Cricket had been invented in England; cricket grew out of the many sticks and ball games played in England. By the 17th century, it evolved enough to be recognisable as a distinct game.
The Britishers took the game to all those places where they went, i.e., to their colonies in Asia and Africa.
Peculiarities of cricket
Reasons:
The organisation of cricket in England reflected the nature of English society. The rich who could afford to play it for pleasure were called amateurs and the poor who played it for a living were called
professionals.
The rich were amateurs for two reasons:
The wages of professionals were paid by patronage or subscription or gate money. The game was seasonal and did not offer employment the year round.
Rules of cricket were made to favour the gentlemen. These gentlemen did most of the batting. Their superiority over players made only the batsmen captains of teams. It was said that “the battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton.”
The First Written Laws of Cricket (1744)
The world’s first cricket club was formed in Hambledon in the 1760s. The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) was founded in 1787. In 1788 the MCC published its first revision of the laws and became the guardian of cricket’s regulations. A series of changes in the game occurred in the 2nd half of the 18th century.
Cricket as a game changed and matured during the early phase of the Industrial Revolution but remained true to its origins in rural England. Unlike other games, cricket has refused to remake its tools with industrial or man-made materials. Protective equipment, however, has been influenced by technological change.