Who Invented Cricket

An article by Peter Pierce    Comments Off on Who Invented Cricket

There is no clear evidence to indicate as to where and when cricket originated. It is believed that the sport has been derived from a very old and simple leisure activity where one player hurls a small object like a rock or ball and the other hits it back with an appropriate club. It is therefore very difficult to trace the roots of cricket back in time as it has evolved way ahead of the club- ball game to be recognized as the sport we know today. However, the earliest reference of cricket found in recorded history can be dated back to 1300 A.D when Prince Edward played a sport called ’Creag’ which is believed to be the early form of cricket. Also, the first reference of the word Cricket is found in a court case of 1598, which mentions a sport called ‘Creckett’ being played by some school boys.

Many historians are of the view that cricket was originally played by the children of the farming community somewhere around the 13th century. Some others believe that the sport was invented by the shepherds who bred their flocks in the vast fields of England.

By the 1600s cricket was being played in many parts of England such as Kent, Sussex and Surrey by both children and adults. It was also included in most schools as a chief sport. Much later, it gained acceptance in the British aristocratic circle and rose to the stature of England’s national game.