Prepared and Submitted by Morgan O’Hara:

Can you see it? Us in Mumbai, a beautiful summer’s day, playing cricket with a group of Indian MBAs, drinking chai, talking life, making those important connections. That’s business for you, Cal Poly international style. And not only is it going to happen in a few months, but we are going to be prepared.

On the morning of Feb 28th, we have a cricket ‘friendly’ with the Indian Student Association at Isley Park located on Tank Farm Road in SLO (let me know if you need directions). Start time is ten sharp (10:00 am), and we’ll end early afternoon, around one o’clock (1:00 pm), after burgers have been served. Though my authority is uncertain, I’m requiring attendance. Even so, RSVP by shooting me an email at mdohara AT calpoly DOT edu. We need to know how much eats to order.

On the evening of the 27th starting at 8:00 pm sharp, ten to twelve of us will have the privilege to crowd into Dr. Carr’s living room after that week’s hob nob ends at his house, and watch an Indian movie (Lagaan — and Oscar nominated cricket themed Bollywood production) on cricket’s nascence. (He notes 10-12 people is about all his living room can comfortably hold and he will supply the pillows, popcorn and sodas to said first come first served 10-12 people). I’ve been told that this movie serves as a good intro to the sport, and there will be someone knowledgeable on hand to answer any questions we may have.

For everyone, especially those who can’t make it on the evening of the 27th at Dr. Carr’s house, here are some quick youtube videos which go over some cricket basics.

Basics Video: CLICK HERE

How to Bat: CLICK HERE

How to Bowl: CLICK HERE

How to Field: CLICK HERE

India Team Highlights: CLICK HERE

Three important things you need to know, copied straight from Wikipedia:

Test cricket is played between two teams of eleven players over a period of up to a maximum of five days - although matches are sometimes completed early when one side wins well within the time allotted (i.e. in three or four days). On each day there are usually three two-hour sessions with a forty minute break for “lunch” and a twenty minute break for “tea.”

One Day International (ODI) is a form of cricket, in which 50 overs are played per side between two national cricket teams. The Cricket World Cup is played in this format. One Day International matches are also called “Limited Overs Internationals (LOI)”, because they are limited overs cricket matches between national sides, and if the weather interferes they are not always completed in one day. Important one-day matches, international and domestic, often have two days set aside, the second day being a “reserve” day to allow more chance of the game being completed if a result is not possible on the first day (for instance if play is prevented or interrupted by rain).

Twenty20 is a form of cricket, originally introduced in the United Kingdom for professional inter-county competition by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), in 2003. A Twenty20 game involves two teams, each have a single innings, batting for a maximum of 20 overs. The game is completed in about two and half hours, with each inning lasting around 75 minutes, thus bringing the game closer to the timespan of other popular team sports such as football. It was introduced to create a lively form of the game which would be attractive to spectators at the ground and viewers on television and as such it has been very successful. The ECB did not intend that Twenty20 would replace other forms of cricket and these have continued alongside it.

See you all on February 28th at 10 am. If any questions, please contact me. As for the sparkly white uniform, we’ll have no dress code, but keep in mind, in India we’ll be sporting pants. Also, this is important, playing is NOT mandatory. You can come by, soak in the sun, enjoy the camaraderie, laugh at us fumbling all over the place, and get first dibs on the food.