The fight against misperceptions of our sport in Germany and Europe is still a very real one. Here are some of the most common myths:
- That cricket is somehow played on horseback.
- That cricket is croquet – “just like in Alice in Wonderland?”
- That we drink tea all day.
- That it’s not a proper sport, just something to pass the time.
And it’s one thing to not know the basics, but then to actually show off your ignorance and use it as a backstory on your website, is something else. Like this Hamburg company did:
“Julia’s husband Michael, who’s responsible for the day-to-day running of the company, has a passion for cricket. Not only does this equestrian sport dispense with referees, it also stands for fairness, reliability and decency.” (Translated from the German).
We are sincerely concerned for the well-being of Michael and his horses – and indeed the other members of the team who, presumably, are running around on two legs instead of four. Surely a disadvantage – especially when it comes to LBW? Mind you, without a referee does it matter anyway?
International Women’s Day
We think it’s brilliant that more and more women and girls are getting involved in cricket. And we would like to actively encourage more of you to join our club. If you are reading this and thinking, I’d love to play cricket – then drop us a mail or click the ‘sign up’ button on our Facebook site. You’d be very welcome to make our club, your club.
Berlin Cricket Club 
Sometimes I also wonder whether cricket makes a rod for its own back with its pomposity. I spoke to an umpire recently here in Vienna, who said that he was working on a reduced set of laws (he might even have suggested calling them “the rules” to be “a bit more down with the kids”) and to remove absolutely everything that isn’t needed by someone wanting to start playing the game (e.g. your follow-ons etc and anything that doesn’t encroach into a friendly game of cricket). It is clear that many players, who watch an awful lot of cricket on TV/online, are often not up with the basic laws (and still don’t appreciate a difference being laws and playing conditions), so maybe stripping this “finesse” is not a bad idea to make it more approachable to outsiders.
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Sometimes I also wonder whether cricket makes a rod for its own back with its pomposity. I spoke to an umpire recently here in Vienna, who said that he was working on a reduced set of laws (he might even have suggested calling them “the rules” to be “a bit more down with the kids”) and to remove absolutely everything that isn’t needed by someone wanting to start playing the game (e.g. your follow-ons etc and anything that doesn’t encroach into a friendly game of cricket). It is clear that many players, who watch an awful lot of cricket on TV/online, are often not up with the basic laws (and still don’t appreciate a difference being laws and playing conditions), so maybe stripping this “finesse” is not a bad idea to make it more approachable to outsiders.
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