Why Cricket is So Popular Sport? - Well Answered

What Makes Cricket So a Popular Sport: Know The Valid All Reasons!

Why is cricket so popular worldwide? If you want to know that, then first let's know why a game becomes a world game. There are many reasons behind the popularity of any sport, which makes the sport popular, entertaining, and globally accepted. So a game becomes popular only when it can be played by any age, understood by anyone, and becomes easily accessible worldwide. So when it comes to the popularity of cricket, apart from these factors cricket is one of the oldest sports in the world, having been around since the middle of the sixth century. Cricket is the only international sport that has the most variety, with the world's longest-running match (Test matches played over 5 days), one-day matches, and the shortest-lived match, the T20. Moreover, the Cricket World Cup organized under the ICC (International Cricket Council) is also diverse, with separate formats for men and women. Moreover, bilateral series and tri-nations series are regularly played between different countries throughout the year, while professional cricket leagues are played in almost every part of the world. However, if you are a cricket fan, and would like to know why Cricket is so a popular sport around the world, then this post is for you. So, keep continuing reading;

Cricket Has More Variation, Has More Formats

One of the reasons behind the popularity of cricket is its varied formats. Cricket is the only international sport that has 5-day matches, known as Test Cricket. Test Cricket is one of the oldest and most popular cricket formats and it has retained its appeal for centuries. You won't find any sport where a game is played in five days where 70-80 thousand spectators wait in the stadium for 5 days to see the results of a game. Test Cricket is so often considered a team's passion, strength, and dedication to the game. Muthiah Muralidaran of Sri Lanka is the most-test wickets-taker, while the legend Sachin Tendulkar of India is the most test run scorer of all time. 

Apart from 5-day matches, Cricket also has one-day international matches which are called ODI international. One-day internationals are played in 100 overs, with both teams batting once (50 overs and bowling once (50 overs). Excitement, batting, bowling, and deciding the outcome of the game till the last bowling make this format more popular. Muthiah Muralidaran of Sri Lanka is the most ODI wickets-taker, while the legend Sachin Tendulkar of India is the most-ODI run scorer of all time.

T20 is the latest and the shortest version of Cricket, where the game is completed in about two and a half hours, with each inning lasting around 70 minutes, and an official 10-minute break between the innings. It is one of the most aggressive bands in cricket and is often considered the most exciting game to watch or play. Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Baber-e-Azam, Chris Gayle, Tim Southee, Shakib al Hasan, Rashid Khan, Jos Buttler, David Warner, AB de Villiers, Lasith Malinga, Mustafizur Rahman are some of the greatest T20 players of all time,

Cricket has more Variations in the World Cup

Another reason for the popularity of cricket is the Cricket World Cup. Cricket is the only sport that has several different world cup competitions, including Men's ODI Cricket World Cup, Women's ODI Cricket World Cup, Men's T20 Cricket World Cup, and Women's T20 Cricket World Cup.

There is no other sport with as diverse a World Cup competition as cricket, in which The Men's ODI Cricket World Cup has been ongoing since 1975, whereas the Women's ODI Cricket World Cup has been ongoing since 1973. Meanwhile, the Men's T20 Cricket World Cup has been ongoing since 2007, whereas the Women's t20 Cricket World Cup has been ongoing since 2009 under the sport’s governing body ICC (International Cricket Council).  Also, the ICC Champions Trophy and ICC Test Championship organized under the ICC are watched and enjoyed by billions of people around the world, making cricket a more fan-favorite sport worldwide.

Men’s ODI Cricket World Cup

The Men's ODI Cricket World Cup is one of the most prestigious, popular, and most viewed international cricket tournaments, which has been organized by the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 1975. It is often compared to the men's soccer World Cup in terms of viewership where 1.6 billion views were recorded in the 2019 Cricket World Cup as well as 4.6 billion views of digital video of the tournament. On the other hand, the group game between India and Pakistan was the most-watched match of the tournament which was watched by more than 300 million people living around the world.

Women’s ODI Cricket World Cup 

The Women's ODI Cricket World Cup is one of the most prestigious, popular, and most viewed international cricket tournaments, which has been organized by the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 1973. It is often compared to the Women's Soccer World Cup in terms of viewership where 1.64 billion views were recorded across the ICC's official channels for the 2020 Women’s Cricket World Cup. 

Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup 

The Men's T20 Cricket World Cup is one of the most exciting, popular, and most viewed international cricket tournaments, which has been organized by the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 2007. Only on web and app platforms, there were 78.4 million visitors across the Men's T20 World Cup, hosted by Australia in 2022.

Women’s T20 Cricket World Cup 

The Women's T20 Cricket World Cup is one of the most exciting, popular, and most viewed international cricket tournaments, which has been organized by the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 2009. According to the ICC 89 million visitors have watched the 2020 Women's T20 Cricket World Cup around the globe and one of the most-watched Women's sporting events in the world.

Cricket is played throughout the year

Like football, many countries around the world have domestic cricket leagues throughout the year, Apart from these leagues, many bilateral series are played between cricket-playing nations. Among such bilateral series Ashes which is played between Australia and England, is one of the most viewed and is the most popular Cricket series in the world. Moreover, a cricket match between India and Pakistan is more than a game, like El Clasico(Real Madrid Vs Barcelona) in Cricket.

Apart from that, T20 franchise leagues have taken cricket to the global stage, due to its excitement, and shortest timeframe, as well as fans' choices. Some of the greatest t20 franchise tournaments are;

• BPL (Bangladesh Premier League)
• IPL (Indian Premier League)
• PSL (Pakistan Premier League)
• CPL (Caribbean Premier League)
• SPL (Sri Lankan Premier League)
• Big Bash League (Australian Professional Club Twenty20 Cricket League)

Cricket is Easy to play 

Cricket is one of the easiest sports to learn where there is no age limit. Cricket also offers a wide range of formats to play or for fans to view, such as Test, ODI, and T20s. So, according to your preference, you can choose the best-suited formats that Cricket offers. For fans, this is one of the favorite reasons why so many people around the world like Cricket. The rules of Cricket are quite simple anyone can learn to play and enjoy watching the game. Besides, cricket is a game where the latest technologies are used, which helps to keep the game above all kinds of controversies.

Cricket has Regional and International Tournaments

There are very few games in the international scene with which cricket is compared. Because cricket is a game that has an international fan base. Tournaments like the ICC World Cup, Champions Trophy, Asia Cup, and more have been going on for years and are at the peak of popularity. These tournaments mean a lot to cricket fans around the world. So much so that the excitement and speed are seen everywhere during the international tournament representing people's emotions and love for play.

Besides that numerous Tri-nations tournaments, friendly matches, and under-19 world cup both men's and women's as well as other international competitions run year-round. Here are some of the most popular regional Cricket Tournaments:

Men’s Asia Cup:

The Men's Asia Cup is one of the most prestigious, popular, and most viewed regional Cricket tournaments, which has been organized by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) since 1984. According to international experts, 166 million fans watched the Asia Cup tournament in 2022, which is a festival in South Asia. India is the most successful team in the Asia Cup tournament, while Sri -Lanka, Pakistan, and Bangladesh are also popular cricket teams.

Women’s Asia Cup:

The Women's Asia Cup is one of the most prestigious, popular, and most viewed regional cricket tournaments, which has been organized by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) since 2004. According to international reports, 133 million fans watched the Asia Cup tournament in 2022, which is a festival in South Asia. India is the most successful team in the Asia Cup tournament, while Sri -Lanka, Pakistan, and Bangladesh are also popular cricket teams.

Cricket is Internationally Played

Not only the domestic or regional game of Cricket but is played internationally. Therefore, Cricket develops international relations between world countries and fosters social or cultural communities between different groups. You'll hardly find any countries, regions, or media where there is no news or coverage about cricket, whether it's a Test match, ODI, or T20s. That is what it means the power of Cricket, the popularity of the sport.

Cricket has A Passionate Fans-Base 

Cricket has the second-most passionate global fans after soccer and it is estimated that over 2.5 billion fans are in different parts of the world. More than 273 million unique viewers have watched the 2019 Men's ODI World Cup, whereas 1.28 billion unique viewers have watched the 2022 Men's T20 World Cup, On the other hand, the India vs Pakistan match alone has accumulated 256 million viewing hours in India.

Apart from the Men's ODI or Men's T20 World Cup, the Women's ODI or Women's T20 World Cup is one of the most watched international World Cup competitions in the world.  Like India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Australia, no other game is so popular than cricket, whether it’s Test, ODI, T20, Men’s or Women’s competitions. You won't find any cricket match where the stadium lacks spectators.

Cricket is one of the richest formats of sports

Cricket is one of the best sports in terms of economic value. Global T20 Franchise Leagues run in addition to the World Cup or domestic leagues, making the cricketers economically viable. So the number of professional cricketers is increasing day by day. Meanwhile, women's professional leagues like soccer are becoming more popular and professional. There are very few people who follow sports who have not heard of IPL, BPL, SPL, CPL, PSL, or Big Bash Cricket Franchise. In terms of popularity, the T20 franchise leagues are often compared to the professional European football leagues.

Cricket has a Huge Media Coverage

Another proof that Cricket is one of the most popular sports in the world is the media coverage of Cricket. You don't have to go to the stadium, rather you can get all the cricket updates through Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or even Google Live Score. Apart from social media, you will not find any media such as television, mobile apps, newspapers, various websites, or sports channels, where there is no cricket news, updates, or presence. Besides ICC's official pages, you'll find more than millions of Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter pages about Cricket fans, Cricket celebrities, Cricket stories, Cricket stats, or records from day after day.

These are some of the factors that make cricket one of the most popular sports around the world. What do you think? But if you agree or disagree, either way, comment below or stay connected on our social media pages. Get us by #sportsowls, or @sportsowls on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. SportsOwls is always with sports fans and with the sports update.

Published By

Mostafa Masud

For SportsOwls

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