Cricket game in Jamaica and Switzerland

A quick intro to cricket in Jamaica and Switzerland

The game of Cricket is among the legacies of British colonization. As far back as 1895 a team representing Jamaica played three matches (tournaments) against a touring team from England. That was probably the first international cricket match for Jamaican cricketers.

  Since then cricket remains a popular sport thanks in part to schools including the game in their sports curricula.  Cricket was considered a man’s sport, not so any more as women’s cricket is now established. In 1973 the Jamaican women’s cricket team participated for the first time in the Women’s Cricket World Cup.  

The length of a cricket match varies from one to three days, as the rules have changed to make it more appealing to spectators. Like football and hockey cricket fans never miss a game if possible. Not surprisingly cricket enthusiasts time their vacation to coincide with the big West Indies regional and international games…ah cricket, lovely cricket!

Here in Switzerland there the first cricket club was formed in Geneva in 1817. Since then it has grown to be a national organization with clubs across the country.  Switzerland is also the birth place of ‘Cricket On Ice,’ a unique tournament played every winter on St. Moritz frozen lake. This year’s Cricket On Ice tournament will take place on February 14th – 16th.

In case you are wondering how cricket is played, here’s a quick description of the game:

 Two teams with 10 players each compete to score the highest numbers of runs (points)

 These runs are made by the person with the bat (batsman) whose aim is to bat (hit) the ball as far as possible without the opponents catching it, as well as to run between the two wickets (three short polls) while the opposing team retrieves the ball. Each run adds another point to the batsman’s score. The further away the ball reaches the more scores the batsman is likely to gain running between the wickets.

Each team has a few members who specialize in bowling (throwing) the ball. Their aim is to bowl the ball to get the batsman out of the game, by hitting the wicket, the batsman’s leg or catching the ball immediately after the batsman hits it.

The bowler with the help of the other team members, posted across the grounds (play field), all aim to catch the ball as quickly as possible to knock with wicket before the batsmen complete their runs.

The team that gets the highest number of runs wins the game…ah cricket, lovely cricket!

For more on cricket in Jamaica and elsewhere  visit there links:

Jamaica Tallawah National Team 

The Jamaica Cricket Association

The Windies (West Indian Team) in action 

The Swiss Cricket Club  : https://www.cricketswitzerland.ch/

Also visit our art gallery:  EJ Gallery  
 

Updated March 2022