You have undoubtedly heard of crickets, the insects known for the chirping sound they make. But have you ever heard of the game called cricket? The sport originated in England in the 13th century, but today it is played all around the world. Many European countries are now associate members of the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Basic facilities required for the game are now in place at Bilkent. We are looking forward to enrolling interested students of both genders and all backgrounds.
A demonstration session will take place October 9 from 1:30-3:30 p.m. at the Main Campus Grass Football Field.

As for the game itself, it is somewhat similar to baseball. Cricket is played between two competing teams of 11 players on each side, on a large (usually grassy) expanse of oval-shaped ground. The teams are comprised of players with a mixture of abilities, some of whom specialize in batting (the "batsman" stands holding a bat and attempts to hit the ball and make runs), some in bowling (the "bowler" bowls the ball and attempts to hit the "wickets" behind the batsman), and one highly specialized player who acts as the "wicket-keeper." Batsmen play in pairs, each equipped with a bat, one at each end of the wicket. The team that scores the most runs wins the match. The length of the game can vary in duration of time and number of balls bowled.

We have introduced two basic levels of cricket at Bilkent. Beginners are expected to initially join the soft ball cricket teams to learn the fundamentals of the game, attend training sessions, and participate in tournaments at the mini fields. In the second stage, we expect more experienced players who have a good soft ball cricket background or have already played with the hard ball to join the hard ball cricket teams. We hope that eventually we will be able to form the official Bilkent cricket team.

Join us, no matter whether you have any cricket experience or not. For more information contact: dincero@ug.bilkent.edu.tr