Matches are played as One Day Internationals (ODIs) over 50 overs per team, while there is also another champion ...

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: ...

, and again in

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peacefu ...

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; Protests ...

and

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

. They played in the first ever

Twenty20 International A Twenty20 International (T20I) is a form of cricket, played between two of the international members of the International Cricket Council (ICC), in which each team faces a maximum of twenty overs. The matches have top-class status and are th ...

for either gender, against

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

Hove Hove is a seaside resort and one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove, along with Brighton in East Sussex, England. Originally a "small but ancient fishing village" surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th ...

, and they won the inaugural World Twenty20 in

Popularity

In 2005 the ECB concluded a commercial arrangement with

BSkyB Sky UK Limited is a British broadcaster and telecommunications company that provides television and broadband Internet services, fixed line and mobile telephone services to consumers and businesses in the United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of ...

which gave Sky the exclusive television rights for live

in England for four years (the 2006 to 2009 seasons). This deal, which took live

for home England matches away from

terrestrial television Terrestrial television or over-the-air television (OTA) is a type of television broadcasting in which the signal transmission occurs via radio waves from the terrestrial (Earth-based) transmitter of a TV station to a TV receiver having an ante ...

for the first time generated substantial future revenues for English cricket, but was criticised by many England cricket supporters and others. The Cricket Writers' Club Young Cricketer of the Year is an annual award voted by the Cricket Writers' Club for the best young cricket player in England and Wales, and has been awarded since 1950.{{Citation needed, date=April 2021 Cricket is also one of the most popular participation sports in England after football, rugby and tennis with most villages running a side every Sunday through the season, and towns putting out 2, 3, 4 and occasionally 5 sides for Saturday league matches, and 1 or 2 sides on a Sunday. According to the mid year 2020-21 Active

Sport England Sport England is a non-departmental public body under the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. Its role is to build the foundations of a community sport system by working with national governing bodies of sport, and other funded p ...

survey an estimated 181,500 people play cricket at least twice a month, a 0.4% fall compared to the previous year. Around 65% population of England follow Cricket.{{cite web, url=https://www.news18.com/cricketnext/news/cricket-still-popular-among-young-people-insists-icc-chief-1764533.html, title=Cricket Still Popular Among Young People, Insists ICC Chief, date=31 May 2018, website=News18.com, access-date=2 November 2018{{cite web, url=https://sportsgazette.co.uk/success-breeds-popularity-people-want-a-piece-of-it-why-womens-cricket-continues-its-rapid-rise/, title="Success breeds popularity – people want a piece of it": why women's cricket continues its rapid rise – Sports Gazette, website=sportsgazette.co.uk, access-date=2 November 2018

Bibliography

* {{cite book, last=Malcolm, first=Dominic, title=Globalizing Cricket Codification, Colonization and Contemporary Identities., year=2013, publisher=Bloomsbury USA Academic, isbn=978-1849665278

References

{{Reflist {{England cricket team {{Cricket in England {{Cricket in the British Isles {{National Cricket Articles