Silly Point
July 2, 2013 9:27 AM Subscribe
Very well executed.
posted by pulposus at 9:36 AM on July 2, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by pulposus at 9:36 AM on July 2, 2013 [1 favorite]
You know what's odd about cricket? There are not any actual crickets involved. What's up with that??
posted by HuronBob at 9:40 AM on July 2, 2013
posted by HuronBob at 9:40 AM on July 2, 2013
Watching the British comment on Baseball is also hilarious.
posted by mhoye at 9:40 AM on July 2, 2013 [13 favorites]
posted by mhoye at 9:40 AM on July 2, 2013 [13 favorites]
And just to complete the cycle, if Americans commentated soccer.
posted by 2bucksplus at 9:43 AM on July 2, 2013 [24 favorites]
posted by 2bucksplus at 9:43 AM on July 2, 2013 [24 favorites]
Howzat?
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 9:49 AM on July 2, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 9:49 AM on July 2, 2013 [1 favorite]
Really higlights the differences between our two cultures.
There is a stately elegance we seem to have lost in America, with out 24 hour drive-throughs and our gaudy big box chains. We want things fast and cheap and our sports unfortunately reflect that.
I say we eliminate running from baseball. Have the players to perambulate the base paths. Sweaters would be a nice touch too.
posted by Ad hominem at 9:52 AM on July 2, 2013 [2 favorites]
There is a stately elegance we seem to have lost in America, with out 24 hour drive-throughs and our gaudy big box chains. We want things fast and cheap and our sports unfortunately reflect that.
I say we eliminate running from baseball. Have the players to perambulate the base paths. Sweaters would be a nice touch too.
posted by Ad hominem at 9:52 AM on July 2, 2013 [2 favorites]
Damn it.
That has nothing to do with Americans, that's a clip from the Dutch satirical comedy programme Jiskefet as also explained the last time this clip was linked in comments to the "guy who doesn't know baseball comments on a game" thread.
It's what cricket looks like to Jan Kees, not bloody yankies.
posted by MartinWisse at 9:55 AM on July 2, 2013 [23 favorites]
That has nothing to do with Americans, that's a clip from the Dutch satirical comedy programme Jiskefet as also explained the last time this clip was linked in comments to the "guy who doesn't know baseball comments on a game" thread.
It's what cricket looks like to Jan Kees, not bloody yankies.
posted by MartinWisse at 9:55 AM on July 2, 2013 [23 favorites]
Y'know, I bet a small team game like this where you compete to roll a hoop on target in order to gain turns on a chessboard or three would actually be really fun. Maybe the chessboards represent team members, and when one is won, the opposing team has to drop a member.
posted by lucidium at 9:57 AM on July 2, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by lucidium at 9:57 AM on July 2, 2013 [1 favorite]
I think this might actually be more like what Americans think cricket is. It's certainly exactly what this American thinks cricket is.
posted by Copronymus at 9:58 AM on July 2, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by Copronymus at 9:58 AM on July 2, 2013 [3 favorites]
The ref looks a bit casual about his job. The one guy I knew who refereed cricket had to wear a white hat and carry a rulebook as thick as the Bible.
posted by springload at 10:00 AM on July 2, 2013
posted by springload at 10:00 AM on July 2, 2013
Sadly, when I try to talk to people in America about cricket, they think I'm talking about this. I'm not kidding.
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 10:04 AM on July 2, 2013
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 10:04 AM on July 2, 2013
When I visited Australia I watched some cricket and found it incomprehensible and dull...but then again I watch golf on TV so there will be no stones thrown by me.
posted by The Card Cheat at 10:06 AM on July 2, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by The Card Cheat at 10:06 AM on July 2, 2013 [1 favorite]
Dutch or not, it does a pretty good job approximating the view of cricket from this side of the pond. Missing two key elements, however:
1) numerical interjections in a seemingly random string ("129 for 4! 57! Six stone! Nine overs! 29 for 6! Gone for 4!")
2) at least one explosive celebration of victory after the guy with the pipe goes into the change room or whatever.
(The pipe was, in any case, a lovely touch.)
posted by gompa at 10:06 AM on July 2, 2013 [3 favorites]
1) numerical interjections in a seemingly random string ("129 for 4! 57! Six stone! Nine overs! 29 for 6! Gone for 4!")
2) at least one explosive celebration of victory after the guy with the pipe goes into the change room or whatever.
(The pipe was, in any case, a lovely touch.)
posted by gompa at 10:06 AM on July 2, 2013 [3 favorites]
Cricket: As explained to a foreigner...
You have two sides, one out in the field and one in. Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out. When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side thats been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out. Sometimes you get men still in and not out.
When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in. There are two men called umpires who stay all out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out.
When both sides have been in and all the men have out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game!
posted by adamvasco at 10:08 AM on July 2, 2013 [11 favorites]
You have two sides, one out in the field and one in. Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out. When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side thats been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out. Sometimes you get men still in and not out.
When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in. There are two men called umpires who stay all out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out.
When both sides have been in and all the men have out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game!
posted by adamvasco at 10:08 AM on July 2, 2013 [11 favorites]
I swear I've seen this on Metafilter before. It's well over a year old.
Anyway, here's what baseball looks like to me.
posted by Decani at 10:09 AM on July 2, 2013 [2 favorites]
Anyway, here's what baseball looks like to me.
posted by Decani at 10:09 AM on July 2, 2013 [2 favorites]
Cricket is akin to a much larger-scale version of Mornington Crescent and anyone who tells you different is either naive or else in on it.
posted by Navelgazer at 10:13 AM on July 2, 2013 [5 favorites]
posted by Navelgazer at 10:13 AM on July 2, 2013 [5 favorites]
Okay, that was wonderful. Thank you for the much-needed laugh.
posted by jbickers at 10:18 AM on July 2, 2013
posted by jbickers at 10:18 AM on July 2, 2013
I swear I've seen this on Metafilter before. It's well over a year old.
It was originally broadcast sometime in the early to mid-nineties, so yeah. Personally I got a lot of milage out of it when the Dutch team of amateurs beat the English at the 20/20 tournament in 2009.
posted by MartinWisse at 10:20 AM on July 2, 2013
It was originally broadcast sometime in the early to mid-nineties, so yeah. Personally I got a lot of milage out of it when the Dutch team of amateurs beat the English at the 20/20 tournament in 2009.
posted by MartinWisse at 10:20 AM on July 2, 2013
Everything I know about cricket I learned from reading Life, the Universe, and Everything. So I know it involves a bowler, a batsman, a tri-footed wicket, ashes (for some reason), and a spaceship that looks like a quaint Italian bistro.
posted by Atom Eyes at 10:21 AM on July 2, 2013 [8 favorites]
posted by Atom Eyes at 10:21 AM on July 2, 2013 [8 favorites]
I once spent three days doing essentially nothing but sitting in a hotel lobby watching a cricket match. (Several cricket matches? I don't even know.) There were other people in the hotel lobby who were fans and they tried to explain to me what was happening.
At the end of those three days I still had no idea what the rules of cricket were.
posted by gerstle at 10:22 AM on July 2, 2013
At the end of those three days I still had no idea what the rules of cricket were.
posted by gerstle at 10:22 AM on July 2, 2013
Cricket: As explained to a foreigner...
Thank you so much, adamvasco. I get it now.
posted by desjardins at 10:22 AM on July 2, 2013
Thank you so much, adamvasco. I get it now.
posted by desjardins at 10:22 AM on July 2, 2013
ashes (for some reason)
Oh man. The Ashes. That's the ultimate example of how the English can invent a sport, but can't bloody play it. The Ashes date back to 1882, when an Australian cricket team beat an English on an English ground and The Sporting Times printed an obituary for English cricket.
To compare: Rugby League as a sport only dates back to 1895, the International Rugby Board (rugby union) to 1886 and the English football league was formed in 1888. English cricket has been in decline for longer than many other sports have actually existed.
posted by MartinWisse at 10:50 AM on July 2, 2013 [2 favorites]
Oh man. The Ashes. That's the ultimate example of how the English can invent a sport, but can't bloody play it. The Ashes date back to 1882, when an Australian cricket team beat an English on an English ground and The Sporting Times printed an obituary for English cricket.
To compare: Rugby League as a sport only dates back to 1895, the International Rugby Board (rugby union) to 1886 and the English football league was formed in 1888. English cricket has been in decline for longer than many other sports have actually existed.
posted by MartinWisse at 10:50 AM on July 2, 2013 [2 favorites]
Everything this American knowns about cricket he learned from Raphael and Casey Jones.
posted by namewithoutwords at 10:54 AM on July 2, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by namewithoutwords at 10:54 AM on July 2, 2013 [2 favorites]
I've seen this on MeFi before. It annoyed me then, and it annoys me still. Cricket really isn't that incomprehensible, and anyway, even if it is, there's a profound measure of intellectual joy in repeatedly watching a sport which starts off unfamiliar and slowly though patience and perseverance becomes more and more understandable. I lived in the States for two years, and didn't really know a great deal about baseball when I arrived beyond the basic rules, but I listened to ballgames on the radio, sat and watched them on TVs in bars, and caught a bus out to a nearby town where AAA ball was played, and via concentration and beer, what had initially been a relatively abstract spectacle of throwing and hitting and running became over the course of some months something that was beautiful and absorbing to spectate. I love sport, I love learning about sport, but more than anything, I bloody love cricket. It's been knocked around a bit in recent years, and it really doesn't need the reputation for abstruseness and opacity that it carries around with it. Sure it can be hard, and matches can frequently be long (and thus contain longueurs), but in our world of drive-by culture and instant gratification, surely we need more of the five-days-worth-of-absorbing-and-gripping-spectacle, and not less.
Having said all of that, Groucho Marx's day-trip to Lords raised quite a smile ("He noticed the small crowd in front of the Tavern, and asked if that was where they put the dead bodies"). And Grantland ran a very long but wonderful piece which essentially becomes about the madness of watching India v Pakistan at the World Cup as your first ever cricket spectating experience.
posted by hydatius at 11:42 AM on July 2, 2013 [8 favorites]
Having said all of that, Groucho Marx's day-trip to Lords raised quite a smile ("He noticed the small crowd in front of the Tavern, and asked if that was where they put the dead bodies"). And Grantland ran a very long but wonderful piece which essentially becomes about the madness of watching India v Pakistan at the World Cup as your first ever cricket spectating experience.
posted by hydatius at 11:42 AM on July 2, 2013 [8 favorites]
The important thing to understand about cricket is that it's essentially a board-game, and I say that as a professional game designer and a member of the MCC.
posted by Hogshead at 3:15 PM on July 2, 2013
posted by Hogshead at 3:15 PM on July 2, 2013
The important thing to understand about cricket is that it's essentially a board-game, and I say that as a professional game designer and a member of the MCC.
*Ahem*
We played Wicketz growing up - here is a PDF of the rules.
posted by dumdidumdum at 3:32 PM on July 2, 2013
*Ahem*
We played Wicketz growing up - here is a PDF of the rules.
posted by dumdidumdum at 3:32 PM on July 2, 2013
Cricket really isn't that incomprehensible, and anyway, even if it is, there's a profound measure of intellectual joy in repeatedly watching a sport which starts off unfamiliar and slowly though patience and perseverance becomes more and more understandable.
I was all ready to gently razz you, but then you went ahead and showed how open-minded you are about American sports. I get tired of hearing uninformed Euros trash American football, so I can definitely relate to your irritation.
posted by Edgewise at 4:12 PM on July 2, 2013
I was all ready to gently razz you, but then you went ahead and showed how open-minded you are about American sports. I get tired of hearing uninformed Euros trash American football, so I can definitely relate to your irritation.
posted by Edgewise at 4:12 PM on July 2, 2013
I think it's funny that around the 45 second mark I thought, GOD THIS IS TOO LONG AND SLOW. But it works best if you watch the whole thing. My favourite parts are the mumbled bits that sound like English but are surely just a jumble of syllables.
I was under the impression that a very important part of cricket is having sandwiches and a pint, and god am I hungry.
When I was in university (in Canada), my boyfriend was on the cricket team. I went to a lot of the games and by far my favourite part was the elaborate spreads for the luncheon break in the middle. No sports really interest me, but it's hard to complain about a day out sitting beside a grassy field and snacking on olives and nice cheese. I never really gained an understanding of the game, but I did eventually learn a passable (perhaps they were just being nice) bowl.
posted by looli at 4:41 PM on July 2, 2013
I was under the impression that a very important part of cricket is having sandwiches and a pint, and god am I hungry.
When I was in university (in Canada), my boyfriend was on the cricket team. I went to a lot of the games and by far my favourite part was the elaborate spreads for the luncheon break in the middle. No sports really interest me, but it's hard to complain about a day out sitting beside a grassy field and snacking on olives and nice cheese. I never really gained an understanding of the game, but I did eventually learn a passable (perhaps they were just being nice) bowl.
posted by looli at 4:41 PM on July 2, 2013
Metafilter: really isn't that incomprehensible, and anyway, even if it is, there's a profound measure of intellectual joy
Certainly in the topsy turvy world of posting and comments, having a good solid piece of wood in your hand is quite often useful.
posted by Smedleyman at 4:56 PM on July 2, 2013
Certainly in the topsy turvy world of posting and comments, having a good solid piece of wood in your hand is quite often useful.
posted by Smedleyman at 4:56 PM on July 2, 2013
OK, I've watched the video, but how does it lower my mobile rates?
posted by dhartung at 5:25 PM on July 2, 2013
posted by dhartung at 5:25 PM on July 2, 2013
I was wondering what this was. It's playing on television when Jonah Hill wakes up in his hotel room in London.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 6:18 PM on July 2, 2013
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 6:18 PM on July 2, 2013
I assume Bunny Ultramod is referring to Get Him to the Greek but I like to imagine it's just, you know, in general. Jonah Hill wakes up in London and there's an understanding that this will be on television. Or perhaps a newfangled superstition, like, "You see this clip on television, Jonah Hill just woke up in a hotel room in London..."
posted by Navelgazer at 6:23 PM on July 2, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Navelgazer at 6:23 PM on July 2, 2013 [1 favorite]
Here's everything this American knows about cricket and why it's AWESOME.
posted by Huck500 at 6:33 PM on July 2, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Huck500 at 6:33 PM on July 2, 2013 [1 favorite]
Cricket really isn't that incomprehensible
Lovely googly, Tony, but this pitch really isn't coming on.
Yes, Richie, and a late cut's seen that off to deep backward square leg.
They need another slip.
Yes, a short leg wouldn't hurt, either.
What's he doing out on the square leg boundary, anyway?
Lucky that he was, Richie, just the single.
Mix up with the call there. And that's the over. Two for twenty two.
posted by obiwanwasabi at 3:13 AM on July 3, 2013
Lovely googly, Tony, but this pitch really isn't coming on.
Yes, Richie, and a late cut's seen that off to deep backward square leg.
They need another slip.
Yes, a short leg wouldn't hurt, either.
What's he doing out on the square leg boundary, anyway?
Lucky that he was, Richie, just the single.
Mix up with the call there. And that's the over. Two for twenty two.
posted by obiwanwasabi at 3:13 AM on July 3, 2013
I found Australian Rules Football to be quite a bit more incomprehensible than cricket. Cricket mainly makes sense once you know the rules. AFL I still couldn't really follow except the goal scoring.
posted by smackfu at 5:23 AM on July 3, 2013
posted by smackfu at 5:23 AM on July 3, 2013
No break for lunch and the umpire has a whistle? That's just not cricket.
posted by mosessis at 6:16 AM on July 3, 2013
posted by mosessis at 6:16 AM on July 3, 2013
cricket comes off as mystifying and utterly frustrating to understand, and yet it feels like it really should not be. (and that feeling makes it all the more frustrating)
if you read Adams, Jerome, Willis, Wodehouse, etc. it will really just make it worse. (likely because they are mostly making jokes or satire rather than proper/accessible descriptions). watching actual cricket will also quite likely make it worse.
but
if you watch Bodyline and/or Lagaan, it will all suddenly make sense.
posted by dorian at 7:08 AM on July 3, 2013 [1 favorite]
if you read Adams, Jerome, Willis, Wodehouse, etc. it will really just make it worse. (likely because they are mostly making jokes or satire rather than proper/accessible descriptions). watching actual cricket will also quite likely make it worse.
but
if you watch Bodyline and/or Lagaan, it will all suddenly make sense.
posted by dorian at 7:08 AM on July 3, 2013 [1 favorite]
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posted by Blasdelb at 9:32 AM on July 2, 2013 [7 favorites]