Cricket

A cricket mat is a temporary, roll-out surface that is used for practice and casual games. It is portable and is loose laid on the ground. However, it has variable bounce and spin and doesn’t give the best underfoot traction to either the batsman or the bowler. It is a stop-gap arrangement, at the best, and not durable either.

On the other hand, when you are looking at standalone turf that has been designed and manufactured only for cricket, you are looking at a premium, high-quality synthetic playing surface that has been exclusively designed for professional and competitive cricket. It provides a consistent playing experience, mimicking the performance characteristics of natural grass while offering durability and is virtually maintenance free. It is installed permanently and engineered to withstand intensive use, ensuring optimal conditions and consistent ball bounce and spin for players at all levels. Once again, it is important that you use a turf that has been designed for cricket and not one that is a compromise for all surfaces that cater to ball bounce sports.

A specialised cricket turf assures you of enhanced longevity and durability, is an all-weather surface and very high on performance. It provides a consistent ball bounce, is accredited by the cricketing sports body and when can resume play immediately after rain fall.

Equally important is the fact that it prepares the athlete for matches on the professional level and is ideal to not just improve your game but also give the much needed practice and confidence.

Cricket is a sport which requires adequate ball bounce on its surface. Whether a pacer is pitching the ball short or a spinner is lobbing the ball high to induce the batsman to come forward and miss the line of the ball – you need a surface that has adequate ball bounce regardless of pace or spin. Specialised, standalone cricket pitches are designed in such a way that they replicate the original cricket pitches, without the need for maintenance. Look for cricket turf which are densely stitched, have a short pile height, robust backing and playable all year round. .

Recommended surface on which a cricket turf should be put would be concrete, but you can also put it on asphalt and wood.

You need land, be it on ground level or on rooftop level, with enough space for half a cricket wicket to be placed in the middle with a small run-up for the bowler and some space behind the wicket for the wicketkeeper. You would need to install a fence with nets so that the ball doesn’t go out of play and it is safe for spectators. The options of lights also works well for extended hours of play and the outfield should be such that the ball can race to the boundary, yet, it should be shock-absorbing so that the athlete can dive without the worry of injury. Usually, the cricket turf is specialised and it is surrounded by a mid-pile football turf for the outfield. .

Genuine cricket turf, that can withstand the vigours of consistent play, extreme weather conditions and professionally made, would be in the range of Rs. 160 to Rs. 240 per sqft.

An ideal size would be minimum 100’ x 50’ so that there is enough to install half a cricket wicket with there being space for a bowler’s run-up and space behind for a wicketkeeper. However, anything above 3,500 sqft can work as well.

One has to be mindful of the land parcel, especially the dimensions. It should not be too narrow or too square. Adequate funds should be available to set up the facility and the same should be set up in a place which can draw crowds so that the revenue is enough to make the business not just viable, but profitable as well.

Artificial turf for cricket has consistent bounce, is great for spin as well, is hard-wearing and extremely durable. It is also virtually maintenance free and the surface is all-weather and can be immediately played upon right after rainfall. Even when it comes to cost, it is cheaper than any other surface owing to its various qualities as mentioned. However, you need to be looking for a specialised turf for cricket specifically.

You can change the game format and accommodate it to whatever area is available for you for indoor cricket and this could define a full cricket wicket or half a cricket wicket. Otherwise, a recommended size would be 100’ x 50’.

The thumb rule for setting up a turf for cricket cum futsal would range approximately from 10 lacs to 15 lacs and this depends on the existing base, ground conditions, accessibility, fence height and type and also the number of light fixtures.

You need a product that not only has a very short pile height but one that is also densely stitched so that there are no gaps in the turf – otherwise, both spin and bounce will get affected. So if you have anything more than 9mm in pile height, chances are that it will not only impact the leather ball, but will not be suited for professional play.

You need an outfield that is cushioned, yet, the ball should be able to race to the boundary. This implies that you need a product that has a medium pile height both in terms of payer safety and gameplay. If it is a non-infill turf in the outfield, you would need a pile height of 30mm and if it is an outfield that requires infill, then you are looking at a pile height of 40mm.

One needs to understand “expense.” A quality turf that gives the same high level of play, day after day, year after year, with little need for replacement or maintenance, is actually cheaper than any other surface. When the athlete gets the same level of play every time, it makes the entire experience of the sport spectacular. One needs to look at cost of the surface over a period of time to actually comprehend that a premium product, made specifically for the sport, is actually more pocket-friendly and this works out to actually become a low expense investment over the life cycle of the venue.

A specialised cricket turf, between 7mm and 9mm in pile height, densely stitched and meant exclusively for cricket with a leather ball is the product you should be looking for and it should be a non-infill product and direct stuck on the surface.

While there are products that have been certified for a cricket outfield (Cricket Australia has certified TigerTurf) you need to look at an outfield that is both fast and cushioned. In case it is a full-sized field, drainage would be equally important. So, you need the athlete to dive without the fear of injury and, at the same time, you also want the ball to race to the boundary.

Yes, definitely and these dimensions are not narrow and neither are they totally square so there is enough for a cricket cum futsal turf.

For the ball to bounce, or turn, the cricket pitch in the centre has to be a specialised cricket turf. Apart from that, the football turf as an outfield is fine for cricket.

Of course. Using lights gives you longer hours of play and usually the weather in the evening/at night is also much cooler.

Gluing down the cricket surface on a prepared base usually takes around 4 hours. However, if you need to prepare the base afresh, that would take about 4 to 6 days and then you would also need to leave it to cure for anything between 2 to 3 weeks.