St. Maarten Cricket

Yesterday we went to watch the St. Maarten Cricket team play in the final of the 7th annual Nagico Cricket Tournament. This was the first time that St. Maarten's team had made it to the final, and they were scheduled to play the Antigua and Barbuda team, who had won it 6 times before. The match was played at the Caribe Lumber Ballpark, which is behind the Cost-U-Less parking lot. Unfortunately St. Maarten did not win, but I think it was a close thing and it was enjoyable to watch.





I have never watched cricket played before and have absolutely no clue of how it is done or what the rules are. I was lucky in that we got to listen to knowledgeable explanations as we watched.

There were a fair amount of spectators there, and it seemed to be getting busier as the afternoon progressed. There were also the requisite drink and food vendors - a mix of established vendors and some do-it-yourself types. There was even a girl dressed in Heineken colors handing out branded handtowels.





The drinks menu shows Red Bull is a popular mixer (shudder):





I also saw plenty of professional looking camera gear covering the event.



Some St. Maarten team members:



Antigua's batters turn up:



Here are the things I think I know. I know the two from Antigua are batters, and they are there to prevent the bowlers (who I want to call pitchers) from hitting the stake with the ball. The batters are equipped with rather large cricket bats to prevent this. To me this makes the batter's jobs rather easier than the pitcher's bowler's. Somehow points are scored. I am unable to understand the point terminology - for instance the home team St Maarten scored 227 for eight off 50 overs and Antigua and Barbuda replied with 231 for four off 44.4 overs - I get the 227 to 231 part but don't get the rest.***

Anyway, I have now reached the end of my explanatory capabilities as regards cricket. I was most interested in watching the bowlers. Everyone seemed to have a different style, some running, some adding a very tall leap before hurling the ball. Here are some random photos of the game:













***edited to add: It has now been explained to me that the score was not close; Antigua still had plenty of batters but once their score passed the St. Maarten team's score, the game was over.