The Bowled Over Cricket Blog

As cricket continues to spread around the world, more and more superstars have begun to emerge from less-traditional cricketing nations, not just the 12 sides with test status. T20 franchise competitions give players the chance to play cricket professionally without representing their nations. Some of the larger white ball competitions attract the very best players and coaches in the world and give players from any country the chance to play cricket at an exceptionally high level. Increasing numbers of international white ball fixtures for smaller cricketing nations have also helped cricketers that play for countries without test status to compete on the global stage. While a large number of cricketers that play for the emerging nations may never be able to create a full time career from playing the sport they love, some have the skill, talent and perhaps luck to do so and a few players that represent more minor cricketing nations are among the best in the world. Ryan Ten Doesc

In 1751, the New York Gazette carried the story of the first public cricket match in North America; a game contested between a London side and a local eleven, the latter coming out on top in the historic contest. This game took place 40 years before the first known mention of baseball in the continent, but it’s fair to say that most Americans have taken to the sport played on a diamond much more kindly; Major League Baseball pulled in an average crowd of 28,199 fans per game last season, but there isn’t a single professional cricket league in the entire nation. However, cricket has begun to surge in popularity in the States, a place that the world’s second most popular sport has never quite been able to reach. Until now. An influx of West Indian and South East Asian immigrants to North America has helped to create a buzz around cricket in the country.  But the game isn’t just played by expats in the US, others have embraced the sport too, with baseball comparisons being used to help be

Ever since the first pink ball test match (also known as a day-night test) at Adelaide, back in 2015, multiple matches have been played with the more brightly coloured ball, as it allows play to go on after dark, so those working from 9 till 5 can watch the game after a long day at the office. Many see day-night test matches as a way of solving the burning issue of dwindling crowds and television audiences watching cricket’s oldest format, yet traditionalists feel that test matches with a pink ball simply aren’t cricket. Concerns over whether the pink ball doesn’t offer as much assistance to the bowlers, especially spinners, have been raised, but some have managed to thrive using the luminous ball. Of the fourteen pink ball tests that have been played so far, Australia have contested half of them (four more than any other nation) and have come out on top in each one, so it’s perhaps unsurprising that bowlers from down under dominate this list. 6) Trent Boult Statistics in Pink Ball