About Cricket

There are a large number of sports that are enjoyed by people across the world including but not limited to cricket, hockey, squash, baseball, basket ball, volleyball, table tennis, football, and badminton etc. irrespective of the sport you prefer, its importance in keeping the mind and body energized and healthy cannot be undermined. On one hand, cricket is the national sports and favorite sport of a large number of nations around the world. On the contrary, a number of nations still find it very puzzling. However, this confusion has been addressed to a large extent because of the advent of the globalization era since various cricket related websites are aiming to fill this information gap.

Cricket is a sport that is played by both children and adults in narrow alleys, corridors, gardens, playgrounds and palatial stadiums. Although it was known as the gentleman's game, a large number of women's teams have been formed and are playing cricket across the world. As mentioned above, cricket is the most popular sport in Asia with India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh being some of the strongest professional cricket teams in the world. Almost all popular teams have won the cricket world cup at one time or another in the past few decades. Each team has a total of eleven players. The players need a cricket kit including but not limited to bats, ball, stumps, knee pads, helmets etc. In certain countries, cricket players are given celebrity status and earn millions of dollars per year in product endorsements etc.

Over the years, this sport has evolved. Before 1990s, cricket used to have a four ball over which was then changed to a six ball over. Eight ball overs were also tried in some countries. Earlier test matches were way more popular than one day matches and Twenty20 cricket which is a more recent phenomenon. Although each country has its own cricket board (such as Pakistan Cricket Board, Board of Control for Cricket in India, Sri Lanka Cricket, and Cricket Australia etc.) to oversee the national team's performance and ensure fair selection processes etc, International Cricket Council (ICC) is the body that performs the same functions at global level.

ICC was founded in 1909 and is responsible for all decisions regarding matches (between international and sometimes national teams), venues for major matches and tournaments like the World Cup etc. There are a number of clubs that play matches against each other often. English county cricket is a classic example of matches played between such clubs.

Cricketmove.com is a place to watch live cricket and to see live cricket score.

Party Themes For 12 Year Olds

Turning 12 years old is something your child looks forward to. It is the period of being in-between. Your child is no longer a child but is also one year shy from becoming a teenager.

Your child will only turn twelve once in his life. Give him a party to celebrate this joyous occasion. It is important that at this age, you ask your child on the kind of party he or she wants. After all, being twelve, the child already had developed his or her own interests. He is old enough to be included in the decision making process of the upcoming party.

Most 12 year old girls would prefer pajama parties or slumber parties for their birthdays. Others will request for a pool party with their classmates and friends. However, there are those who would like to treasure their last day as a child and go for the child-like theme parties.

For pool parties, it will be easier to rent a clubhouse or a hotel as a venue. Ask the guests to bring their own swim wears. And make sure to be compliant to the rules and regulations of the rented venue.

Another idea is to have a beauty pageant theme. The guests can also be the participants of the pageant. At twelve, these girls already love to dress up and starting to develop their own unique identities already.

For boys, here are some party theme ideas. The Knight Party is done in a venue that looks like a castle. Put shield and sword-shaped cut-outs onto the walls, making it look like a castle or a castle hallway. Improvised helmets and shields can be given to guests instead of the traditional party hats. There can also be a cake that resembles a castle with cone-shaped roofs and flags, as well as brick walls.

For activities, you can have a princess or a knight makeover station where guests can come for them to look like a knight in shining armor for the male ones, and a glamorous princess for the females.

The Army Party can resemble a military base or camp site where soldiers train. The wall of the venue is green or camouflaged, similar to the print of a soldier's uniform. You can also use images of bunkers, watchtowers and barbed wires to add to the army or soldier effect. The cake should have a soldier figurine with military vehicle toys or miniature replicas on it.

Guests may wear paper soldier helmets as a replacement for party hats. Roast food similar to what military people eat on camps. Snacks suck as cookies, candies and biscuits can be shaped like bombs, guns or little soldiers. Games may include a crawling race or a tug-o-war. For giveaways, it can be soldier figurines, toy tanks or army badge replicas.

The Airplane Party theme is a good choice for a birthday party for boys. Starting with the invitation, it should appear like an airplane ticket or an airline brochure. The venue's walls should have cloud images to create a sky ambiance. Hang airplane scale models in the ceiling to create an accent and serve as an added attraction for the guests. The cake can be likened to an airplane also, or designed with clouds. You can also serve white cotton candy that looks like clouds. Giveaways can be airplane toy figures or stuffed toys.

For more information on Valentine Party Themes and Disco Party Themes please visit our website.

Field Hockey Warm-Up Drills

Before starting any sports practice or game, you must make sure to run a thorough warm-up that gets players both physically and mentally ready to play. A good warm-up routine includes both a cardiovascular component such as running and a series of stretches that highlight the muscles used most during the sport in question.

The following field hockey warm-up drills are an excellent addition to any warm-up routine since they emphasize the basic skills of the game while getting the joints moving and the blood flowing to avoid later injury.

One thing I've noticed in my years of coaching field hockey is that players hate running laps. So at our field hockey practices we've replaced running laps with a 5-minute long version of freeze tag. Tag is an excellent way to get players running around while keeping their minds more active than if they were simply running laps around the field.

After the cardiovascular section of your warm-up is completed, it is time for the stretching. I like to start off with head rolls and neck stretches and make my way down. If you have no experience leading a stretching routine, don't hesitate to contact other coaches or a certified yoga instruction for some guidance on which stretches are not to be missed for your field hockey team.

Hits and Misses

Once you've finished stretching your team's muscles, it is time to begin the field hockey warm-up drills. When selecting drills for your warm-up, look for simple drills that emphasize the basic skills of the game without pushing players too far--save that for the conditioning drills!

The first warm-up drill I like to use at my field hockey practices is a basic hitting drill, since the hit is hockey's most basic and useful skill. For this hitting drill, I divide my team into partners and have them stand facing each other 10 feet apart to start off with.

When running this and all other warm-up drills, the emphasis is on perfect form. For example, when hitting it is important to make sure the player's hands are firmly together near the top of the stick. Use the hands and wrists to bring the stick backwards, and the goal should be to hit the lower half of the ball when the stick is brought back down. Don't forget to follow though with the stick after the hit is completed. Another thing to remember is to keep the feet parallel to the direction you want the ball to go.

I have my players hit back and forth for 2 minutes at this distance, then I blow my whistle and have each player back up one giant step, repeating this process two more times before moving on to the next drill.

Push Pass Perfection

The next of the field hockey warm-up drills focuses on the push pass, which is a better way than hitting for moving the ball over large distances. Using the same partners as before, have your players stand anywhere from 20 to 40 feet apart and push pass to each other.

The form of the push pass differs slightly from that of the hit. For the push pass, players are to place their left hand near the top of the stick with the right hand further down. Keeping their eye on the ball with their knees bent, players are to shift their weight from the back foot to the front as contact is made with the ball. As with the hit, make sure to follow through completely. The follow through is complete when the stick is pointing towards the direction of the pass.

Blair McKinney has been playing and coaching field hockey for nearly 28 years. You can get instant access to hundreds of field hockey practice plans and drills by visiting Blair's website:

http://www.Field-Hockey-Drills.com

For a limited time, all coaches who visit Blair's site will also get a free copy of his special report: "The 7 Biggest Mistakes Field Hockey Coaches Make".