Cricket is to pitch as roller skating is to

I hope you enjoy this blog from leading expert Iain James, Essential Guide to Rolling. When rolling a cricket pitch we are aiming to achieve a number of outcomes: 1. To compact the soil, making the soil harder, meaning it deforms less when impacted by the ball. Without getting too technical, we want both the pitch and the ball to deform as elastically as possible (any deformation during impact is recovered, helping the ball bounce) .Although not to deform plastically (the deformation is permanent, absorbing energy from the impact and reducing pace and bounce). Hard pitches will offer good bounce, soft pitches will dent and the ball will then start to bounce variably (go up and down) depending on where it lands. The roller can make a pitch harder to a certain extent, but it is the combination of rolling and drying that causes pitches to get match hard.The relationship between roller and soil moisture content is the basis of the research that Peter Shipton and I did at Cranfield University to develop the ECB Rolling Guidelines. 2. To make the pitch smooth and to remove any variations in level over the pitch that will cause variable bounce. Variations in level will come from a number of factors including shrinking and swelling of the soil, frost heave (in some winters), deformation by players (and groundstaff when its too wet), earthworms and the weather. The aim of rolling is to iron these variations out and make the pitch more consistent. 3. To modify the colour and conditi...

Photo credit: Prescott Pym ( Cricket is a sport that has been tracked back to the early 16th century and has been a popular ever since. The pinnacle of the international game comes in the form of the Cricket World Cup. Other major events include the T20 World Cup, Test Series and One Day series. Each country runs a host of domestic competitions all highly competitive. Object of the Game The object of cricket is to score more runs than your opponent. There are three variations of the game (Test, One Day and Twenty 20) and each give a certain timescale in which the game must be completed. To score a run you need to hit the ball with a cricket bat made from wood (usually English willow or Kashmir). Whilst one team bats the other bowls and fields. The aim is to bowl the opposing team out for as few runs as possible or restrict them to as few runs in the allocated time. After a team has lost all their wickets or the allotted time has expired then the teams will switch roles. Players & Equipment Each team consists of 11 players. These eleven players will have varying roles in the team from batsmen, bowlers, fielders and wicket keepers. Whilst each player may have a specialist role they can take up any role should they wish. Pitch sizes vary greatly in cricket but are usually played on a circular grass field with a circumference of around 200m. Around the edge of the field is what’s known as the boundary edge and is basically the line between being in play and out of play. In the...

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