The Kent Cricket Club will soon play beach cricket, according to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Emmanuel Pessima.
Emmanuel said that the players have started training over the weekend to have some feeling about the game when playing in sand. He said after the training they will start competitions within themselves to see how far they have gone with the game before taking it to the schools.
Pessima said in playing beach cricket the basic equipment consists of a bat, ball (often a tennis ball because it hurts less and bounces more) and two sets of stumps (quite often a beer cooler at each end will suffice).
If only one set of stumps is available, the non-strikers end can be marked by something as simple as a T-shirt, hat or even a shoe. In these circumstances, this means the bowling will only be to one end.
There can be a designated wicketkeeper although a windbreak, deckchair or equivalent can often be used in place of the glovesman.
Emmanuel said that sometimes it might just be everyone fielding until one of the two batting are out. Just decide what works best for you and your number of players.
Often the person getting the batter out becomes the batter, but this will depend on whether you are playing a team variant or each person as an individual.
Games can often be split into a defined number of overs per side (6 balls being one over), but if time allows, quite often more innings are added in between the all-important lunch, drink and ice cream breaks.
The head coach Joseph Pessima said if the number of players is small, players can keep their own scores or team up in twos, threes etc. Wides and no-balls generally do not exist and the LBW rule is optional since there isn’t an official umpire. Batsmen can be out through any of the usual ways such as being caught, run out, and bowled.
He said a batsman who hits the ball into the sea is usually awarded a six, but also given out – and to compound their misery, they have to fetch the ball – it’s the law! A one-handed catch can often mean that the innings comes to an abrupt close. A batsman may be obliged to run when they hit the ball, regardless of how good the contact with the ball is.
Batters keep their own score and must shout out their score at the end of each run, although no-one is really listening or even cares.
Declaring, especially when reaching 100 or more is actively encouraged to prevent the game stretching to sundown or the beers running out (whichever occurs first).
Rain should never stop play, except when a hurricane or tsunami is on the way. It’s not like you are playing on the green grass of Lords or the SCG is it?
The rules are made to be broken, or at least improvised, so see what you can get away with.
If you want to look at the game as a serious pastime then you could take a look at the rules employed in the Beach Cricket Tri-nations series, which was contested in the past by former cricketing greats from Australia, England, New Zealand and South Africa.
He said Rules include eight overs in an innings, the use of ‘Captain’s Choice’ overs when the captains are allowed to field the batsmen and bowlers of their own choosing. Also, when a batsman is dismissed, he keeps batting but he loses runs, so that if a team is really bad it is actual possible to make a negative score. However, the game is far more fun if you just make it up as you go.
Monday November 20, 2017.
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