An introduction to Test Match

Test match cricket is the longest type in cricket sports and regarded by players and serious cricket fans as the ultimate test of playing ability when compared to one-day international cricket. Test matches are played only among national representative team chosen from the best players within a particular nation. Test cricket match is played for about five days, with three sessions of two hours spread with a 40-minute break for lunch and 20-minutes break for afternoon tea per day.

Match Conduct

A team winning the toss of the coin (for the purposes of this explanation, they would be termed “team A”, with their opponents recognized as “team B”) decides whether to bat or bowl first, and bats also until every batter is released or they prefer to stop batting (known as “declaration”). There is no limit to how long they could bat provided there stay at least two batsmen with no one dismissed. The teams then exchange roles, with team B batting and team A bowling plus fielding). If the cricket bats man B are dismissed with a score 200 runs or more behind team A, team A has the option whether to make team B bat again for their “second  innings” (known as “enforcing the follow-on”), or bat itself to gain a bigger lead.

If the follow-on is imposed, team B bats till they are dismissed or declare. If team B’s total gained score from both its innings is less than team A’s score from the first innings, team A takes the cup home. If this is not the case, team A should bat in its second innings to try to score more than team B. If it succeeds in the available time, team A wins. If it is dismissed before this happens, team B wins (though this is extremely unusual – teams who implement the follow-on very hardly ever lose). If time runs out before either of the above occurs, the game is considered to be a draw.