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International Members

Full Members of the Game -

Nation	Governing body	Member since	Current Test Rankings	Current ODI Rankings	Current T20 Rankings
Australia	Cricket Australia	15 July 1909	3	4	9
Bangladesh	Bangladesh Cricket Board	26 June 2000	9	9	8
England	England and Wales Cricket Board	15 July 1909	2	1	2
India	Board of Control for Cricket in India	31 May 1926	5	3	4
New Zealand	New Zealand Cricket	31 May 1926	8	8	7
Pakistan	Pakistan Cricket Board	28 July 1953	4	6	6
South Africa	Cricket South Africa	15 July 1909	1	2	1
Sri Lanka	Sri Lanka Cricket	21 July 1981	6	5	3
West Indies	West Indies Cricket Board	31 May 1926	7	7	5
Zimbabwe	Zimbabwe Cricket	6 July 1992	–	10	10

History Of Cricket

Early cricket was at some time or another described as "a club striking a ball (like) the ancient games of club-ball, stool-ball, trap-ball, stob-ball. Cricket can definitely be traced back to Tudor times in early 16th-century England. Written evidence exists of a game known as creag being played by Prince Edward, the son of Edward I (Longshanks), at Newenden, Kent in 1301 and there has been speculation, but no evidence, that this was a form of cricket.

During the 17th century, numerous references indicate the growth of cricket in the south-east of England. By the end of the century, it had become an organised activity being played for high stakes and it is believed that the first professionals appeared in the years following the Restoration in 1660. A newspaper report survives of "a great cricket match" with eleven players a side that was played for high stakes in Sussex in 1697 and this is the earliest known reference to a cricket match of such importance.
The game underwent major development in the 18th century and became the national sport of England.

During the 20th century, Test cricket continued to expand, with the addition of the West Indies, India, and New Zealand before the Second World War and then Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh in the post-war period. However, South Africa was banned from international cricket from 1970 to 1992 because of its government's apartheid policy.
Cricket entered a new era in 1963 when English counties introduced the limited overs variant. As it was sure to produce a result, limited overs cricket was lucrative and the number of matches increased. The first Limited Overs International was played in 1971. The governing International Cricket Council (ICC) saw its potential and staged the first limited overs Cricket World Cup in 1975. In the 21st century, a new limited overs form, Twenty20, has made an immediate impact.

EVOLUTION OF CRICKET BATS OVER HUNDREDS OF YEARS.

Get to Know the Game!

Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on a field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the runs scored by the batting team. A run is scored by the striking batsman hitting the ball with his bat, running to the opposite end of the pitch and touching the crease there without being dismissed. The teams switch between batting and fielding at the end of an innings.
In professional cricket the length of a game ranges from 20 overs of six bowling deliveries per side to Test cricket played over five days. The Laws of Cricket are maintained by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) with additional Standard Playing Conditions for Test matches and One Day Internationals.