On Friday, the city unveiled three fields — er, pitches — dedicated solely to cricket. It's the other bat-and-ball sport, most popular in Britain and South Asia but with a growing following in the U.S. — including in the Valley. Cricket might not overtake baseball in the hearts and minds of Arizonans — this is the home of spring training, after all — but it's carving a place in the Phoenix sports landscape. Literally.
For the past 20 years, local cricket organizations have been reserving Phoenix's all-purpose fields to play matches, the city said in a press release. No longer. Now, there are three pitches where "players of all ages and skill levels will finally have access to play the game in a proper environment."
The three pitches are at Turtle Rock Basin and Grover's Basin parks, both located off Bell Road in north Phoenix. The city celebrated their opening Friday with a ribbon-cutting by Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego — who also took a swing with a cricket bat — and a demonstration by the North Phoenix Cricket Club at the Turtle Rock Basin pitch.
Take in these photos from the event — and maybe brush up on the rules of cricket afterward.
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego speaks to the crowd at Turtle Rock Basin during the opening ceremony for Phoenix’s first official cricket pitches.
Kevin Hurley
The bowler stands at one end, and the batter at the other. The field of play surrounds them in every direction.
Kevin Hurley
