ক্রিকেট শার্টের পিছনে সংখ্যাগুলি কী বোঝায়
Cricket is a beloved sport for millions around the world. Its complexities, strategical aspects like player decisions and tactical understanding may make it a bit confusing but quite appealing to its followers. One such intriguing aspect that often catches the eye of the spectators is the numbers on their shirt backs.
Numbers are used in many sports to identify individual players. They hold impressive importance as they not only functionally facilitate identification but also emotionally connect with players and fans alike. In cricket, however, these numbers have a unique significance which deviates from other sports norms., Depending on the format of the game or team’s tradition, these back-of-the-shirt numbers can mean totally different things.
The Beginning of Numbers and Names on Cricket Shirts
The cricket world got introduced to numbered shirts in 1997 when English County Championship decided to allow its players to use names and numbers on their jerseys. The idea at that time was primarily to make cricketers more recognizable to viewers both in-ground and watching over television.
This tradition went through various amendments globally until finally reaching its current status. After notable changes in 2003 for the World Cup and 2019 by International Cricket Council (ICC), presently, test cricket players wear shirts displaying names and specific numbers on them.
Reason Behind These Specific Numbers
Many people might think that these shirt numbers represent a cricketer’s position within the playing squad – similar to football or rugby. However, this isn’t true for cricket. Instead, these figures do not characterize any particular strategy or standing positions within the teams; rather, it symbolizes the personal choice of cricketers.
Each player gets an opportunity to pick his desired number anywhere between 1-99 except eight countries including Australia who restricts it between 1-30 while England allows up till 100 excluding ‘0’. Numerous first-class county sides allowed their players tour numbering well before this global adoption.
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Cricketers and Their Number Choice
So, why do cricketers wear these particular numbers? Mostly these are personally significant or associated with a milestone in their professional lives.
For instance, English player Ben Stokes chose 55 as it resembles the ‘SS’ initial of his parents’ names, while Australia’s Glenn Maxwell wears 32 because he used to idolize cricketing legend Shane Warne who also wore the same number during most of his career. The story around numbers selection might be emotional like Moeen Ali choosing 18 due to it being an auspicious figure in Islam.
Power of Numbers Beyond Identification
Cricket shirt numbers go beyond being just a formality or identification mark; they play psychological roles too. At times, players voluntarily switch their numbers believing in improving performances or luck change – connecting it with numerology beliefs.
Swapping often happens if a cricketer considers specific digits unlucky following continuous poor performance running alongside that particular jersey number. IPL witnessed Suresh Raina changing his usual number 48 to 3 hoping for better results which eventually paid off!
The Legacy of Shirt Numbers
These unique stories behind each chosen shirt number make them more than identifiable tags but part of individual and team legacies. This tradition turned into such deep-rooted sentiment within fans and cricketers that some even retire these figures upon their notable squad member retirement as an appreciation for services given to cricket – consider Andrew Flintoff’s ’11’ by Lancashire or Sachin Tendulkar’s ’10’ by Indian cricket board BCCI.
To conclude, having shirts back numbered ended up manifesting more than mere identification markers but bridging personal-life dimensions within Cricket sport boundaries. This single-digit showcasing reflects players’ thought process, personality traits apart from glorifying individual preferences & achievements at the international platform. These numbers, though subtle, add extra charm to the sport while bringing fans closer to their favourite stars.
