Cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

is one of the most popular

sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, and has been played since the 16th century.

Marylebone Cricket Club The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's, Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London, England. The club was the governing body of cricket from 1788 to 1989 and retain ...

, based at

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

, 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, aka ECB, is the Sports governing body, 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 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 purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

, competing in tournaments such as the

County Championship The County Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Rothesay County Championship, is the only domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales. Established in 1890, it is organised by the England and Wales Cri ...

, Metro Bank One-Day Cup, 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 English cricket to 1725, (1726-1750), (1751–1775), (1776-1800), (1801–1825), (1826–1845), (1846–1863), (1919–1945) Modern English cricket contends with the growing participation of women and minorities, as well as how globalisation and commercialisation change the nature and objectives of the game.

Administration

The

(ECB) is the governing body of

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

and

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. 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 sports governing body, governing body for Test cricket, 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 Con ...

(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 global Sports governing body, governing body of cricket. It was founded as the Imperial Cricket Conference in 1909 by representatives from Australia, England, and South Africa. In 1965, the body wa ...

National teams

The

England cricket team The England men's cricket team represents cricket in England, England and cricket in Wales, Wales in international cricket. Since 1997, it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), having been previously governed by Maryleb ...

is governed by the

(ECB) and is a member of the ICC Europe. Since 1909, the ECB has been affiliated with ICC, the international governing body for world cricket.

Performance

The following list includes the performance of all of England's teams at major competitions.

Men's senior team

In men's cricket, England is a founding

Test cricket Test cricket is a Forms of cricket, format of the sport of cricket, considered the game’s most prestigious and traditional form. Often referred to as the "ultimate test" of a cricketer's skill, endurance, and temperament, it is a format of i ...

One Day International One Day International (ODI) is a format of cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of fifty overs, with the game lasting up to 7 hours. The World Cup, generally held every four yea ...

and

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

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

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

) and the first ever One Day International in 1971 (also against Australia in Melbourne).

Women's senior team

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 Women's Cricket World Cup is the quadrennial international championship of Women's One Day International Cricket tournament. Matches are played as One Day Internationals over 50 overs per team. There is also another championship for Tw ...

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 14 - The 16-0 19 ...

, and again in

1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

and

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

. They played in the first ever

Twenty20 International Twenty20 International (T20I) is a form of Twenty20 cricket, in which each team plays a single innings with a maximum of twenty overs. The matches are played between international teams recognized by the International Cricket Council (ICC). ...

for either gender, against

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

Hove Hove ( ) is a seaside resort in East Sussex, England. Alongside Brighton, it is one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove. Originally a fishing village surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th century in respon ...

, and they won the inaugural World Twenty20 in

Men's U-19 team

Women's U-19 team

Organisation of cricket in modern England

International cricket

International cricket in England follows a fixed pattern; the English schedule tours in other countries during the winter and play at home during the summer. Recently, there has been a tendency to play more one-day matches than Test matches. Cricket in England is managed by the

(ECB).

Men's National Team

The

England Cricket Team The England men's cricket team represents cricket in England, England and cricket in Wales, Wales in international cricket. Since 1997, it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), having been previously governed by Maryleb ...

represents

in international cricket matches. England have been participating in international cricket since 1877 and competed in international tournament since the first ever the 1975 Cricket World Cup. The England men's team is currently ranked No. 4 in Tests, No. 7 in ODIs and at 3rd position in T20Is. England won their first world cup in the year

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

*Test International-

is the oldest form of

played at international level. A Test match is scheduled to take place over a period of five days, and until the 1930s some timeless Tests were played. Test matches are played by teams representing full member nations of the

(ICC).

was a founding member of the ICC, having played the first Test match against

in March 1877 at the

Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), also known locally as the 'G, is a sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadium in the Southern Hemisphere, the Lis ...

. , they have played more Test matches than any other team, and of their 1083 games, have won 400, drawn 355 and lost 328. With 36.9 per cent of matches won, England are the third most successful team in the history of Test cricket, behind Australia on 47.8 per cent and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

on 38.9 per cent. *One Day International- England played their first ODI International in 1971 against

. They were very consistent in the first five editions of

Cricket World Cup The ICC Men's Cricket World Cup is a quadrennial world cup for cricket in One Day International (ODI) format, organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC). The tournament is one of the world's most viewed sporting events and consid ...

, reaching the finals in

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

and

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

. In

, they won their first title in England, beating

in the final. *T20 International- England played their first T20 International in 2005 against

. In May

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

, England won their first-ever ICC Men's T20 World Cup held in their home, beating arch-rivals Australia by 7 wickets in the final. They also managed to win the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2022, defeating Pakistan in the final.

Women's National Team

The

England women's cricket team The England women's cricket team represents England and Wales in international women's cricket. Since 1998, they have been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), having been previously governed by the Women's Cricket Associatio ...

represents

in international women's

matches. England have been participating in international cricket since 1909 and competed in international tournament since the second ever the 1978 Women's Cricket World Cup. They are the most successful women's cricket team in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. The England Women's team is also currently ranked No. 3 in ODIs and at 2nd position in T20Is. *Test International- England made their debut as a Test playing nation in 1934 against

. In past time, England women's rarely play test. But in recent years they are playing more test matches. They have greatest test rivalry against

called '' the Women's Ashes''. *One Day International- England played their first ODI International in 1973 against International XI. They are the most consistent team after

in women's cricket. They have been participating in

since, the first edition. After Australia, England have won most number of Women's Cricket World Cup titles. They won their first titile in first edition by beating Australia in points table. Recently, in

they have won their latest Women's Cricket World Cup trophy by beating

India India, officially the Republic of India, 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 by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

by 9 runs in the final. *T20 International- England played their first T20 International in 2004 against

. England Women's have made great impact in T20 international from their early day of this format. They have won the first edition of Women's T20 World Cup held in England, beating New Zealand by 6 wickets in the final. They been consistent in reaching the finals but failed to clinch the title multiple times. In latest 2024 Women's T20 World Cup, they have worst performance of all the editions.

Domestic Cricket

Men's Domestic Cricket

On a domestic level, there are eighteen professional county clubs, seventeen of them in England and one 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. The following games are considered derbies:- *Roses Match – Yorkshire v Lancashire *Battle of London (Cross-Thames Derby) – Middlesex v Surrey *Battle of the Bridge - Essex v Kent *South Coast Special (El Clasicoast) – 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

=First class competitions

= *

– It is the only domestic

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is of three or more days scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officially adju ...

competition in England and Wales. Established in 1890, it is organised by the

(ECB) as a two-league system. The tournament is contested by eighteen clubs representing the

historic counties of England The historic counties of England are areas that were established for administration by the Normans, in many cases based on earlier Heptarchy, kingdoms and shires created by the Angles (tribe), Angles, Saxons, Jutes, Celts and the Danes (tribe) ...

and (in one case)

. The ''official'' County Championship was constituted on 16 December 1889, when secretaries of the major clubs gathered at

to decide the following season's fixtures. Simultaneously, representatives of the eight leading countries met privately to determine how teams would be ranked. The new competition began in the 1890 season and at first involved just the eight leading clubs:

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

and

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

. Subsequently, the championship has been expanded to 18 clubs by the additions at various times of

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

, Durham,

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

Glamorgan Glamorgan (), or sometimes Glamorganshire ( or ), was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It is located in the South Wales, south of Wales. Originally an ea ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

and

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

. Counties without first-class status compete in the

National Counties Cricket Championship The NCCA 3 Day Championship or National County Championship is a season-long competition in England and Wales that is contested by the members of the National Counties Cricket Association, National Counties Cricket Association (NCCA), the so-ca ...

. * Champion County match - The Champion County match is a

match, traditionally played between the winner of the previous season's

, and the

(MCC). The match was played at

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

for many seasons, but from 2010 to 2017 it took place at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

. The 2018 match was played at the

Kensington Oval The Kensington Oval is a stadium located in the western part of Bridgetown, Barbados. It is the pre-eminent sporting facility on the island and is primarily used for cricket. It has hosted many important cricket games between local, regional, ...

ground in

Bridgetown Bridgetown (UN/LOCODE: BB BGI) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Barbados. Formerly The Town of Saint Michael, the Greater Bridgetown area is located within the Parishes of Barbados, parish of Saint Michael, Barbados, Saint Mic ...

Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...

=Limited overs competitions

= * One-Day Cup - It is a fifty-over

limited overs cricket Limited overs cricket, also known as white ball cricket, is a version of the sport of cricket in which a match is generally completed within one day. There are a number of formats, including List A cricket (8-hour games), Twenty20 cricket (3-h ...

competition for the England and Wales first-class counties. It began in

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

as a replacement for the

ECB 40 The ECB40, last known as the Yorkshire Bank 40 (YB40) for sponsorship reasons, was a forty-over limited overs cricket competition for the English first-class counties. It began in the 2010 English cricket season as a replacement for the Pro40 ...

tournament, which ran from 2010 to 2013. In contrast to its 40-over predecessor, the number of overs per innings was set at 50 to bring the competition in line with One-Day Internationals. The competition begins with a

round-robin tournament A round-robin tournament or all-play-all tournament is a competition format in which each contestant meets every other participant, usually in turn.''Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged'' (1971, G. & ...

featuring two groups of nine. The groups were organised geographically with a North group and a South group until 2021, since when the groups have been decided by a draw. As of 2024, the top three teams in each group progress to the knock-out stage of the competition. The final was held at

until 2020, when it was moved to Trent Bridge.

=Twenty20 competitions

= * T20 Blast – It is a professional

league in England and Wales. The competition was established by the

(ECB) in 2003. T20 Blast is the oldest domestic T20 league in the world. It is one of the top-level Twenty20 league in the world. Vitality Blast comprises 18 teams, with 17 in the England and 1 in Wales.

Women's Domestic Cricket

In women's cricket, 35 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 from 2020 and the Twenty20 Charlotte Edwards Cup from 2021.

=Twenty20 competitions

= * Women's Twenty20 Cup- It is a women's

competition organised by the

. Until the end of the 2019 season, teams were organised in tiered divisions, with a national winner; since, teams have been organised into regional groups. The competition began in

and now features 35 teams, drawn mainly from the

, plus

and

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. Until 2019, the competition operated alongside the Women's County Championship, but after a restructuring in women's domestic cricket in 2020, between

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

and

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

it was the only official tournament featuring county sides, with regional teams competing in new 50-over,

and The Hundred competitions. * Women's T20 Blast- It will be a professional women's Twenty20

league in England and Wales, run by the

(ECB). It will serve as the successor to the Charlotte Edwards Cup.

100 ball competitions

* The Hundred – It is a professional

league in

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. The Hundred is the only cricket league in the world that played in 100-ball format. It is organised by

(ECB) every year in month of July and August. The Hundred is one of the "Big Four" major cricket tournament organised by ECB, others three are

, One-Day Cup, and T20 Blast. The Hundred comprises 8 teams, with 7 in England and 1 in Wales. * Birmingham Phoenix * London Spirit * Manchester Originals * Northern Superchargers * Oval Invincibles * Southern Brave * Trent Rockets * Welsh Fire

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. First class counties started playing matches at other universities in the 1980s, the first being Nottinghamshire vs Durham University at The Racecourse 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. 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 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 status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

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 and Colleges Sport (BUCS; ) is the sports governing body, governing body for higher education sport in the United Kingdom. Founded in 2008, BUCS is responsible for organising 54 inter-university sports in the United King ...

(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 2023 and 2024 County v UCCE Matches continued to include Exeter, but Cambridge UCCE did not participate and have not played any matches as Cambridge UCCE (either against counties or in BUCS competitions) since 2022. From the 2022 season, the Oxford UCCE men's team was replaced in BUCS by the single-institution Oxford Brookes UCCE. 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 . Teams representing multiple universities: * Oxford and Cambridge Universities cricket team: 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: 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 . 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. Deg ...

from 1995) team, formed originally from Oxford and Cambridge but including other universities from 1987, played in the limited overs Benson & Hedges Cup 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 eve ...

from 2009 to 2017.

Recreational club competitions

The ECB runs a national club knock-out competition, the ECB National Club Cricket Championship, and has in place a regional

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

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 obse ...

in England and Wales.

Stadiums

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

and

, 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 named 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 sinc ...

(

South London South London is the southern part of Greater London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the Districts of England, boroughs, in whole or in part, of London Borough of Bexley, Bexley, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, Lon ...

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and is the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,197, it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after W ...

(

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

), Trent Bridge (

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

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 in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

) and

Edgbaston Edgbaston () is a suburb of Birmingham, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It lies immediately south-west of Birmingham city centre, and was historically in Warwickshire. The Ward (electoral subdivision), wards of Edgbaston and Nort ...

(

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

). 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 o ...

(

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

County Ground, Taunton The County Ground, known for Naming rights#Stadium naming, sponsorship reasons as Cooper Associates County Ground, is a cricket ground in Taunton, Somerset. It is the home of Somerset County Cricket Club, who have played there since 1882. The gr ...

, Bristol County Ground,

Sophia Gardens Sophia Gardens ( ; ) is a public park in Riverside, Cardiff, Wales, on the west bank of the River Taff. International test cricket Test cricket is a Forms of cricket, format of the sport of cricket, considered the game’s most prestig ...

(

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

), the Rose Bowl (

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

) and Riverside Ground (

Chester-le-Street Chester-le-Street () is a market town in County Durham, England. It is located around north of Durham and is close to Newcastle. The town holds markets on Saturdays. In 2021, the town had a population of 23,555. The town's history is ancient; ...

International competitions hosted

Performance in international competitions

''A red box around the year indicates tournaments played within

Men's team

ICC World Test Championship

ICC Cricket World Cup

:''*The win percentage excludes no results and counts ties as half a win.''

ICC T20 World Cup

:''*The win percentage excludes no results and counts ties as half a win.''

ICC Champions Trophy

:''*The win percentage excludes no results and counts ties as half a win.''

Summer Olympics

: ''*The Summer Olympics Gold medal was won by the Devon and Somerset Wanderers representing Great Britain.'' :''*The win percentage excludes no results and counts ties as half a win.''

Women's team

ICC Women's Cricket World Cup

ICC Women's T20 World Cup

Commonwealth Games

Men's U-19 team

U-19 World Cup

Women's U-19 team

Under-19 Women's World Cup

Popularity

In 2005, the ECB concluded a commercial arrangement with BSkyB, granting Sky exclusive television rights for live Test cricket 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 content is signal transmission, transmitted via radio waves from the terrestrial (Earth-based) transmitter of a TV station to a TV rece ...

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. 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 survey, an estimated 181,500 people played cricket at least twice a month, representing a 0.4% decrease compared to the previous year. Around 65% population of England follow Cricket.

Bibliography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cricket in England Sport in England

History

Administration

National teams

Performance

Men's senior team

Women's senior team

Men's U-19 team

Women's U-19 team

Organisation of cricket in modern England

International cricket

Men's National Team

Women's National Team

Domestic Cricket

Men's Domestic Cricket

=First class competitions

=Limited overs competitions

=Twenty20 competitions

Women's Domestic Cricket

=Twenty20 competitions

100 ball competitions

University matches

Recreational club competitions

Stadiums

International competitions hosted

Performance in international competitions

Men's team

ICC World Test Championship

ICC Cricket World Cup

ICC T20 World Cup

ICC Champions Trophy

Summer Olympics

Women's team

ICC Women's Cricket World Cup

ICC Women's T20 World Cup

Commonwealth Games

Men's U-19 team

U-19 World Cup

Women's U-19 team

Under-19 Women's World Cup

Popularity

Bibliography

See also

References