Cricket

When was cricket first played? This is difficult to answer but perhaps as early as the 13th century. Cricket grew up in South England and by the mid 18th century, the Hambledon (Hampshire) Club was famous. Laws of cricket existed by 1744.
Cricket is called the English "national" game and is the usual summer game for schoolboys. It is the game associated with England, yet even in England cricket is losing its popularity.
In most towns and villages there are amateur clubs which play weekly games on Saturday afternoons from late April to the end of September. A first-class match, as played between English counties, lasts for up to three days, with six hours of play each day. These games have become less popular and the spectator sitting in the afternoon sun cannot be blamed for taking 40 winks. They tend to be slow and often end with no result.
There is still great interest in the annual series, of five-day international matches, called Test matches, played between England and a touring team