Backyard Cricket: What is it like where you are?
By veganbliss
@veganbliss (3895)
Adelaide, Australia
July 29, 2011 1:56am CST
Does anyone remember playing backyard cricket in their childhood? Does anyone still play it? What were the rules when you played? And some memorable moments too please! Have you played many different variations or just a few? As an example & by way of explanation, here's the relevant Wikipedia article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backyard_cricket
Here's how one lot in New Zealand set up their Backyard Cricket pitch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02b_xMIi3vg
Some common variations Down Under can include:
A. One hand off the house: Catches must be taken one-hand if the ball comes off the house/tree/fence.
B. Six and out: If you hit it over the fence you're out and you have to get the ball.
C. No LBWs: Too contentious, unless Dad agrees to umpire.
D. You can't go out first ball: This is to stop your younger brother from crying.
E. Last man's tucker: You can bat by yourself if you are the last remaining batsman.
F. Tippi-Go: You have to run if you hit it.
G. Magic wicky: You can run out a batsman batting alone by hitting either wicket.
H. Automatic runs: If you hit certain backyard landmarks - a fence or shed maybe - you are awarded a prearranged number of runs.
I. One hand one bounce: Catches may still be taken one-hand if the ball only bounces once
2 people like this
6 responses
@dabangladehi (660)
• Bangladesh
29 Jul 11
Yap buddy,we played a lot these type of backyard cricket.We played in childhood and now also we play sometime.
Our rules were quit different.We played in a small place.If you hit six,then you out.There was no single or double runs,we have to score by making force and can not do pace ball.There was no LBW.There was no stamping and caught behind and wicket was much bigger.As we made those type of rules,so most of the time we used to do quarrel.Bounce was also not allowed.
It was a great fun and we enjoyed it.As we are busy now,if we get chance and all childhood friend get together,then we play such type backyard cricket.
@veganbliss (3895)
• Adelaide, Australia
30 Jul 11
That's really good that you still find the time to play it even now!
It really is good for our creative minds to adapt the rules to our situation. I guess the emphasis is more on the social aspect of the game in this case, so we can't always accommodate for every good aspect of the full game, even if we are good at it ourselves & it's against everyone else's wishes.
Are you still as good at it as when you were younger? What's your best position? Is there any other aspect you are good at, but the others don't allow you to use it?
I'm not sure what you mean by having to score only by making force... maybe you could explain that one to me sometime? Also with stamping... not too sure what that relates to either.
It really is good for our creative minds to adapt the rules to our situation. I guess the emphasis is more on the social aspect of the game in this case, so we can't always accommodate for every good aspect of the full game, even if we are good at it ourselves & it's against everyone else's wishes.
Are you still as good at it as when you were younger? What's your best position? Is there any other aspect you are good at, but the others don't allow you to use it?
I'm not sure what you mean by having to score only by making force... maybe you could explain that one to me sometime? Also with stamping... not too sure what that relates to either.
@dabangladehi (660)
• Bangladesh
30 Jul 11
No,buddy I am not good as I was in younger.My best position to field at point.
Sorry buddy,we had to score by making four.There were no other ways to score.Result was determined by fours only.
If you leave the crease you will not be out,but if you go forward too much your score will not be counted.
1 person likes this
@veganbliss (3895)
• Adelaide, Australia
30 Jul 11
That's too bad.
How are you at batting & bowling these days & how good were you when you were younger? What was your favorite?
Wow! I've never of that variation before! That would make for an interesting & an easy game to keep score for too. I hope it wasn't too tricky to hit a four then, otherwise there would be some pretty disappointed batsmen. That's how you guys got so good at playing cricket then... you grew up on a fours-or-nothing deal! I guess it gets pretty hot & humid up there to be bothered running around all day. Thanks for sharing the secret.
Thank you for responding & clearing up all these terms.
How are you at batting & bowling these days & how good were you when you were younger? What was your favorite?
Wow! I've never of that variation before! That would make for an interesting & an easy game to keep score for too. I hope it wasn't too tricky to hit a four then, otherwise there would be some pretty disappointed batsmen. That's how you guys got so good at playing cricket then... you grew up on a fours-or-nothing deal! I guess it gets pretty hot & humid up there to be bothered running around all day. Thanks for sharing the secret.
Thank you for responding & clearing up all these terms.
@RawBill1 (8531)
• Gold Coast, Australia
29 Jul 11
Well, this discussion should confuse the Americans here! 
The last game of backyard cricket I played was in Canberra in January. On that occasion, we introduced an American lady to the fine sport that is backyard cricket and she loved it.
How about those Kiwis! They are a dedicated bunch aren't they! I never went to that extreme. Imperfections in the grass just made it all the more challenging.
I remember from childhood that every backyard had it's own set of rules too. They would vary from house to house and have to be verbalised before each game so that everyone was clear. I have played under all of those rules above at one stage or anther, but perhaps not all at once.
Other rules that I remember from my house were:
The fence was the wicket keeper! If you nicked it behind you and it hit the fence between the two posts that you set the stumps up in front of, then you were out caught behind. There were no slips though.
The peg basket could catch you out! If the ball landed in the peg basket hanging off the Hills Hoist, then you were out.
Break a window and you are out! Not only that, but the game is also cancelled as everyone runs home and leaves you to face the music! 
The last game of backyard cricket I played was in Canberra in January. On that occasion, we introduced an American lady to the fine sport that is backyard cricket and she loved it.
How about those Kiwis! They are a dedicated bunch aren't they! I never went to that extreme. Imperfections in the grass just made it all the more challenging.
I remember from childhood that every backyard had it's own set of rules too. They would vary from house to house and have to be verbalised before each game so that everyone was clear. I have played under all of those rules above at one stage or anther, but perhaps not all at once.
Other rules that I remember from my house were:
The fence was the wicket keeper! If you nicked it behind you and it hit the fence between the two posts that you set the stumps up in front of, then you were out caught behind. There were no slips though.
The peg basket could catch you out! If the ball landed in the peg basket hanging off the Hills Hoist, then you were out.
Break a window and you are out! Not only that, but the game is also cancelled as everyone runs home and leaves you to face the music!
@RawBill1 (8531)
• Gold Coast, Australia
29 Jul 11
One workplace I worked at we used to play every lunch for a while until the boss got sick of us damaging cars! The workshop dog used to chase the ball and ran straight into his daughters freshly painted car leaving teeth marks in it! He also did not like having balls come flying over the roof at him while he was quoting customers cars. Not a good look!
We used to manipulate the tennis balls there a bit by using insulation tape to weight one side of the ball more than the other. This would provide a wicked swinging delivery! Another trick was to to drill a hole in a ball and fill it with urethane which would give it the feel of a cricket ball when you were expecting to be hit by a tennis ball! 
We used to manipulate the tennis balls there a bit by using insulation tape to weight one side of the ball more than the other. This would provide a wicked swinging delivery! Another trick was to to drill a hole in a ball and fill it with urethane which would give it the feel of a cricket ball when you were expecting to be hit by a tennis ball! 1 person likes this
@RawBill1 (8531)
• Gold Coast, Australia
31 Jul 11
A Saint....well maybe that would qualify me!
That would have been great growing up with lots of land to play on. I was only on a normal residential block, but as it was a small town, I had lots of friends on properties. Yeah, the workshop cricket was popular for quite a while, you would eat while you fielded and it was a great way for everyone in the workshop to get along playfully. It was a pretty social place to work at that one. We also had a dart board in our lunch room and at other times we would spend lunch times kicking the footy out on the road.
That would have been great growing up with lots of land to play on. I was only on a normal residential block, but as it was a small town, I had lots of friends on properties. Yeah, the workshop cricket was popular for quite a while, you would eat while you fielded and it was a great way for everyone in the workshop to get along playfully. It was a pretty social place to work at that one. We also had a dart board in our lunch room and at other times we would spend lunch times kicking the footy out on the road. 1 person likes this
@veganbliss (3895)
• Adelaide, Australia
30 Jul 11
Yes - sorry to all you guys in the States! But I did include the Wiki link - that's gotta count for something, right?
Cricket in the Nation's Capital! Now that must have been an experience! And you taught an American the love of cricket... we should make you a Saint!
Ah yes, auto-wickey on the fence! And there were different rules too for every house. We had heaps of land - none of it level - & built about three cricket pitches around the property! Us poor rich people!
That's a unique one with the peg basket. I seem to recall something similar once, but no one was ever lucky enough to be caught out by a peg basket!
There were windows broken here too! No-one ever owned up to it though - even though there was a neat hole the size of a cricket ball there! One place went entirely unnoticed, but most of the glass of the other windows was even more smashed from before we arrived. That's part of the safety in numbers aspect of having over a dozen younger cousins.
Oh dear! Whose idea was it to play cricket at a panel beaters? Oh man - that's ball tampering to the max! Strewth! Ouch!
That's a unique one with the peg basket. I seem to recall something similar once, but no one was ever lucky enough to be caught out by a peg basket!
There were windows broken here too! No-one ever owned up to it though - even though there was a neat hole the size of a cricket ball there! One place went entirely unnoticed, but most of the glass of the other windows was even more smashed from before we arrived. That's part of the safety in numbers aspect of having over a dozen younger cousins.
Oh dear! Whose idea was it to play cricket at a panel beaters? Oh man - that's ball tampering to the max! Strewth! Ouch!
@ram_cv (16513)
• India
30 Jul 11
Yes, we still play gully cricket. We have one hand one tip rule especially if we play on terraces. If we play on the road then we have 2 runs declared at various spots. We also have rules of one side scoring. It is usually fun to introduce these new constraints and playing with it.
Cheers!
Ram
@veganbliss (3895)
• Adelaide, Australia
31 Jul 11
That's the way!
Playing on terraces sounds pretty tricky - haven't tried that before! What happens if you're playing on the road & a car comes along? I haven't tried it myself, but it does happen sometimes down here.
Yes - it's always fun to play with different constraints & see what it adds to the game. Sometimes the outcomes can be quite funny.
Playing on terraces sounds pretty tricky - haven't tried that before! What happens if you're playing on the road & a car comes along? I haven't tried it myself, but it does happen sometimes down here.
Yes - it's always fun to play with different constraints & see what it adds to the game. Sometimes the outcomes can be quite funny.
@madhuvamsi (1185)
• India
3 Aug 11
We use to play tennis ball cricket tournaments. Where the rules are if you hit a six you are out, fours are allowed and no lbw outs. Each team will get 10 overs to set a target or chase the target. The tennis ball use to be light one which is used to play for Tennis. There is hard tennis balls which are available in the market but such balls are not allowed. Anyhow balls used to supplied by tournament organizers. It used to be fun playing this type of cricket. Just like T20 tournament, we use to play with Tennis ball where the rules are same as cricket ball. Here boundaries would be little small and it is disadvantage to bowler a lot because tennis ball do not swing or spin as much as bowlers liking. So, it was batsmen game more.
1 person likes this
@veganbliss (3895)
• Adelaide, Australia
3 Aug 11
Wow - that would be great to play in organized tournaments like that! We just have informal gatherings of relatives or friends & organize things on the spot, like drag the cricket set out of the boot that someone received as a Christmas present or something, then clear an area & go from there. We used to have similar rules to that here, depending on the terrain. Yes, there are pros & cons either way, but the main thing is that you all had a great time & made many memorable moments together.
@bouncybug (614)
• South Africa
29 Jul 11
Hi veganbliss! Wow this discussion brought back some great memories from my childhood. We also used to play backyard cricket, and we called it French cricket. My brother and I would spend hours playing! The rules we included from your list were the automatic runs (we got 6 runs if we hit the tap and 4 runs if the ball landed in the swimming pool!) and we also used the one hand one bounce rule, and of course the one where you can't go out on the first ball - to stop ME from crying this time! Great memories.
1 person likes this
@veganbliss (3895)
• Adelaide, Australia
30 Jul 11
Ahh, yes! French Cricket! We played this quite a lot. This was especially good where the ground was very hard & uneven & there were lots of us hyperactive kids who simply could not wait for any set-up to take place! This is where your legs serve as the wickets, right? I wonder if they call it by another name elsewhere?
Hitting a tap from a distance must have been tricky... did anyone make it? Unfortunately, we often gave the younger kids three outs before leaving the batting or being dismissed, but some of them were too young to understand this & bawled their eyes out when we wanted them to leave! On one occasion, it was "game over" & everyone just walked away because the stubborn little bugger wouldn't want to let go of the bat!
@mkrnex (785)
• Bangalore, India
13 Sep 15
Its called gully cricket here in India!!Rules will be like you cant hit on the full on either side if you do then you are out.Only straight hitting is an choice most often than not!!No lbw,sometimes one pitch catch is given out if there less members to play.Some place like bush or water canal if the ball goes 2 runs are declared sometimes out too!!lol.
If there are vehicles surrounded in that area if you hit it then you will be out.Most of the time only fours are awarded but six will be kept sometimes.And Indian captain MS Dhoni is a product of street smart gully cricket.Hence his technique is awkward but effective!!I believe baseball has some similarities with gully cricket as in baseball you only hit in V!!
