First-class cricket is not considered an International match. Moreover, it mainly refers to a test match in which both teams have to play a two-innings match.
It is a match of three or more days between eleven players from both teams. Every country hosts different types of tournaments as First Class Cricket. In India, it is mainly known as the Ranji Trophy in which many teams of different states participate in the tournament.
Having said that, each country has different rules for their first-class cricket that allows them to find some local talents from these trophies. It is a type of domestic session in which people from different places can also take part to make their future bright on the cricket field.
Furthermore, any performance in international test matches will also get counted in First Class Cricket. First Class Cricket is the oldest and one of the most important steps for any cricketer’s career.
This is the backbone of international cricket and the stepping stone for the players who can show their talent at the international level.
A player has to start his career in domestic cricket to showcase his talent and can show their presence in cricket after performing well in any league.
History Of First Class
First Class Cricket in India was mainly established by Mariners of the British East India Company in the 17th Century. The first match in India was played in 1721 near Baroda and till then the craze for Cricket increased in India.
The actual start of Cricket in First class was in 1864 but it was officially announced in 1892-93 when the England player led the side in the Quadrangular series at Bombay.
India got their first test match in 1932, later on, in 1935, Ranji Trophy was started to find the local talent from different states of India. The different states participated in this tournament and the real competition started.
Talking about the rules and regulations of the first class match, before First class matches, it was called Grand Matches in the British Isles. The rules and laws were decided by communities and there is always a different way to keep records.
No one was aware of the future of cricket and that’s why the history of First Class Cricket was very casual. Their importance was never given to cricket and no one was aware of how popular cricket will be in the upcoming future.
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How To Play In First-Class Cricket?
To play in first-class cricket, the local players need to show their impressive performance in their clubs.
- The states conduct different tournaments and a player always gets highlighted for their performance in those tournaments.
- A player should have complete knowledge of the laws of cricket.
- Once they are assured, then IPL has played a major role to give many players a chance to perform in first-class cricket.
With that being mentioned, this is a great opportunity for the young local players to get a chance for international exposure. But in today’s marketing world, importance and priority are also given to paced cricket. Yes, short formats play a huge role to finish the impact of first-class cricket games.
Earlier, the players had the only option of first-class cricket in India but now players are going to different leagues around the world. This is deteriorating the importance of first-class cricket in India.
The neglecting process of first-class cricket has also impacted the techniques of many players. Today, more and more instant cricket is prioritized by modern-day players.
Even today many players who are not in the form are forced to play first-class cricket, which puts a lot of pressure on the batsman and they get injuries.
Conduct a game of first-class cricket
Every country of the Cricket Council has different rules and regulations for conducting a game of first-class cricket.
To conquer things impressively, there is also a popular cup named Irani Cup, which is mainly held between the winner of the Ranji Trophy and the Rest of the India team selected by BCCI.
Duleep Trophy and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy are also tournaments that happen with the presence of domestic players. The players get some endorsement through these leagues and their performance can take them to the next level.
The player selection is mainly done through the clubs and the performance of local players in those clubs. BCCI conducts First Class Cricket in India and the laws are different than international Test matches
We know that the process is almost the same but the rules are different. In India, the first-class match is played for four days and every game has some results.
If the match is getting drawn as per scores then the team who scored more runs in the first innings will get some benefit in total points.
First-class domestic teams
The domestic teams list consists of different state teams. Let us know the name of the teams in the list we have given below.
- Andhra
- Assam
- Baroda
- Bengal
- Delhi
- Goa
- Gujarat
- Haryana
- Jammu and Kashmir
- Jharkhand
- Karnataka
- Kerala
- Madhya Pradesh
- Maharashtra
- Mumbai
- Orissa
- Punjab
- Railways
- Rajasthan
- Services
- Tamil Nadu
- Tripura
- Uttar Pradesh
- Vidarbha
Frequently Asked Question
1. What is the highest score of Virat Kohli in first-class cricket?
Ans. Virat Kohli’s highest score in first-class cricket is 197, which he made in Nisaar Trophy at Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium.
2. Who has the most wickets in first-class cricket?
Ans. Bishan Singh Bedi has a record of taking 1560 wickets in his first-class cricket career. This was the most impressive performance from someone on the Indian side.
3. Who has the most runs in first-class cricket?
Ans. Sunil Gavaskar has a record of making more than 10,000 runs in First class Test cricket.
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