34°34′13″S 58°24′43″W / 34.5703°S 58.4120°W / -34.5703; -58.4120
56-638: The Buenos Aires Cricket Club Ground was a cricket field in Buenos Aires , Argentina . The ground, located in the Palermo district and property of Buenos Aires Cricket Club , gained historic relevance because the first football (in 1867) and rugby union (in 1873) matches in Argentina were played there. The football match disputed in the BACC was such a success that some members would go on to found
112-511: A cost of A$ 80 million. This is one of the reasons cricket games generally cannot be hosted outside the traditional cricket-playing countries, and a few non-Test nations like Canada, the UAE and Kenya that have built Test standard stadiums. Most of the action takes place in the centre of this ground, on a rectangular clay strip usually with short grass called the pitch . The pitch measures 22 yd (20.12 m) (1 chain ) long. At each end of
168-416: A cricketer's skill, endurance, and temperament, it is a format of international cricket where two teams in white clothing, each representing a country, compete over a match that can last up to five days. It consists of four innings (two per team), maximum of ninety overs are scheduled to be bowled per day making it the sport with the longest playing time. A team wins the match by outscoring the opposition in
224-469: A league competition for Test cricket was held in 2019–2021 . Arranged as a bilateral series in various countries with one team as host and another team as visitor. The length of each series varies between 2 and 5 matches. Ireland, Zimbabwe and Afghanistan are not taking part in this competition, but instead play a program of Test matches with each other and other teams during the same period. Supporters of Test cricket, including Adam Gilchrist , argue that it
280-485: A minimum three-yard gap between the "rope" and the surrounding fencing or advertising boards. This allows players to dive without risk of injury. The conditions contain a heritage clause, which exempts stadiums built before October 2007. However, most stadiums which regularly host international games easily meet the minimum dimensions. A typical Test match stadium would be larger than these defined minimums, with over 20,000 sq yd (17,000 m ) of grass (having
336-422: A professional tour and Fred Grace for an amateur one. Grace's tour fell through and it was Lillywhite's team that toured New Zealand and Australia in 1876–77. Two matches against a combined Australian XI were later classified as the first official Test matches. The first match was won by Australia, by 45 runs and the second by England. After reciprocal tours established a pattern of international cricket, The Ashes
392-424: A rope demarcates the perimeter of the field and is known as the boundary . Within the boundary and generally as close to the centre as possible will be the square which is an area of carefully prepared grass upon which cricket pitches can be prepared and marked for the matches. The pitch is where batsmen hit the bowled ball and run between the wickets to score runs , while the fielding team tries to return
448-592: A straight boundary of about 80m). In contrast an association football field needs only about 9,000 sq yd (7,500 m ) of grass, and an Olympic stadium would contain 8,350 sq yd (6,980 m ) of grass within its 400m running track, making it difficult to play international cricket in stadiums not built for the purpose. Nevertheless, Stadium Australia which hosted the Sydney Olympics in 2000 had its running track turfed over with 30,000 seats removed to make it possible to play cricket there, at
504-407: Is 150 or more fewer than Team A's. During the 2nd Test between England and New Zealand at Headingley in 2013, England batted first after the first day was lost because of rain. New Zealand, batting second, scored 180 runs fewer than England, meaning England could have enforced the follow-on, though chose not to. This is similar to four-day first-class cricket, where the follow-on can be enforced if
560-454: Is an oval described by drawing a semicircle of 30 yards (27 m) radius from the centre of each wicket with respect to the breadth of the pitch and joining them with lines parallel , 30 yards (27 m) to the length of the pitch. This divides the field into an infield and outfield and can be marked by a painted line or evenly spaced discs. The close-infield is defined by a circle of radius 15 yards (14 m), centred at middle stump guard on
616-519: Is unusual among major sports (along with golf , Australian rules football and baseball ) in that there is no official rule for a fixed-shape ground for professional games. In some cases, fields are allowed to have even greater peculiarities, such as the 2.5m slope across the Lord's Cricket Ground , or the lime tree which sat inside the fence of the St Lawrence Ground . On most grounds,
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#1732772647294672-697: The Buenos Aires Football Club , which would be the first football club in South America. For years to come both clubs would share installations and members with BACC playing cricket in summer and BAFC playing football in winter. The first recorded cricket match on the ground came in 1891 when the North of Argentina played the South of Argentina. The ground later held its first first-class match in 1912 when Argentina national team played
728-608: The ICC Intercontinental Cup , under conditions which are similar to Tests. The teams with Test status (with the date of each team's Test debut) are: Nine of these teams represent independent sovereign nations: the England cricket team represents the constituent countries of England and Wales , the West Indies is a combined team from fifteen Caribbean nations and territories, and Ireland represents both
784-535: The International Cricket Council . As of June 2017 , twelve national teams have Test status, the most recently promoted being Afghanistan and Ireland on 22 June 2017. Test status is conferred upon a country or group of countries by the ICC. There are currently twelve men's teams that have been granted this status: international teams that do not have Test status can play first-class cricket in
840-544: The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in March 1877 between teams which were then known as a Combined Australian XI and James Lillywhite 's XI, the latter a team of visiting English professionals. Matches between Australia and England were first called "test matches" in 1892. The first definitive list of retrospective Tests was written by South Australian journalist Clarence P. Moody two years later and, by
896-511: The Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland . Following the D'Oliveira affair in 1969, South Africa was suspended from all forms of cricket from 1970 until the end of the apartheid regime in 1991 . Zimbabwe's Test status was voluntarily suspended in 2006 because of very poor performances, but its Test status was reinstated in August 2011. The ICC has made several proposals to reform
952-559: The batsmen's grounds are, and to determine whether a delivery is fair. Cricket pitches are usually oriented as close to the north-south direction as practical, because the low afternoon sun would be dangerous for a batter facing due west. This means that some oval fields are oriented with their longer axes straight of the wicket, and others have their longer axes square of the wicket. For limited overs cricket matches, there are two additional field markings to define areas relating to fielding restrictions . The "circle" or "fielding circle"
1008-467: The batting or bowl out in bowling , otherwise the match ends in a draw . It is contested by 12 teams which are the full-members of the International Cricket Council (ICC). The term "test match" was originally coined in 1861–62 but in a different context. Test cricket did not become an officially recognised format until the 1890s, but many international matches since 1877 have been retrospectively awarded Test status. The first such match took place at
1064-410: The bowler runs in to bowl. The area of the field on the side of the line joining the wickets where the batsman holds his bat (the right-hand side for a right-handed batsman, the left for a left-hander) is known as the off side, the other as the leg side or on side. Lines drawn or painted on the pitch are known as creases . Creases are used to adjudicate the dismissals of batsmen , by indicating where
1120-649: The three international matches which had just been played in Australia by Lord Sheffield's XI , starting with the match at the MCG which was billed as Lord Sheffield's Team v Combined Australia. The report began: "There was no little appropriateness in fixing the first of the three great test matches for January 1". The first list of matches considered to be "Tests" was conceived and published by South Australian journalist Clarence P. Moody in his 1894 book, Australian Cricket and Cricketers, 1856 to 1893–94 . Moody's proposal
1176-488: The 1980s, it was usual to include a 'rest day,' often a Sunday. There have also been ' Timeless Tests ', which have no predetermined maximum time. In 2005, Australia played a match scheduled for six days against a World XI, which the ICC sanctioned as an official Test match, though the match reached a conclusion on the fourth day. In October 2017, the ICC approved a request for a four-day Test match, between South Africa and Zimbabwe , which started on 26 December 2017 and ended on
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#17327726472941232-594: The English team was testing itself against each of the Australian colonies. Following Lillywhite's tour, Australian teams reciprocated, beginning with Dave Gregory's team in 1878 . By the beginning of 1892, eight English teams had visited Australia and seven Australian teams had visited England. In its issue of 25 February 1892, Cricket: A Weekly Record of the Game revived the term "test match" and freely applied it to
1288-562: The ICC's goal of having one pinnacle tournament for each of the three formats of international cricket, it is the premier championship for Test cricket. Teams designated as "England" or "All England" began to play in the 18th century, but these teams were not truly representative. Early international cricket was disrupted by the French Revolution and the American Civil War . The earliest international cricket match
1344-495: The ICC's ruling and exclude this match from their records. The series of "Test matches" played in Australia between Australia and a World XI in 1971–72, and the commercial " Supertests " organised by Kerry Packer as part of his World Series Cricket enterprise played between "WSC Australia", "WSC World XI" and "WSC West Indies" from 1977 to 1979, have never been regarded as official Test matches as of 2021. A standard day of Test cricket consists of three sessions of two hours each,
1400-566: The ICC, the sport's governing body, to introduce day-night Test matches . In 2012, the International Cricket Council passed playing conditions that allowed for the staging of day-night Test matches. The first day-night Test took place during New Zealand's tour to Australia in November 2015. Test cricket is played in innings (the word denotes both the singular and the plural). In each innings, one team bats and
1456-642: The ICC. An elite panel of eleven umpires was maintained since 2002, and the panel is supplemented by an additional International Panel that includes three umpires named by each Test-playing country. The elite umpires officiate almost all Test matches, though usually not Tests involving their home country. Several pairs of Test teams have established perpetual trophies which are competed for whenever teams play each other in Test series. The current ones are: The twelve Test-playing nations are currently ranked as follows: After years of delays since proposals began in 2009,
1512-595: The West Indies and New Zealand ), all of whose international matches are deemed to have Test status. In 1970, a series of five "Test matches" was played in England between England and a Rest of the World XI: these matches, originally scheduled between England and South Africa, were amended after South Africa was suspended from international cricket due to their government's apartheid policies. Although initially given Test status and included as Test matches in some record books, including Wisden Cricketers' Almanack , this
1568-404: The ball to either wicket to prevent this. The ICC Standard Playing Conditions define the minimum and maximum size of the playing surface for international matches. Law 19.1.3 of ICC Men's Test Match Playing Conditions as well as ICC Men's One Day International Playing Conditions states: 19.1.3 The aim shall be to maximise the size of the playing area at each venue. With respect to the size of
1624-405: The batting side is nine wickets down at the scheduled tea break, then the interval may be delayed until either 30 minutes has elapsed or the team is all out ; the final session may be extended by up to 30 minutes if 90 or more overs have not been bowled in that day's play (subject to any reduction for adverse weather); the final session may be extended by 30 minutes (except on the 5th day) if
1680-534: The bilateral nature of Test cricket: the 1912 Triangular Tournament , a three-way competition between England, Australia and South Africa (hosted by England), and the Asian Test Championship , an event held in 1998–99 and 2001–02. The number of matches in Test series has varied from one to seven. Up until the early 1990s, Test series between international teams were organised between the two national cricket organisations with umpires provided by
1736-413: The boundaries, no boundary shall be longer than 90 yards (82 metres), and no boundary should be shorter than 65 yards (59 metres) from the centre of the pitch to be used. The equivalent ICC playing conditions (Law 19.1.3) for international women's cricket require the boundary to be between 60 and 70 yards (54.86 and 64.01 m) from the centre of the pitch to be used. In addition, the conditions require
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1792-413: The break between sessions being 40 minutes for lunch and 20 minutes for tea. However, the times of sessions and intervals may be altered in certain circumstances: if bad weather or a change of innings occurs close to a scheduled break, the break may be taken immediately; if there has been a loss of playing time, for example because of bad weather, the session times may be adjusted to make up the lost time; if
1848-539: The case in Test cricket, as mandated by the ICC Clothing and Equipment Regulations. Test cricket is almost always played as a series of matches between two countries, with all matches in the series taking place in the same country (the host). Often there is a perpetual trophy that is awarded to the winner, the most famous of which is the Ashes contested between England and Australia. There have been two exceptions to
1904-537: The club had been destroyed in a fire which also destroyed its archives three years before, Buenos Aires Cricket Club merged with Buenos Aires Football Club to form the Buenos Aires Cricket & Rugby Club and the club built its new cricket field in the San Fernando district of Greater Buenos Aires . Cricket field A cricket field or cricket oval is a large grass field on which
1960-502: The completion of Team B's first innings, Team A leads by at least 200 runs, the captain of Team A may (but is not required to) order Team B to have their second innings next. This is called enforcing the follow-on . In this case, the usual order of the third and fourth innings is reversed: Team A will bat in the fourth innings. It is rare for a team forced to follow-on to win the match. In Test cricket it has only happened four times, although over 285 follow-ons have been enforced. Australia
2016-421: The decision to take the new ball if he wishes to continue with his spinners (because the pitch favours spin). After a new ball has been taken, should an innings last a further 80 overs, then the captain will have the option to take another new ball. A Test match will produce a result by means of one of six scenarios: Traditionally cricketers play in all-white kit. Unlike in limited overs cricket , this remains
2072-521: The difference is 150 runs or more. If the Test is two days or fewer then the "follow-on" value is 100 runs. After 80 overs, the captain of the bowling side may take a new ball , although this is not required. The captain will usually take the new ball: being harder and smoother than an old ball, a new ball generally favours faster bowlers who can make it bounce more variably. The roughened, softer surface of an old ball can be more conducive to spin bowlers, or those using reverse swing . The captain may delay
2128-466: The end of the century, had gained acceptance. Day/night Tests were permitted by the ICC in 2012 and the first day/night match was between Australia and New Zealand at the Adelaide Oval in November 2015. The ICC World Test Championship is the international championship of Test cricket. It is a league competition run by the ICC, with its inaugural season starting in 2019 . In line with
2184-441: The first-class statistical record, but performances in Test matches count towards both the Test statistics and the first-class statistics. Statisticians have developed criteria to determine which matches count as Tests if they were played before the formal definition of Test status. There have been exceptional circumstances including the simultaneous England touring sides of 1891–92 ( in Australia and South Africa ) and 1929–30 ( in
2240-524: The game of cricket is played. Although generally oval in shape, there is a wide variety within this: perfect circles, elongated ovals, rounded rectangles, or irregular shapes with little or no symmetry – but they will have smooth boundaries without sharp corners, almost without exception. There are no fixed dimensions for the field but its diameter usually varies between 450 and 500 feet (140 and 150 m) for men's cricket, and between 360 feet (110 m) and 420 feet (130 m) for women's cricket. Cricket
2296-469: The home team. With the entry of more countries into Test cricket, and a wish by the ICC to maintain public interest in Tests in the face of the popularity of One Day International cricket , a rotation system was introduced that sees all ten Test teams playing each other over a six-year cycle, and an official ranking system (with a trophy held by the highest-ranked team). In this system, umpires are provided by
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2352-432: The other bowls (or fields ). Ordinarily four innings are played in a Test match, and each team bats twice and bowls twice. Before the start of play on the first day, the two team captains and the match referee toss a coin ; the captain who wins the toss decides whether his team will bat or bowl first. In the following scenarios, the team that bats first is referred to as Team A and their opponents as Team B . Usually
2408-406: The pitch three upright wooden stakes, called the stumps , are hammered into the ground. Two wooden crosspieces, known as the bails , sit in grooves atop the stumps, linking each to its neighbour. Each set of three stumps and two bails is collectively known as a wicket . One end of the pitch is designated the batting end where the batsman stands and the other is designated the bowling end where
2464-407: The popping crease at the end of the wicket, and is often marked by dots. Test cricket First-class cricket One Day International Limited overs (domestic) Twenty20 International Twenty20 (domestic) Other forms Test Cricket is a format of the sport of cricket , considered the game’s most prestigious and traditional form. Often referred to as the "ultimate test" of
2520-492: The second day, 27 December. The ICC trialed the four-day Test format until the 2019 Cricket World Cup . In December 2019, Cricket Australia were considering playing four-day Tests, subject to consensus with other Test nations. Later the same month, the ICC considered the possibility of making four-day Test matches mandatory for the ICC World Test Championship from 2023. There have been attempts by
2576-463: The side to be "the best ever to have left England". South Africa became the third team to play Test cricket in 1888–89, when they hosted a tour by an under-strength England side. Australia, England and South Africa were the only countries playing Test cricket before World War I . The term "test match" was coined during the English tour of Australia in 1861–62 but in a different context. It meant that
2632-419: The system of granting Test status, including having two tiers with promotion and relegation , or a play-off between the winners of the ICC Intercontinental Cup and the team with the lowest Test ranking . These proposals have not been successful as of 2024. For statistical purposes , Tests are considered to be a subset of first-class cricket . Performances in first-class matches count towards only
2688-423: The teams will alternate at the completion of each innings. Thus, Team A will bat (and Team B will bowl) until its innings ends, and then Team B will bat and Team A will bowl. When Team B's innings ends, Team A begin their second innings, and this is followed by Team B's second innings. The winning team is the one that scores more runs in their two innings. A team's innings ends in one of the following ways: If, at
2744-511: The touring Marylebone Cricket Club , resulting in a 210 run victory for the tourists. The second first-class match held on the ground came in 1927 in a repeat of the 1912 fixture, which this time resulted in an Argentine victory by 29 runs. The last recorded match came in March 1947 between the Argentine Cricket Association Colts North and Argentine Cricket Association Colts South. In 1951, after much of
2800-400: The umpires believe the result can be decided within that time. Today, Test matches are scheduled to be played across five consecutive days. However, in the early days of Test cricket, matches were played for three or four days. England hosted Ireland at Lord's on 1st June 2023 for a four-day test. Four-day Test matches were last played in 1973, between New Zealand and Pakistan . Until
2856-501: Was between the United States and Canada , on 24 and 26 September 1844 (bad weather prevented play on the 25th). Overseas tours by national English teams began in 1859 with visits to North America, Australia and New Zealand. The 1868 Australian Aboriginals were the first organised overseas team to tour England. Two rival English tours of Australia were proposed in the early months of 1877, with James Lillywhite campaigning for
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#17327726472942912-528: Was established as a competition during the Australian tour of England in 1882. A surprise victory for Australia inspired a mock obituary of English cricket to be published in the Sporting Times the following day: the phrase "The body shall be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia" prompted the subsequent creation of the Ashes urn. The series of 1884–85 was the first to be held over five matches: England player Alfred Shaw , writing in 1901, considered
2968-484: Was later withdrawn, and a principle was established that official Test matches can only be between nations (the geographically and demographically small countries of the West Indies have, since 1928, fielded a coalition side). Despite this principle, in 2005, the ICC ruled that the six-day Super Series match that took place that October between Australia and a World XI was an official Test match: some cricket writers and statisticians, including Bill Frindall , have ignored
3024-421: Was the losing team on three occasions, having lost twice to England, in 1894 and in 1981, and once to India in 2001. Most recently, on February 24, 2023, England lost to New Zealand by one run after enforcing the follow-on. If the whole of the first day's play of a Test match has been lost because of bad weather or other reasons like bad light, then Team A may enforce the follow-on if Team B's first innings total
3080-553: Was the unlisted 1890 Old Trafford match that was abandoned without a ball being bowled. No South African matches were included in Moody's list but three against England were also given retrospective Test status. Moody became a newspaper editor and founded the Adelaide Sunday Mail in 1912. Test matches are the highest level of cricket, played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by
3136-531: Was well received by Charles W. Alcock , editor of Cricket in England and his list of 39 matches was reproduced in the 28 December 1894 issue as part of an article entitled "The First Test Match". The list begins with the MCG match played 15–17 March 1877 and ends with the recent match at the Association Ground, Sydney played 14–20 December 1894. All 39 were retrospectively recognised as Test matches, as
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