In disability cricket, there are a few rules and regulations that are specific to the different impairment groups. Where possible the game is played in accordance with the MCC Laws of Cricket but there are some differences which are detailed below:
Blind Cricket
The cricketers are categorised according to the level of their sight loss.
B1 - no sight up to the ability to see the difference between light and dark.
B2 - from the ability to be able to distinguish the shape of an object held in front of their face, up to, a sight acuity of 2-60. This means that they can see at a range of only two metres, what a fully sighted person can see at 60 metres. Or, they have a field of vision of less than five degrees.
B3 - an acuity of 6-60. They can see at six metres what a fully sighted person can see at 60 metres. Or, a field of vision of less than 20 degrees.
A playing XI must have a minimum of four B1s and a maximum of four B3s. Any category can be replaced by a player of a lower category to make up the XI. There must be a B1, B2 and a B3 player in each cycle of three batsmen where possible.
The ball is made of moulded plastic with steel ball bearings inside to make it rattle. The ball must bounce at least once in each half of the wicket and must be delivered underarm.
A B1 player must have a runner and a B2 player has the option of having a runner if they wish. Each run scored by a B1 player counts as two.
The pitch is of a standard length and the stumps are painted yellow or orange to make them easier to see. Boundaries must be a minimum of 45 metres and a maximum of 55 metres.
Deaf Cricket
To play the international game, all cricketers with a hearing impairment must have a hearing loss of 55 decibels or less in their better ear. To put that in context it means they would be unable to hear an everyday conversation. A lot of the players will use digital hearing aids to help them in their everyday lives, however these must be removed when they take the field.
Learning Disability Cricket
International Learning Disability Sport is overseen by the world governing body of Learning Disability Sport, INAS-FID. INAS rules state that to play sport as an athlete with a Learning Disability you must be able to demonstrate that you have an IQ of 75 or less.
To demonstrate this cricketers undergo an assessment by an Educational Psychologist to ascertain their IQ level and they are then registered with INAS as being able to participate in international sport. The advantage of this system is that it is standard and accepted globally.
At tournaments the documentation of all participants is checked by representatives of both INAS and other participating countries to ensure the system is transparent.
Physical Disability Cricket
At this moment in time there is no recognised international cricket for people with physical disabilities.
One of the barriers that needs to be overcome is the standardising of a classification system that will be accepted globally. It is an extreme example but we need to ensure that someone in a wheelchair isn’t competing against someone who is missing half a finger.
In our domestic structure we have adopted the DSE profiling system for athletes with physical impairments otherwise known as the Coaches Guide to Functional Ability.
This system has served us well for over ten years but it's not perfect and we are currently reviewing this system so that what have is right for cricket going forward.
If you have any questions regarding the classification of any type of disability cricket please speak to one of the officials at the event or direct your question to disabilitycricket@ecb.co.uk.
