Tea, Gentility Are Still What’s Cricket, Even in South Bay

Drive past West Torrance High School any summer Sunday afternoon and you’ll see runners circling the track, soccer players kicking spotted balls and probably a couple of pickup baseball games.

You might see people flying kites and dogs chasing Frisbees.

You will definitely see 22 men dressed in cream-colored outfits. There will be a batsman wielding a stick that looks like an oar. You’ll see a bowler take a running start and hurl a hard rubber ball on one bounce to the batsmen, some wearing knee pads and hats resembling a pith helmet with a cage over the face.

These folks are playing cricket, the national game of Great Britain, a passionate endeavor to the players.

West Torrance High is the home field of the South Bay Cricket Club, an organization of two teams that are members of the Southern California Cricket Assn. There are 24 teams in the SCCA with members as far north as Santa Barbara and as far south as San Diego.

The SCCA was formed nearly 70 years ago by actors David Niven and Aubrey Smith, who wanted to retain a piece of their English heritage while living in Hollywood. New teams spring up every year, but the clubs are almost exclusively made up of immigrants.

The English take credit for the formation of the game and passed it on to the colonies of the British Empire. The former colonists took to the game well and have even surpassed the English in terms of cricket supremacy.

The West Indies team is now considered the strongest in the world, while teams from Pakistan, India and Jamaica also seemed to have caught the English.

“The types of players have changed over the years,” said Colin Clayton, the South Bay club’s president. “At one time, the majority of the players were English. But now you see an influx of Indian, Pakistani, West Indian players. Wherever England went, they played cricket, and many of the colonies picked up the game.”

Said Gordon Buck, who joined the South Bay team in 1971, making him the club’s longest-playing member: “Our club used to be primarily English, and whenever we had our breaks or our club functions, we’d have the traditional English food. Now, when we have those type of things, we might have Indian curried chicken or Pakistani food, so it has changed quite a bit.”

Cricket resembles baseball in many aspects, but in many other ways it’s totally different.

The game is played on a level, oval field of grass on which two wickets stand 22 yards apart, about 6 feet farther than the distance between the pitcher’s mound and home plate in baseball.

Each wicket consists of three stumps , about 28 inches high, held together at the top by pieces of wood called bails .

The field or oval measures at least 450 feet, and the action takes place in the middle.

The team at bat posts two batsmen at each wicket. The other team takes positions suitable for stopping or catching the ball, which its pitcher, or bowler, hurls to the batsman on one bounce.

The object, as in baseball, is to score runs while at bat and to prevent the other team from scoring while on defense. The batsman tries to defend the wicket by stopping the thrown ball or driving it into the field. If he sends the ball into the field, he may run to the opposite wicket and change places with the other batsman.

If he arrives before the ball is returned to the bowler, he scores a run. However, he does not have to run if he does not think he can return to the wicket. Therefore, it is not unusual for a batsman to score 100 runs or more while at bat.

A batsman is out if a ball passes his bat and strikes the wicket, if a hit ball is caught on the fly or if the ball is returned before he reaches the wicket.

“The object is very simple. Just score more runs than the other team,” Clayton said. “And, just like baseball, it’s a nice sport, played in summer in nice weather.”

A game consists of two innings, and an inning lasts until 10 players on the batting team have been retired.

The red cricket ball is a cross between a baseball and croquet ball, measuring 9 inches in diameter and weighing about 5 ounces. The bat, about 38 inches long, consists of a paddle-shaped blade attached to a handle.

“The rules are not that difficult, but the strategy and the setting of the defense takes much longer to learn,” said Paul Ryan, the only American member of the South Bay club.

That’s where the similarities between cricket and baseball end, however.

Cricket, the way it used to be played, sometimes took five days to complete, but rules making it easier for the spectator have changed the game somewhat.

Test matches or international matches still take days to complete, often without a result, but the SCCA has placed a time limit on its matches. Now games take no longer than five hours to complete.

“You’ve got to be in love with this game, because if you’re just watching it, you’re going to be bored to death,” said Waseem Najmi, 30, a Pakistan native and member of the South Bay club. “You enjoy the game because it’s in you. That’s all.”

The SCCA illustrates the difference between cricket and baseball on the very first page of its 1988 rule book. The first rule reads, “Any vilification or abuse of an SCCA appointed umpire, knocking down of wickets, throwing of pads or gloves, etc., on the field of play shall be penalized as follows: The player or players responsible will be automatically suspended for three consecutive league games.”

There is no arguing with the umpire, no disputed calls, no rhubarbs. Whatever the umpire rules, goes.

Also, don’t throw your helmet if you make an out.

“It’s more than a game, it’s a way of life,” said Krish Sharma, a native of India who plays with the San Fernando Valley Casuals. “It’s all about fair play and good sportsmanship. Playing as a schoolboy, we were taught that when an umpire makes a call, you’re supposed to smile and walk away.”

Although cricket is an opportunity for some of the players to retain their heritage, many of the expatriates admit they would be playing the game even if they never moved away.

It’s a game that relies less on physical prowess than on strategy and patience. It also transcends the age barrier. Many of the players are older than 35, and some are 60 or older.

“A lot of people can play until they’re 60 or 70,” said Buck, 54, who hails from Yorkshire, England, but has lived in Torrance for more than 20 years. “It just depends on the eyes and reflexes. It’s known as a slow, boring game, but if you play it, you’ll always find something interesting about it.”

Page 3 of the SCCA rule book proves Buck’s point. Rule 5, Section (c) reads: “The home team shall be responsible for the provision of Teas. Teams playing home games on other grounds must check with the opposing captain regarding Tea arrangements.”

No more than three hours into each match, the game is stopped and all the players return to the sidelines for their spot of tea and sandwiches. It’s part of the tradition and heritage of a game that prides itself on its gentility.

“It’s a gentleman’s sport that the colonists picked up from England, and I guess we also picked up the tea drinking,” said Asrar Zubair, a native of Pakistan. “At teatime everybody gets together and forgets about the game for a few minutes.”

Americans have not really taken to the game. It may be too slow for the average fan and often the match ends in a tie, which really rankles the American psyche.

But for those who have been weaned on it, cricket stays in the blood.

One day about 10 years ago, Clayton, 38, was returning home past West Torrance High when he spotted a cricket match going on. His blood began to rise, and a feeling of warmth and security came over him.

He had taken to the States quite well up to that point. He says the radio is tuned to the Dodgers game every time they play, and his 16-year-old son has become Americanized.

But seeing the grand old game of cricket being played across the street from his home warmed his soul.

“I was really amazed when I drove by the school one day and saw guys in white playing cricket,” he said. “I just could not believe they were playing cricket right across the street. It really made me feel good.”

However, there are some problems with cricket in America. Only one sporting-goods store in Southern California carries cricket equipment, so most of the gear must be imported from England and other former colonies.

The cost is quite high: A bat may run close to $200, while pads, masks and balls are also quite expensive.

It’s also difficult to find a field suitable to the game. In England, the game is played on close-cropped grass similar to that of a putting green, which provides a true bounce.

The Woodley field complex in the San Fernando Valley has the best cricket facility in the area, but most games are played on makeshift ovals.

“Really, that’s the worst thing about playing cricket over here,” Clayton said. “The grass here is very springy and rooty, making the bounces unpredictable. It makes it very hard to get someone out here.”

Nonetheless, these expatriates put all the negative aspects of the game behind them. Bolstered by a love of the game that was generated in boyhood and nurtured throughout a lifetime, these players hit the oval every Sunday afternoon to relive their dreams.

“I’ve played the game since I was 5, and I hope to be playing it when I’m 60,” said India native Ashish Vibhakar, 29. “Hopefully, it’s still a gentleman’s game that will always be played in a friendly atmosphere.”