Opinions on cricket are not hard to come by. That it’s a torturously complicated sport with rules about rules about rules, just for the pleasure of the ritual. Or it’s terribly boring, nothing ever happens and there’s nothing to watch. And the crowd consists of a bunch of old men who natter on about the iniquities of the estate taxes while waxing their moustaches.
This article is for those who want to learn more about cricket. More than that: it’s for those who are curious if there are any good reasons why they should want to learn more about cricket. I will use baseball as a reference point for some of the rules, but I hope it will be a useful read even if you don’t know any baseball.