Your View

Geez, 3rd largest sporting event? I think you'll find that the Rugby (union) World Cup is bigger than the cricket "world" cup. Even football's Asian Cup would just about be bigger than the C"W"C.
India's huge population alone tends to make the C"W"C numbers more credible than they actually are.
Cricket has failed miserably in grabbing the atention of countries outside of the commonwealth. And the 2007 tournament didn't help matters! 15 of of the 16 participating nations were commonwealth nations, a large percentage of these classed as developing nations.
At least rugby has broadened it's appeal outside of the "commonwealth club" - Argentina, France, Japan, etc.
Sorry, the C"W"C is not a true world cup.

Aus is the best

Okay, the West Indies didn't make it but this is a World Cup and would love to see it live on TV including the closing ceremonies.
So far I have been following the play by play commentary on the internet.
Wish I was there *sob*

Can Someone tell me where I can watch the cricket world cup in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Thanks

We planing to have a get to gether after game complete ( Finals ) @ Jarry Park - Montreal
we would like if all srilankans come and participate in that big event afte the game
Even Win or lost its a big achievment for Sri Lanka
Proud to be a Sri Lankan

Hey all,
Does anyone know where I can see the World Cup Final in Montreal? None of the irish pubs seem to be playing it. Come On Aussies. Three in a row. Lankers dont have a chance.
Cheers.

Same request as others. Anyone know where to catch the final in Edmonton? Any pubs/bars showing the game?

If you want to catch the world cup cricket final best place is:

Scallywags Bar
11 St. Clair Ave, West
Toronto

Starts at 9:30AM I believe
Get there early if you want a seat as it will be a full event

Go Aussies go!

***** Calling all Austalin, Sri Lankan or Cricket fan in Ottawa any one know or planning on watching the game final on Saturday does any one know where the place to be is ***

I am an Aussie in Calgary who is sick of following the World Cup over the internet. Does anyone know any pubs/bars showing the final this week in Calgary??? Thanks in advance.

(Dear Editor - please publish this request. I submitted a similar request on Monday which you did not publish. Yet I see you published exactly the same request from 'Bec' from Toronto yesterday, so I assume it is ok for Calgary as well)

Please, please, please - does anyone know where I could watch the cricket in Toronto (the final this weekend)? I'm going to be there for the weekend and I'm a desperate Aussie fan who hasn't seen any cricket since being in Aus, late January. All I can do is follow the score and commentary on www.baggygreen.com.au

Please help!

One of the most memorable events of the 2007 Cricket World Cup is the retirement of Brian Lara, the Captain of the West Indies Cricket Team.

Lara may not have won any world cup in his career but his brilliant batting style and contribution to the game has won the hearts of cricket fans around the world.

On his retirement tomorrow, the cricket world will miss one of the finest and greatest cricketers of all time.

Cricket is a fantastic sport and its popularity in Canada is growing rapidly. The lack of funds is a major hurdle but if enough people come together to play and publicize the sport, then the sponsors are bound to come.

Its great that CBC is doing its part in bringing cricket to people in Canada. I am an Indian cricket fan. I am trying to get cricket going in New Brunswick and possibly organize some sort of cricket tournament in the maritimes.

I cannot wait for the semis and ofcourse the final. Obviously, I would have been happier if India was still in it. ;-)

Having lived in Sri Lanka and Australia I have grown to love the game, I believe are a constantly improving cricketing nation.Would u believe the first ever international match was between Canada and USA? Anyway the Canadians are progressing steadily (qualified for last two world cups). However in the last world cup they were rolled for 36 by my beloved Lankans. Lankans are going to repeat the 1996 magic and win again this year!!!

I really appreciate CBC for presenting us the ICC world cup news. As our national media, CBC can take a significant positive role to popularize this commonwealth game among canadians. Look at Japan, where they didn't know much about soccer until 1993, when they just started professional soccer J-league to popularize a global game. Less than a decade, they even co-hosted FIFA worldcup in 2002. Today, soccer is competing with baseball as Japan's most popular sport. Japanese media contributed the most for this gain. In that respect, for cricket, we are doubly blessed, one is our commonwealth connection and secondly, we already have a national cricket team who has brilliant players. We just need proper and consistent sponsorship and support. With all our support, in the near future, we may host and win the ICC cup. If Japan could do it for soccer, why not Canada for cricket ?

It was great to see Bangladesh bit ranked 1 South Africa on April 7 in WC 2007. Bangladesh, specially Ashraful and the left arm spin trio literally out-played South Africa. Hope Bangladesh can make at least 2 more wins in this WC.

Proud to be a Bangladeshi.

Calling all cricket fans in Vancouver and surrounding areas. This is the only public facility available for watching World Cup Cricket from the West Indies. The venue is the 8-RINKS Arena, Penguin Lounge, 6501 Sprott St, (off Kensington)in Burnaby.

We are there every game till the finals on April 28th at 7:00 AM. Please note that on weekdays, food/beverage services start later in the day.

For the lover of cricket, just show up and enjoy the Matches & stop complaining that you cannot see it on regular tv...hockey has it rightful stage at this time.

Sponsored by the Trninidad & Tobago Cultural Society of BC

It is great to see Bangladesh team making it to the Super 8s. They played superb cricket against India and in few years, the young guns will rock!

Also, it was great to see The Canadian team showing good promises. Don't forget, in last World Cup they beat Bangladesh. Cricket may not be as popular as hockey here, but all trees start from seed and need water and light to grow. With proper planning, support and infrastructure, the Maple can grow.

Shabbir

Thank you to the person who has recently posted about somewhere to watch the games in Vancouver! I'm a kiwi over here (for a year) with my girlfriend and it's just not right getting up in the morning and going to the computer to "watch" the game. So thank you very much. I was going to pay some bar owner to put it on...but you have saved me that. Go the kiwis!!!

Great job CBC for providing it but I would be happy is CBC shows Cricket WC Final game. I ahve no source to watch the games except on Internet. I have to get satellite and it costs a lot.

I was a cricket fan when I lvied in India and still is but now I'm getting into hockey a lot and can't wait for the playoffs! Go Sens Go!

For those who are in the Vancouver, BC area and are interested in veiwing by satelite World Cup cricket on big screen tvs you can come down to the Burnaby 8-RINKS ARENA,(Thirsty Penguin Lounge) 6501 Sprott St., Burnaby. Games are from April 1 to April 28, all games during April are being shown. This is sponsored by the Trinidad & Tobago Cultural Society of BC...go Windies go!!!

I am voting for West Indies because I am from Guyana, South America; and I want them to win the World Cup.

Go West Indies...

The 20/20 World Cup is sure to be exciting.0000s of new fans have tuned in to the latest form of cricket.
What's ironic is that 20/20 is a very familiar format to recreational players who can only devote an afternoon or evening to playing.

Many are saying the 50-Over version of ODI lastes too long, but it still will have a place in the cricket world. The change of pace is refershing.

20/20 demands great all round skills and athleticism. There is no place to hide and no time to 'build' a slow innings. The record score so far is 250 for 3 by Somerset, courtesy of Australian stars big hitting, like Cameron White Thats 12.5 runs of every over!!
I don't believe it, but each season there is a new record..maybe 275 this year? The real winners are the bowlers, whp only have to send down 4 overs max, and spin is king...why? because a 'fast' bowler makes it easy to slam the ball a long way ( Newtons laws).

What's clear is that a great Test player will be a great ODI player and also excel at 20/20. Instance guys like Steve Fleming of NZ and Nottinghamshire. What a great opportunity for a big hitter like Canada's John Davison!
Whatever ,20/20 may level the field and let Canada advance, but its a very pressureful and demanding format.

If you have never seen the game, give it a shot, forget past old-dated notions. The French sniffed recently at including cricket in the Olympics, well good for them. But 1.5 Billion fans worldwide are a big audience!

And, yes there is women's cricket,played at International level.

Watching the games on TV has always intrigued me, but this year while watching the world cup, I decided to finally go on the net and learn the rules. Now I'm hooked! Cheering for West Indies (love the fans) and England (heritage).

well i am voting for bangladesh cause this is my country and i want them to win the world cup. But there is one probleme when there is a game going on people are always mad at each other

" The IRB (International Rugby Board) ranks 94 countries before working down to the final twenty who will compete in France this September."

Actually... the Cricket World Cup had 97 entrants to qualifying before working down to the 16. Rugby's 20 entrants was bloated and that is being put down to just 16 like cricket, and there is even talk of just 12, for the next Cup in New Zealand.

My Brother-in-law just called me for Trinidad to tell me that it is believed that the Pakistani coach was murdered. Man who would have believed such things would happen!

The Windies have a big game tomorrow and India vs. Sri Lanka aught to be one of the best games of the tournament. Might have to call in sick tomorrow.

As an expat Australian living in Canada for the last 18 months, totally unable to find any cricket coverage whatsoever (including the life-altering Ashes series between Aus and England), I am beyond happy to see so much coverage of the world cup!
Does anyone know of any pubs (apart from Scallywags and Philthy's) that are showing the Aus v Sth Africa game on Saturday 24th??
Spread the word Canadians, you guys are missing out on an amazing game.

I'm a huge, but relatively new fan of the game. I've been following it for about 4 years and there is much I don't know. I don't get to see many games on TV (Rogers don't think it's important enough). So I watch the stats on cricket.org and image the game in my head. I'm torn on which team I should support, my wife is Trinidadian so I should be a Windies fan, but I'm born a Canadian, so I should be a Canadian fan. Ultimately I'm a Windies fan because the Canadian team is really a Toronto team.

Go! Windies!

I was born in Quebec City, raised in Quebec and have lived in London since 1990. Cricket... it's like baseball for grown ups.
At the World Cup, it's 1-day cricket (rather than the 4-day test variety) that is played. The main thing about 1-day cricket, to put it in baseball terms, is that the attacking team's inning (the team on the side of the pitchers) is limited to 300 'deliveries' (throws of the ball) (= 6 deliveries per 'over', 50 overs). Each team has one inning attacking (and one defending!). There are no 'strikes' or 'balls': every ball counts towards the total.
That is a crucial difference with baseball. The 'defending' team (batting; they are defending the wicket) have to score as many runs (points) as possible within that inning: they will receive 300 deliveries and that's it. That is unless they are all (the 10 batsmen) out before the total is reached.
There are numerous ways for a batsman to be out, but that is quite similar to baseball, except for the three strikes and the foul ball: one can swing and miss as often as you want, as long as the ball doesn't hit the wicket. If the ball touches the bat AT ALL and the ball is caught (foul ball), the batsman is out.
This limit of 300 gives 1-day cricket a form of excitement that doesn’t exist in baseball: if the score is close and the final inning is about to end (as the 300th delivery nears), the defending team basically stop defending the wicket and try to get a home run (6 points) out of every ball: a real ‘hit fest’ as successive batsmen throw caution to the wind and go all out in order to try to reach the other team's total number of runs.
Fantastic! Enjoy!

Does anyone know if any pubs in Vancouver (British Columbia) are showing the World Cup Cricket games ?

Thanks in anticipation!

As an expatriate Kiwi I'm very pleased with what NZ has done so far in the World Cup. They have been in the semis many times but have never made the Final. I'm hoping 2007 will be the year.

Also cricket is much more exciting than baseball. No 3 swings and you're out. The catches are more brilliant (catches wins matches as they say!) and the fielders (except the wicket keeper) don't wear gloves. No designated hitters.

As for TV Coverage, thank you for Youtube.com. I seen several highlights on this site.

Hi,I am very fund of sports, i am a great cricket fan.I am very happy to be able to get the up dates on the game as it's been play day to day. For many of you out there that is trashing the game it is a shame. It is just like any other game or sports we all crave.Take the time and learn the game before you trash it, many of us who never know any thing about the hocky or base ball learn the game. I am a great Leaf fan thow i came from the West Indies many years i grew to love the game. So you to can learn the game of cricket and enjoy it, and soport out Canadian tean. I think they did a great job getting into the World cup. Good luck to W.I.

I'm glad to see cricket being covered by CBC. It's a sin that there's no support for the game in Canada, and hopefully this coverage may go some way to correcting that. I was living in southern Africa during the last World Cup (and for the last rugby wolrd cup too).

The worst thing (in both instances) about supporting the Canucks wasn't the fact that they didn't do well, but the fact that everyone was so nice, while being vaguely aghast, about it. The comments were always: 'The Canadians are doing very well considering they are all amateurs. All these men have day jobs, and only get to practice a few times a week' 'What, there's no funding?' 'No, they go it alone.' Then everyone would look at me with disbelief in their eyes.

So, well done guys, keep up the good work, and don't give up.

i love the way south africans play cricket,but i dont know why they are alwayz close to winning.i hope this time u are lucky.

This is to inform all Cricket lovers in Ottawa that the Heart and Crown Pub on Clarence Street will be showing all World Cup Matches live.

Did you know that cricket is also played by women and they have also internation games and tournments so it is not like baseball only for men folks...

After several requests and complains about not posting Cricket, CBC has done it. Thanks for listening CBC and I hope you will continue this in the future with out any more complain. I love Cricket and it gives me lots of joy and fun to watch.

Most of you Canucks commenting on the fact that cricket is "boring' miss the point - the game is supposed to be watched with a beer in the hand, with your mates, while the missus keeps an eye on the BBQ to make sure the prawns (read: shrimp for you lot) dont overcook.

Its a lazy game. Thats the way its meant to be!

Thanks you CBC for bringing to Canadians one of the most popular sport in the world. Our Canada did a very good job in the process of learning in the world cup 2007. We have resources, potential and bright players, we only need better support and sponsorship. Media may take significant role to improve cricket in Canada. Look at Bangladesh, a low-key team smashed the cricket giant India in its first game. One day Canada will win the cup.

Where was the piece that Stephanie Matteis shot at the place looked like a lot of fun to be at. Please help starving for cricket fan

Does anybody know of any restaurant/ bar showing the Cricket games. Go kenya Super8 spot yours for the taking.

If not for the CBC's coverage of Cricket, I would have never learned my appreciation of it. What a classy sport. Thank you CBC. I still dig hockey, and the CFL has it's moments, but it's the sports that some idiots deem 'unmarketable' that truly show style and grace in the end.The NFL, for instance, has become a bloated, over-the-top display of money-driven embarrassment. And every year, it gets fatter and fatter.

It's good to participate in a sport that is so popular in other Commonwealth countries but honestly, the most amazing thing about cricket is that they somehow manage to market a sport that's even slower and duller than baseball.

One bit of cricekt trivia of interest to Canadians: the fastest ever century (an innings of 100 runs) in a World Cup match was scored by John Davison of Canada against the West Indies in 2003. Davison smashed the ball out of the park several times to score his hundred in just 67 balls. An amazing feat.

It is great that the CBC is finally giving Canadians access to this great sport. I vividly recall living in North Vancouver during the 1992 Cricket World Cup (won by Pakistan), how extremely frustrating it was then to battle an almost complete ignorance of the sport. Being pre-internet days I recall the struggle to find access to match results, let alone footage. Only ESPN actually showed any footage, just a few agonisingly short bursts, a few 3 second grabs of Imran Khan hoisting the trophy.

One of my best friends in London Ontario, a born-n-bred Canuck and now a die-hard Rugby fan, is fast becoming a cricket fan. When I last visited in 2004 we played the PS2 rugby game for hours, so visited the local mall to grab the PS2 cricket game as well. It was unavailable in the North American NTSC format, only available on import in PAL format and thus only operable on a 'chipped' games machine. Aaagh, why why why? You see how frustrating it can be to be a cricket fan in Canada.

Recently I mailed my London friend the "Cricket For Dummies" book, a comprehensive deconstruction of history, rules and issues (even tabloid scandals) attached to the game. He devoured it. I recommend anyone else with an ounce of curiosity to grab that book or similar and submerge yourself in what is not just a sport but a virual religion in many countries around the world.

Best of luck to Canada against England & New Zealand. If the Irish can do it against Pakistan, you Canucks can do it against England.

I'm very impressed that Canada made it to the cup! I lived a couple years in Australia and learned to appreciate cricket to a certain extent (I don't think it'll replace baseball for me, but it's still fun to watch). Some of the other comments here about rugby being a better game than American football are dead on. A much more exciting game to watch.

Anyway, good luck Canada!

I used to be a cricket buff back in India. I remember getting up at 4 am (during my medical school days) to watch the Benson and Hedges Trophy played in Australia. India won that Trophy i think.
Those were the days.
I think Cricket beats all game in sheer beauty and sophistication.
Sridhar

Hi,

I am surprised to see the coverage of Cricket World Cup 2207 on CBC, but am glad that CBC is at least making an effort.

Would love to see a 'Live Score Card' on too.

Cup's going to India this time!

In world cup they play 1 day cricket which has 50 overs from each side. A over has 6 balls.

Even though i have never played cricket before, I think the idea of a world cup is great. I am sure that the game is interesting. I hope Canada produces excellent cricket players.

CBC - great for providing coverage for the cricket world cup - Finally.

Like to See Canada do well and participate more frequently so that we die hards can get more frequent coverage when ever a cricket match is being played anywhere.

Go Canada Go

I have to agree with a lot of people on this forum. I still love my baseball, which I grew up playing in NB, but Cricket is a better game demanding higher levels of skill, fitness, and mental toughness. Rugby versus American Football (what those outside of North America like to refer to as Gridiron) is not even close. Rugby involves 15 men with no equipment, no breaks, and no grandstanding. There are no special teams. Everyone plays offence and defence. A maximum of 7 substitutions (that means 8 guys play all 80 minutes..plus injury time)There are no time-outs. Just 80 minutes of mud, blood and sweat and the most excruciatingly exhausting contest in all of team sport. And in that sport, Canada is ranked in the top 15 in the world. One of the saddest losses to Canadian identity and culture was the switch from the code of Rugby to the code of Gridiron post WWII in the CFL and the competiton for the Grey Cup. A game where maybe 45 guys fitted in bulletproof armour play a 60 minute game in 8 second bursts, using their helmets as weapons, then dance around, pound their chests, pump some more steroids, and go off for a break as special teams come on to replace them, or take a 30 second breather before their next 8 second burst of action. Bravo!!

Great to see there are lots of Cricket fans across Canada. Also great to see there are many other Canadians in my situation: married to an Aussie/Kiwi/Brit and thus forced into opening our minds beyond the traditional North American Sports. Since meeting my Australian wife 7 years ago, I have definitely had an awakening: I have developed a real passion for both Rugby and Cricket. It is fantastic to see the CBC start covering this sport, and I agree that it is only going to increase in popularity over time with more immigration from Asia and Africa. Same goes for "soccer" although I still haven't quite developed the love of that sport as I have for the aforementioned Rugby and Cricket. Fortunately, Rugby is still played to fairly high levels throughout Canada (It was the original code of the CFL until WWII, don't forget) so I was able to find a club in Halifax quite easily and have played for the Halifax Rugby Football Club for the last 4 years (www.hrfc.ca) Cricket, however, is not so accessible. Even still, there is a ground set aside on the Halifax Commons for Cricket and every Sunday they have the field for the afternoon. Mostly Indian and Pakistani students studying or working in Halifax, and you can see the locals walking by and looking on in bewilderment. Haven't actually worked up the courage yet to go and ask to join the game. Maybe this is the year. Just goes to show, though, that even in Nova Scotia, not exactly the hotbed for immigration, the sport is taking hold and who knows what could happen in a few years.

hey there. nice job on the coverage of the world cup. would be nice if u guys put up a score ticker, like u guys did for the soccer world cup.

to all those who complain that cricket is boring and too complicated to learn: shed ur ignorance and arrogance about learning. its a very simple game to learn and enjoy.

to all those who do enjoy this game: have a wonderful time enjoying this event that is the world cup of cricket.

WC Final
India vs West Indies

Let's face what almost all women know, and what almost all men refuse to admit: team sports are pretty silly. Show me a typical die-hard hockey/soccer/football fan, and I'll show you someone with a case of arrested development.

The exception is cricket; the only team sport suitable for fully self-actualized adults, and the only one fit for genuine adult conversation.

Regards,

lucky as i am that i can play on a field as good as the one at mike weir park. i am for certain not best player on that pitch but the guys are cool and the game is a hell of alot of fun. it's too bad baseball and softball get all the attention, people don't know what they're missing.

Hey I'm a Canadian born and bred, but I played cricket for about 5 years when I was a teenager. To me it is a lot more exciting than baseball and the rules are not so complicated. The world-series of cricket is played at the international level and the world-series of baseball is played at the american level (except for Toronto). Go and figure that one out.

As a transplanted Canadian living, loving, and playing cricket overseas it is fantastic to see the CBC covering the World Cup.

Cricket is truly a global sport. When I played in Canada we would have Indians, Pakistanis, Afghanis, Englishmen, Aussies, Kiwis, and South Africans all on the pitch at the same time - it's not often that such a diverse group of people get together. It was one of the reasons the game was so enjoyable.

Yes, it can be daunting to understand at first but, should you take the time, the game can be exhilarating. As a result of coming to Australia to visit my girlfriend I learned the game and have loved it ever since. Hopefully cricket will find an audience and grow in Canada.

This website and the accompanying radio piece both call The Cricket World Cup the third largest sporting event in the world. I could be wrong but I think by most ways of reckoning the Rugby World Cup is actually third, behind the World Cup of Soccer and the Olympics. The IRB (International Rugby Board) ranks 94 countries before working down to the final twenty who will compete in France this September. Don't want to sound like a know-it-all just giving credit where credit is due.

A strategy our local cricket team has employed successfuly is to focus on defence for the first 2-3 days of the match, and then during the 3rd or 4th day of the match, strike an offensive while the other team is sleeping at night.

As a West Indian cricket to me is like hockey to the Canadian. It is really and exciting game although it has a long duration- a test match between nations has a maximum duration of 5 days and 2 innings per team. It is a game for the fit.

Thanks for bringing on the World Cup and some day Canadians will come to appreciate it.

I'm very excited to see cricket making the CBC front page and news!

Now, if only we could get more CBC coverage of the actual games themselves -- not in full, necessarily, but highlights? recaps? I don't have cable/satellite, nor do I want to pay ridiculous amounts of money for such things when most television is terrible.

I've tried finding public places in Calgary -- pubs, bars, etc -- that might show cricket matches, but to no avail.

It's a neat sport, and I'm happy to see it gaining some momentum in Canada.

Thanks, CBC for covering the Cricket World Cup...I cant wait each morning to read the results covered on your website. Not only I'm I a fan but had played Cricket when I lived in South Africa. Keep it coming...Howzat!

I'd like to say that CRICKET is an amazing sport..and excitited about the world cup.

GO INDIA GO! is what i'd like to say.
I N D I A is going to win the CUP this year.

W O H OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

thanks!

Even if you know nothing about Cricket, the idea of participating in the World cup is self-explanatory. A 1 day game is do, or die. Only one shot, if the ball hits the wicket, you are out. Combine that with a various style of "bowling" (piching) makes this game very exciting when major runs are scored.

Let's go Canada or let's go West-Indies!

It was funny to hear our local CBC news guy reading the cricket coverage the other day - you could just tell it might as well have been Greek to him. Me too! It must be like a hockey commentary being aired in an equatorial region.

It's been fascinating to read the coverage - thanks to CBC for setting that up, and this Your View topic.

As an aside, I bet cricket players would have good tips on how to get grass stains out of white clothes!

In response to Vindi's question: The Cricket World Cup is being shown in Canada, but you'll need digital cable or a dish to get it! ATN Cricket Plus, carried by Rogers and Bell ExpressVu, has the rights in Canada.

Where's women's cricket? I started to play in Portland, Maine USA and would love to play here.

Well, most Americans scoff at this sport as Cricket is where they stole their idea for the sport of Baseball as they did for their other sport of American Football in which they stole the concept from Rubgy and the name from 'soccer'. How innovative.

please explain how points are scored

Few are aware that cricket is named after the bug that makes a 'cricket' sound, since that resembles the sound the non-existent audience makes in Canada.

yeah i played cricket before 1years i was the capation in london we had a team byr CHAPEE CHAPEE AFGHAN CRICKET TEAM we were so hard team no one beat us we played with ERITIARa,SOMAILA,BANGADESH but no one won from us.
it is so good play.
thanks

There is simply nothing more soothing than Test Cricket. Nor, is there any better party. It depends on what section of the ground (rink) you sit in. I have been living abroad for 7 years now and have adopted cricket and rugby as my new hockey. Although the 'one day-ers' (aka One Day Internationals - ODIS) provide the passive fan with a result on the day, and thus makes it acceptable to play as a World Cup, it is Test Cricket that is the purest form of the game.

Not many realise that Canada v USA is the oldest international fixture in the world (1844). Yes, even older than England v Australia. So we do have a history with the sport.

Best advice to learn the sport of cricket is to find someone passionate about the sport, take some time off work and go down to the pub and let them explain it to you during the tournament. Yes, ball-by-ball. That's how I did it and have enjoyed ever since. Ok, the beer helped too, but it's a great sport nonetheless. Take the time to learn and enjoy it.

The only problem with the cricket is that you've to watch it all the day long. Otherwise it is one of the most watched games, and is particularly attractive in South Asia.

Five years ago I saw an estimate there were 1.5 million people in Canada from cricket-playing countries, and since then we have received 1.2 million more immigrants, a huge proportion from India, West Indies and Pakistan, where cricket is almost a religion. So the demographics are that this is a sizeable section of the public. Yet the rednecks in Canada's media insist that there is no market for the game and offer little or no coverage.

So congrats to the CBC for catering to all its audience including minorities, by providing this online report and the report seen on The Hour Wednesday eve.

Hi,
Hi,
I'm a Guyaness and came in Canada as a students to study at Unversity of Canada.
I like to make a comment, why is the tv station in canada is not showing the world cup cricket 2007 on air. And i would like to thanks the West Indies good luck and they must keep it up, i will be preying for them to win the world cup cricket 2007.
Long live West Indies, i'm sorry i ddon't get to come in Guyana to look at the match but i will go on the internet.

I wish West Indies good luck

From Vindi

Born in Jamaica where this is our major sports, I know this game. I use to live to play this game. Its a great sports if your born in that system. For the viewer in Manitoba, the answer is the One Day International is played at the World Cup. That is 50 overs to one team and 50 overs to the other team to score one more run to win without getting out all the bats men. So eg. If I bat 1st and score 200 runs off 50 overs, now you need to score 201 in your 50 overs or less to win. If you fail to score the 200 runs in your 50 overs you loss or if I get out all your ten men out before you reach my 200 you loss as well. So the point is to score a lot of runs at a fast/medium pace. Then put your opponent in and get the out or slow them down in the 50 overs. Test match is different. It last for 5 days and its a slower pace compare to the one day game. Any comment let me know. Thanks

Thank you for covering World cup ....now I have everything on your website that I need. CRICKET ...greatest game

I thought that cricket is just like baseball :P, with a few changes in the rules...

Vacationing for March break and sorry to see Canada go down to 7 wicket defeat by Kenya, not a major cricket power.
Cricket is without doubt the best team sport ever invented, infinitely superior to baseball, and I have watched and played both.

World Cup cricket is played in One Day International (ODI) format where each team has 50 overs to make their score. an over is 6 fair balsls, or deliveries , by the bowler.
As sidebar we now have 20/20 format, where each team has only 20 overs to make their score. A 20/20 game lasts only 2 hours or so.

And watch for this, we will soon have a 20/20 World Cup!

Back to todays game. Its very simple. Anyone who tells you cricket is complicated is admitting to a confused mental state!

In todays game, the team that scores the most runs , wins!
Canada batted first, because Steve Tikolo sent them into bat, tactically a smart move. In their 50 over at bat, Canada scored exactly 199 runs. Kenya had to exceed that score, and did so for the loss of only 3 wickets , with 40 balls to spare. 202for 3.

In todays other game, Australia piled up 334 for 6 in their 50 overs versus Scotland. The reply was only 131, so Australia won by 203 runs.

More to follow and email if you want to know more!

Carl,
There are actually three formats of cricket: Test Cricket, One-Day Cricket (aka ODI for One Day International) and Twenty20 Cricket. The World Cup is played using the One-Day format. However, there will be Twenty20 Cricket world cup starting next year. Twenty20 cricket is the shortest format of cricket (usually lasts 3 hours) and is supposed to be more popular in North America.

The One Day matches are played in the world cup.

Exposed for the first time when in New Zealand, my idea of cricket has matured somewhat while studying/residing in Australia for the past 17 months. I've been to a couple of One Day Matches (often called Day/Nighters) and have been thrilled with the stamina of the players and the fans in the obscenely powerful Australian sunshine. A contemplative game, it is interesting to see how a single partnership between batsmen can stabilise or collapse and essentially control the outcome of the game.

As I understand it now, the batting order has 10 players, with an 11th man as a spare. Two batsmen are on field at a time and the cricket pitch is double-ended. It is the job of each batsman to defend his wickets ('stumps' in cricket lingo) against the onslaught of the other team's bowlers. Runs are scored by hitting or deflecting the ball and the batsmen running between the two sets of wickets, exchanging positions with each other. You are out if your hit is caught on the fly or if your wickets are taken out by the ball and you are not in the 'crease' to defend them. In a One Day match, 50 overs are played by each team; an over is 6 bowls. This means that a One-dayer lasts for about 8 hours.

The number of different ways and directions you can hit the ball and the variation in the speed ('pace' in cricket lingo) and spin with which the ball can be bowled keep the game interesting. Sort of a genteel baseball if you will. But it does take stamina.

No catching gloves allowed, except for the wicket keeper. How they don't shatter their knuckles catching that bloody hard leather ball at 140 km/h is beyond me.

I personally don't pay attention to cricket..mostly because I have no idea what's going on. I did happen to grow up for 5 years on Vancouver Island which has a big commonwealth sports influence (field hockey and rugby were also really there). My field hockey coach was an avid cricket fan. And there's actually a number of brits, aussies and kiwis that I work with in my office that talk about it frequently.

There are plently of us North Americans that scoff at it...and go what kind of dunb sport lasts for 5 days. But I say this, any sport that inspires such excitment must have in it some pretty special ingrediants.

We're off to a rough start with the result of the Kenya-Canada match. So, we're not a superpower in World Cricket - let's get used to that. I am not sure how long we've had a national team but it sure cannot have been that long. We have no professional league here in Canada, so we have a squad of pros from elsewhere, semi-pros and talented amateurs. Who cares? If you're suited up to represent this country, let's give this Team Canada their due: they're out there on the field giving it their all. Go Canada.

Cricket sure looks like a pretty wierd game to outsiders.

Check this out:

A normal game of cricket lasts 5 days. It's called a "test."

Yup, you read it right... 5 days! And usually, it ends in a draw! 5 whole days and they still end up tied!

Oh yeah, and each day, they stop and have a nice long break... for "tea."

Sometimes a batsman from one team will play for more than a day. The other team just can't get him out. He may score more than 100 runs! They call that a "century."

And they wear white, V-neck sweaters.

I kid you not!

That's cricket.

P.S. Even though Trivial Pursuit is a Canadian invention, don't even bother playing it in Australia! You CANNOT win! I tried, and I got all the wedges for all the categories except sports because most of the sports questions were about cricket.

You try answering this:

Who batted 83 not out in 6 overs on the 3rd day of the 2nd test in the 71 Ashes?

Only an Australian cricket fan would know that! And there sure are a lot of them.

Australia is the best in the world.

(I think I may have riled a lot of people with my prior statement. Cricket fans can be pretty intense, but then, compared to other sports fans, Cricket fans spend a lot more time with their favorite teams... 5 days in a row!)

Did you know cricket actually used to be Canada's national sport.

When I heard cricket I would, for some reason, always think of India and Pakistan. Ironically, this morning on CBC radio they talked to someone who said it used to be the national sport of Canada and I was a bit surprised by that. I have only played it once and it was quite an interesting game. In my opinion much better and faster paced than baseball.

Go Ashish Go!!!!

its on day mataches with maximum of 50 overs

You should have er'd the sledging the last time as a chucker I googlied that poor lame duck who couldn't even try for a bail against an all rounder.

the games that are played at the world cup are the one day games, commonly referred to as "One Day Internationals"

Having just spent 3 months in New Zealand, I am quite familiar with cricket, which is billed as their "Summer Sport". (Rugby, which is the sport for the other three seasons, is infinitely more popular.)

Due to the limited channels on basic cable in NZ, I have spent hours watching matches (games), and my girlfriend has tried to walk me through it. You have "Overs", which are sort of like innings. You have batsmen who are pitched to. You have 2s, 4s, and 6s. The score is posted as x/y (ie. 4/209), where x is the number of batsmen who are out, and y is the number of points scored so far.

After all my watching, and all of the above, I still have little idea of the mechanics of the game, whether a team is doing well or poorly, and most importantly, why anyone would spend hours or days watching it. A baseball game, over in 2-3 hours, is infinitely more pleasurable to this viewer.

Different strokes (or bats) for different folks, I suppose.

games played in the world cup go are one day games; five day games are called "Test Matches"

I understand that there are 2 types of Cricket. A version that lasts only 1 day and a version called Test Cricket, which may last for up to 5 days. Does anyone know which of these is played at the Cricket World Cup?