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Cricket, like field hockey, was first introduced to India by the British . The earliest recorded match was played in 1721 by British sailors on shore leave. With the expansion of British rule throughout the Subcontinent , the British took the game with them wherever they went. However, the early history of the game was focused largely on the large cities, particularly Bombay (now Mumbai).

The first Indians to play the game at a high level were the Parsi minority in Bombay. Beginning in 1892 , an annual match was played between the Parsis and the Europeans. In 1907 , this became a triangular tournament with the Hindu s fielding a team, and in 1912 a Muslim team entered what was for twenty years the biggest tournament in India—the [[Bombay
Quadrangular]].

Among the biggest stars in the early years of Indian cricket were the four Palwankar brothers, Shivram, Ganpat and Vithal but particularly the Slow Left-arm Bowler , Palwankar Baloo . This was particularly noteworthy as the Palwankars were from one of the Untouchable castes. Treated as equals on the cricket field, off-field they often faced discrimination. This changed slowly; however, Palwankar Vithal did eventually captain the Hindu team in the quadrangular.

The formation of the Board Of Control For Cricket In India in 1929 led to a first Test match with England three years later. In 1935 , the Ranji Trophy began; it continues to the present as the leading regional tournament in India, with each state fielding a team. The trophy was a deliberate attempt to avoid the communalism of the quadrangular tournament.

, Indian captain Kapil Dev (left) with the President (centre) and the Prime Minister (right)]]

The Indian Cricket Team has won one Cricket World Cup , in 1983 . India also reached the finals in 2003 , but lost to Australia . In recent years, Indian cricket has been marked by the intense and occasionally violent rivalry with Pakistan . Furthermore, there were several scandals related to Match Fixing and Gambling , but these were not restricted to India; they plagued several different teams.

International cricket in India generally does not follow a fixed pattern like, for example, the English schedule under which the nation tours other countries during winter and plays at home during the summer. Generally, there has recently been a tendency to play more One-day Matches than Test Matches .

  • Ranji Trophy - Founded as 'The Cricket Championship of India' at a meeting of the Board Of Control For Cricket In India in July 1934. The first Ranji Trophy fixtures took place in the 1934-35 season. Syed Mohammed Hadi of Hyderabad was the first batsman to score a century in the tournament. The Trophy was donated by H.H. Sir Bhupendra Singh Mahinder Baha-dur, Maharajah of Patiala in memory of His late Highness Sir Ranjitsinhji Vibhaji of Nawanagar. In the main, the Ranji Trophy is composed of teams representing the states that make up India. As the political states have multiplied, so have cricket teams, but not every state has a team. Some states have more than one cricket team, e.g. Maharashtra and Gujarat. There are also 'odd' teams like Railways, and Services representing the armed forces. The various teams used to be grouped into zones - North, West, East, Central and South - and the initial matches are played on a league basis within the zones. The top two (till 1991-92), top three teams from each zone then play in a national knock-out competition. Starting with the 2002-03 season, the zonal system has been abandoned and a two-division structure has been adopted with two teams being promoted from the plate league and two relegated from the elite league. If the knockout matches are not finished they are decided on the first-innings lead.


See also Ranji Trophy

  • Irani Trophy - The Irani Trophy tournament was conceived during the 1959-60 season to mark the completion of 25 years of the Ranji Trophy championship and was named after the late Z.R. Irani, who was associated with the Board Of Control For Cricket In India ( BCCI ) from its inception in 1928, till his death in 1970. The first match, played between the Ranji Trophy champions and the Rest of India was played in 1959-60 with the trophy being instituted in the name of Zal Irani, long time treasurer of the Board of Control for Cricket in India and a keen patron of the game. For the first few years, it was played at the fag end of the season. Realising the importance of the fixture, the BCCI moved it to the beginning of the season. Since 1965-66, it has traditionally heralded the start of the new domestic season. The Irani Trophy game ranks very high in popularity and importance. It is one of the few domestic matches that is followed with keen interest by cricket lovers in the country. Leading players take part in the game which has often been a sort of selection trial to pick the Indian team for foreign tours.


See also Irani Trophy

  • Duleep Trophy - The Duleep Trophy competition was started by the Board Of Control For Cricket In India in 1961-62 with the aim of providing a greater competitive edge in domestic cricket - because, apart from the knock-out stages of the Ranji Trophy, that competition proved predictable, with Bombay winning for fifteen consecutive years. The Duleep was also meant to help the selectors in assessing form. The original format was that five teams, drawn from the five zones, play each other on a knock-out basis. From the 1993-94 season, the competition has been converted to a league format.


See also Duleep Trophy

  • Deodhar Trophy

    • Started in 1973-74 by Board Of Control For Cricket In India ,it is the current one-day cricket competition in the Indian domestic cricket. 5 zonal teams - North zone, South zone, East zone, West zone and Central Zone feature in the competition. North zone have won this competition 11th time.


See also Deodhar Trophy



See also NKP Salve Challenger Trophy


FAMOUS CRICKETERS OF INDIA



REFERENCES

  • Guha, Ramachandra (2003). ''A Corner of a Foreign Field: An Indian history of a British sport.'' London: Picador. ISBN 0330491172