According to the Laws of Cricket:
Cricket is a bat and ball game, played between two teams of eleven players each. One team bats, attempting to score runs, while the other bowls and fields the ball, attempting to restrict the scoring and dismiss the batsmen. The objective of the game is for a team to score more runs than its opponent. In some forms of cricket, it may also be necessary to dismiss the opposition in order to win the match, which would otherwise be drawn.
Above is an excerpt from the Laws of Cricket. Yes, oh my god. You are right. It is very much in parallel to the American history and the American characteristics. For those of you who are not “American” enough let me explain you why this is rather a common sense to many Americans in what I hope will be legitimate terms.
“A bat and a ball game”—what does this tell you? That’s right. This is American virtue number one: individualism. If you have ever seen a ball and a bat, you would have noticed this immediately: a ball and a bat have are two very distinct tools. A ball is round, while a bat is long. However, by putting them together and using them in a game, Cricket, the game itself, is admitting and encouraging different individualisms and characteristics. Had the Cricket not promote this American virtue, the two very distinct instruments would not have been used in a same game—don’t you think so?
“Played between two teams of eleven players each”—more vividly shows the Americaness in the game of Cricket. As many of you readers already are aware, eleven and two are both numbers with utmost values in the American history and culture. Eleven is the fifth smallest prime number, which clearly identifies with the U.S. Route 11. This highway clearly suggests the scope and breadth of the American country and its broad history in this land. Number two is yet another very American number: the U.S. ranks second for approval of drone strikes, according to the Ranking America statistics. Eleven and two combined is the number thirteen. What does this mean? Obviously, this number represents the thirteen colonies that formed the American nation. Is this only a simple coincidence or what?
“The objective of the game is for a team to score more runs that its opponent”—this elucidates the capitalistic value of the American society. Among the many characteristics of an authentic capitalism, this competitiveness is certainly one. Without the rivalry and the freedom to expand one’s limitless potential, the American value in its society would be nowhere to be found. Economically speaking, these vying characteristics of the society are very American—both in macroeconomics and microeconomic sense. Competitions are encouraged in our culture, and not-so-American-you might question this. As the aforesaid statement, differences are promoted in the American society.
Afresh, Cricket is the true American sport. Even the name itself says it. The “Cricket” has seven alphabets in its name. Seven, what a meaningful number! This number represents the American sportsmanship. NHL, MLB, and NBA all have “seven” as their maximum number of games played in a playoff series. Furthermore, in the natural world, seven is the neutral pH value between acidity and alkalinity—this wonderfully magical number suggests the American value of neutrality.
Is this still a lucky coincidence? Let Cricket be the true American sport. It now seems irrefutable that the Cricket is not the true American sport.
The last statement that will end this essay will blow your mind: the word “America” also has seven letters in it.
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