Slogging the Serbs

"It (cricket) requires one to assume such indecent postures", Oscar Wilde

"I tend to think that cricket is the greatest thing that God ever created on earth - certainly greater than sex, although sex isn't too bad either", Harold Pinter

 Tekst na srpskom možete pročitati u nastavku

Mention of cricket tends to prompt raised eyebrows and furrowed brows, and not without good reason. With its own peculiar vocabulary, cricket is the only thing that makes most Englishmen at least somewhat bi-lingual.

Cricket, however, is neither as complicated, nor as confusing, as some other sports....

Though the 'old' cricketing nations are invariably linked to the colonial age - England, Australia, India, Pakistan, South Africa etc. - the sport is increasingly being played in a wider number of countries, as this article explores:

Cricket: Immigrants feel at home batting for Italy

After a couple of more or less unsuccessful attempts, cricket has been played in Serbia on a regular basis since the establishment of two clubs - Mirijevo and Stari Grad - in late 2007. With the birth of Kablarski Soko - founded by several students from Čačak - a competitive cricket league finally became possible.

A Serbian XI, made-up almost exclusively of homegrown players, has also competed in various international tournaments, including the EuroT20 in July 2010, where Serbia defeated Macedonia in its final match to finish seventh.

Through this regular blog, we hope to introduce cricket to a wider audience in Serbia - its rules, values and vocabulary; its greatest players, matches and moments.

If you are interested in learning how to play cricket, please do not hesitate to contact the Serbian Cricket Federation for details about our regular training sessions.

* The title of this post is in homage to an excellent book, 'Slogging the Slavs: A Paranormal Cricket Tour from the Baltic to the Bosphorus', by Angus Bell.

Šta je to kriket?

"Često mislim da je kriket nešto najbolje što je Bog stvorio na zemlji - neuporedivo bolje od seksa, mada ni seks nije loš", Harold Pinter

Samo pominjanje kriketa, pogotovo kriketa u Srbiji, može izazvati mrštenje i začuđene izraze lica. Nije da nema razloga za to.

Pa ipak, kriket nije zastrašujuće komplikovan kao neki drugi sportovi...

Premda je kriket i dalje najpopularniji u zemljama koje neizbežno asociraju na kolonijalno doba Britanske imperije (Engleska, Australija, Indija, Pakistan, Južnofrička Republika, Karipska ostrva...), ovaj sport je sve zastupljeniji i u ostalim državama koje nikada nisu bile pod kolonijalnom vlašću.

Cricket: Immigrants feel at home batting for Italy

Posle par neuspelih pokušaja, kriket loptica se redovno i regularno kotrlja i kod nas od osnivanja dva beogradska kluba - Mirijevo i Stari Grad - krajem 2007. godine. Kada su čačanski studenti u Beogradu osnovali treći klub, Kablarski Soko, kriket liga Srbije je konačno postala stvarnost.

Državna reprezentacija Srbije, sačinjena skoro isključivo od domaćih igrača, već je stekla solidno međunarodno iskustvo. Pored prijateljskih mečeva i turnira sa ekipama iz regiona (Mađarska, Makedonija, Rumunija, Bugarska, Slovenija), te ligaškim klubovima iz Engleske, Velsa i Škotske (Carmel & District CC, Morton Edinburgh CC, New Victoria, Quokkas London CC, Ruislip Victoria), naši reprezentativci u poslednje dve godine uspešno su predstavljali Srbiju na dva EuroT20 turnira, pod pokroviteljstvom Evropskog kriket saveta (ICC-Europe). U Skoplju 2010, Srbija je zauzela sedmo mesto, dok je pre svega dve nedelje, u Budimpešti uspela da stigne do četvrtog mesta.

Nadamo se da ćemo preko ovog bloga uspeti da upoznamo širu publiku sa ovim elegantnim, tehnički i taktički vrlo zahtevnim sportom, sa njegovim pravilima, duhom i vokabularom, najboljim svetskim igračima, timovima, utakmicama, kao i najslavnijim momentima.

Ako vas zanima da naučite da igrate kriket, kontaktirajte naš savez i/ili kriket klubove koji će vam dati više informacija o treninzima u Beogradu.