First-class cricket

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A first-class cricket match is one of three or more days duration between two sides of eleven players officially adjudged first-class. Matches must allow for the teams to play two innings each, although in practice a team might only need to play one innings.

First-class cricket is an aspect of major cricket but is not major cricket per se, as is sometimes thought. Major cricket is an unofficial or, at best, quasi-official term that includes limited overs cricket, single wicket and other forms in which players and/or teams of high standard are playing. These forms are not first-class cricket but they are equally as important.

Test cricket, although the highest standard of major cricket, is itself a form of first-class cricket, although the term "first-class" is commonly used to refer to domestic competition only. A player's first-class statistics include his performances in Test matches.

Generally, first-class matches are eleven players a side but there have been exceptions. Equally, although first-class matches must now be scheduled to have at least three days' duration, there have historically been exceptions.

Due to the time demands of first-class competition, the players are mostly paid professionals, though historically many players were designated amateur. First-class teams are usually representative of a geopolitical region such as an English county, an Australian state or a West Indian nation.

Definitions of first-class cricket

MCC 1895

Prior to 1947, the only definition of first-class cricket had been one in Great Britain that dates from a meeting at Lord's in May 1894 between the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) committee and the secretaries of the clubs involved in the official County Championship, which had begun in 1890. As a result, those clubs became first-class from 1895 along with MCC, Cambridge University, Oxford University, major cricket touring teams and other teams designated as such by MCC.

ICC 1947

The term "first-class cricket" was formally defined by the then Imperial Cricket Conference (ICC) in May 1947 as a match of three or more days duration between two sides of eleven players officially adjudged first-class; the governing body in each country to decide the status of teams. Significantly, it was stated that the definition does not have retrospective effect. MCC was authorised to determine the status of matches played in Great Britain.

For all intents and purposes, the 1947 ICC definition confirmed the 1895 MCC definition and gave it international recognition and usage.

Hence, official judgment of status is the responsibility of the governing body in each country that is a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC). The governing body grants first-class status to international teams and to domestic teams that are representative of the country's highest playing standard. It is possible for international teams from associate members of the ICC to achieve first-class status but it is dependent on the status of their opponents in a given match.

According to the ICC definition, a match is first class if:

  • it is of three or more days scheduled duration
  • each side playing the match has eleven players
  • each side may have two innings
  • the match is played on natural, and not artificial, turf
  • the match is played on an international standard ground
  • the match conforms to the Laws of Cricket, except for only minor amendments
  • the sport’s governing body in the appropriate nation, or the ICC itself, recognises the match as first-class.

A Test match is a first-class match played between two ICC full member countries subject to their current status at the ICC and the application of ICC conditions when the match is played.

A peculiarity of the two-innings match is the follow-on rule. If the team that batted second is substantially behind on first innings total, it may be required to bat again (i.e., to immediately follow on from its first innings) in the third innings of the match. In first-class cricket, the follow-on minimum lead requirement depends on match duration. In a Test or other match with five or more days duration, the team batting second can be asked to follow on if 200 or more runs behind. If the match duration is three or four days, the minimum lead is 150 runs.

Main first-class competitions

Test cricket is the highest level of first-class competition. A Test match is an international game, normally scheduled for five days, played between two international teams representing full members of the ICC. There are currently (2010) nine Test teams: Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and West Indies. In addition, Zimbabwe is a full ICC member that is not playing Test cricket at present.

Another type of first-class match is one in which a national team plays against a first-class team that is non-international. Typical examples are touring teams playing against English first-class county teams or against Australian first-class state teams.

Although there are other types of first-class team (e.g., MCC, Cambridge, Oxford and one-off or occasional teams that consist of first-class players), the majority of non-international first-class teams take part in their country's national championship. The major national championships and current competing teams are listed below

Sheffield Shield – Australia

The earliest record of cricket in Australia occurs in January 1804 when it was mentioned in the Sydney Gazzette. There are records of matches being played in the 1830s and the earliest first-class match (classified retrospectively) took place in February 1851 between Tasmania and Victoria. Inter-colonial games were played almost annually thereafter and Australia played its first Test match in 1877.

The Sheffield Shield was inaugurated in 1892 by Henry North Holroyd, 3rd Earl of Sheffield (18 January 1832 – 21 April 1909), an English Conservative politician who had promoted the 1891–92 English tour of Australia that was captained by W G Grace. Sheffield donated £150 to the New South Wales Cricket Association and asked them to donate a trophy to the champion team each season. The new tournament was launched in the 1892–93 season and won by Victoria.

Current contenders:

National Cricket League – Bangladesh

The origin of Bangladesh as a country is the Partition of India in 1947, when it was established as the eastern wing of Pakistan. It was formerly known as East Bengal (1947–55) and then as East Pakistan (1955–70). Bangladesh became independent in 1971 following the Bangladesh Liberation War. Cricket was already well-established there after two centuries of British influence. Bangladesh staged first-class and even Test cricket when it was part of Pakistan. The Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka was first used for Test cricket when Pakistan played India there in January 1955.

The Bangladesh Cricket Control Board was established in 1972 and local leagues began in Dhaka and Chittagong. In the 1976–77 season, an MCC team toured the country and played four matches. MCC made a favourable report to the ICC and, on 26 July 1977, Bangladesh became an Associate Member of the ICC.

First-class cricket in Bangladesh (i.e., since independence) began when the national team played England A at the MA Aziz Stadium in Chittagong on 25–27 October 1999. Having already had success in limited overs international cricket, Bangladesh became a Full Member of the ICC on 26 June 2000. Bangladesh played its inaugural Test Match v India at the Bangabandhu National Stadium on 10–13 November 2000.

The 2000–01 season saw the beginning of first-class domestic competition when the Green Delta National Cricket League was constituted as the first-class championship.

Current contenders:

County Championship – England and Wales

Cricket is generally held to have originated as a children's game in south-east England during the medieval period. The first definite reference to the sport occurs at Guildford, Surrey in the 16th century. During the 17th century, cricket became an adult game and soon reached the stage where wealthy patrons were organising "great matches" and employing professional players. Organisation continued through the 18th century with the first known issue of the Laws of Cricket in 1744 and then the foundation of MCC in 1787. Although inter-county matches have been definitely recorded since 1709, it was not until 1839 that the first county club (i.e., Sussex) was established. English teams began to undertake overseas tours in 1859 and England played its first Test match in 1877.

The start of first-class cricket in England is a matter for debate but it is essentially a statistical argument that does not affect the historical importance of matches played in the 17th and 18th centuries. The contemporary press tended to refer to significant matches as "great matches" and the earliest of these on record is a game in Sussex in 1697.

There is evidence dating back to 1728 that the concept of a Champion County had existed long before the constitution of the official County Championship in December 1889. The new competition began in the 1890 season.

Current contenders:

Ranji Trophy – India

Cricket was introduced to India in the 17th century by mariners and traders of the British East India Company. The earliest definite reference to the sport in India is a 1721 report of English sailors playing a game at Cambay, near Baroda. The Calcutta Cricket and Football Club was founded by 1792 and, in 1799, another club was formed at Seringapatam in south India after the successful British siege and the defeat of Tippoo Sultan.

A Madras versus Calcutta match in 1864 was arguably the start of first-class cricket in India but it is more generally agreed that first-class cricket began in the 1892–93 season when an English team captained by Lord Hawke played four first-class matches, including a game against "All India" on 26-28 January 1893. It is from the same season that the Bombay Quadrangular series is usually reckoned to have first-class status. India played its first Test match in 1932.

The Ranji Trophy competition was launched in the 1934–35 season as "The Cricket Championship of India" following a meeting of the Board of Control for Cricket in India in July 1934. The competition is named after Kumar Shri Ranjitsinhji (known as "Ranji") and the trophy was donated by Bhupinder Singh, the Maharajah of Patiala.

Current contenders:

Plunket Shield – New Zealand

The earliest record of cricket in New Zealand is in 1832 in the diary of a churchman called Archdeacon Williams. There are records of matches played in the 1840s and then the first known inter-provincial match took place in 1860. The earliest first-class match (classified retrospectively) was Otago v Canterbury at Dunedin on 27–29 January 1864.

The Plunket Shield competition was inaugurated in 1906 after the trophy was donated by William Plunket, 5th Baron Plunket, the Governor-general of New Zealand. Until 1921, the holder of the shield had to be challenged in a similar fashion to that used in boxing. In the 1921–22 season, a league system was introduced and New Zealand is the only country to have established a national first-class championship competition before it began playing in Test cricket. The New Zealand national cricket team played its first Test match in the 1929–30 season.

Current contenders:

Quaid-i-Azam Trophy – Pakistan

The state of Pakistan was established by the Partition of India in 1947. By that time, cricket was already well-established after some 200 years of British influence in the area. The Pakistan Cricket Board was established on 1 May 1949 but games from 1947 to 1953 were arranged on an ad hoc basis. Nevertheless, Pakistan was admitted to full membership of the ICC and the Pakistan national cricket team played its first Test match in October 1952.

The Quaid-i-Azam Trophy was established as the national first-class championship in 1953 and first contested in the 1953–54 season. The trophy is named after Muhammad Ali Jinnah, who is generally recognised as the founder of Pakistan and is officially known in the country as Quaid-i-Azam.

Current contenders:

SuperSport Series – South Africa

The earliest record of cricket in South Africa is in reference to a match between two teams of British officers on 5 January 1808. First-class cricket in the country began with South Africa's first Test match in March 1889. The Currie Cup was inaugurated in the 1889–90 season but was not at first a national competition and was not until the 1960s contested annually. The Currie Cup was replaced in the 1996–97 season by a new format called the SuperSport Series.

Current contenders:

Premier Trophy – Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka (then called Ceylon) became a British colony in 1802. The earliest record of cricket is a report in the Colombo Journal dated 5 September 1832 which called for the formation of a cricket club. The Colombo Cricket Club was formed soon afterwards and matches began in November 1832. First-class cricket in Ceylon was restricted to games between the national team and visiting touring teams. In 1982, Sri Lanka became a Full Member of the ICC and played its first Test match.

The Premier Trophy was inaugurated in 1938 but is not recognised as a first-class competition until the 1988–89 season.

Current contenders:

Regional Four Day Competition – West Indies

Matches played before the MCC and ICC definitions

The absence of any ruling about matches played before 1947 (or before 1895 in Great Britain) has caused problems for cricket historians and especially statisticians who have been forced to compile their own matchlists. Inevitable differences have arisen and there are variations in published first-class statistics.

For a description of the statistical differences, see : Variations in first-class cricket statistics

References
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