你必須知道什麼是烤餅才能了解板球

一隻名叫拉斐爾的俏皮忍者神龜曾經說過，“你必須知道烤餅是什麼才能理解板球”，然後他的外殼就發出了歡呼。

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Raphael once quipped, “You gotta know what a crumpet is to understand cricket,” before getting his shell whooped.

忍者龜拉斐爾曾經打趣道，“你必須知道烤餅是什麼才能理解板球”，然後他的外殼就發出了歡呼。

The sight of Casey Jones sending Raphael airborne with a whack from a cricket bat, on movie screens in 1990, was all I knew about the game.

1990 年的電影銀幕上，凱西瓊斯 (Casey Jones) 用板球棒一擊將拉斐爾 (Raphael) 打飛的場景，就是我對這款遊戲的全部了解。

That all changed after a visit across the pond where I learned the basics of this centuries old game, the second most popular spectator sport in the world, from two English lads, Leo and Rex, who were eager to share their expertise and were hungry for NBA stats.

在一次大洋彼岸的訪問之後，這一切都發生了變化，在那裡我從兩個英國小伙子Leo 和Rex 那裡了解了這項具有數百年曆史的運動的基礎知識，這是世界上第二受歡迎的觀賞性運動，他們渴望分享他們的專業知識，並渴望NBA 統計數據。

The 2024 Cricket World Cup is currently being played in NYC and other cities around the world.

2024 年板球世界盃目前正在紐約和世界其他城市舉行。

If you’re interested in watching the game, learning the basics can be as the greatest detective in the world Sherlock Holmes would put it, “Elementary.” A match, played on a cricket ground, starts with a coin toss. The toss-winning team chooses to either bat or bowl first. Each team consists of 11 players who then take their places either up at bat or out in the oval-shaped field.

如果你有興趣觀看比賽，學習基礎知識就像世界上最偉大的偵探夏洛克福爾摩斯所說的那樣，「初級」。板球場上的比賽以拋硬幣開始。擲球獲勝的隊伍選擇先擊球或先投球。每隊由 11 名球員組成，他們要么在擊球位置上，要么在橢圓形場地上就位。

Two batters stand at either end of a dirt track in the center of the oval called the pitch.

兩名擊球手站在橢圓形中心的一條土道（稱為球場）的兩端。

Their job is to score runs defend the wicket (three wooden sticks), from the bowler (pitcher). The bowler takes a running start, and with a windmill-like arm rotation (you can’t bend your elbow) hurls a hard white, leather-covered ball that’s slightly smaller but harder than a baseball, toward the wicket hoping to strike them off a single bounce past the batter.

他們的工作是得分，保護三柱門（三根木棍），免受投球手（投手）的傷害。投手開始奔跑，以風車般的手臂旋轉（肘部無法彎曲）將一個比棒球略小但堅硬的白色硬球投向三柱門，希望將其擊落一次彈跳超過擊球手。

How do you get an out?

你怎麼出去？

If the bowler was successful that batter is “bowled out” and retired.

如果投球手成功，則擊球手將「出局」並退休。

Bowled is one of ten ways a player can get out. The other two more common ways should sound familiar. They are either caught out, like a fly ball or run out, when a ball in play is returned to the stumps before the batters can successfully change places.

投球是球員出局的十種方式之一。其他兩種更常見的方式聽起來應該很熟悉。當擊球手成功更換位置之前，當比賽中的球返回樹樁時，他們要么像飛球一樣被抓住，要么被跑出。

Bowling is a shared responsibility. A bowler is replaced after delivering six throws which is called an over. In T-20 cricket play is limited to a total of 20 overs per team which equates to the average number of pitches a MLB starter would throw.

保齡球是一項共同的責任。投球手在投出六次球後被替換，稱為輪次。在 T-20 板球比賽中，每隊的投球次數限制為 20 次，相當於 MLB 先發球員投球的平均次數。

Each bowler can only throw a maximum of four overs so a team needs at least five bowlers for each game.

每個投球手最多只能投四輪，因此一支球隊每場比賽至少需要五名投手。

How do you score a run?

你如何得分？

Batters defend the wicket with a wedge shaped bat and try to hit the ball into play and score by running to the other wicket. One run is scored for each successful exchange of batters.

擊球手用楔形球棒防守三柱門，並嘗試將球擊入比賽並跑向另一個三柱門得分。每次成功交換擊球手即可得分一分。

If the batter swung for the fences and the ball reached the boundary an automatic four runs are awarded. If the ball flies over the boundary and out of play six runs are awarded. These two situations don’t require the batters to run.

如果擊球手擊向圍欄並且球到達邊界，則自動獲得四分。如果球飛過邊界並退出比賽，則獎勵六分。這兩種情況都不需要擊球手跑動。

How do you win in Cricket?

如何在板球比賽中獲勝？

The team at bat puts up as many runs as they can before the limit of 20 overs is reached or 10 batters are called out by the umpire, whichever comes first. Then the opposing team takes their turn and tries to beat the score marked in the first inning.

在達到 20 輪的限製或裁判宣布 10 名擊球手出局之前（以先到者為準），擊球方應盡可能得分。然後對方球隊輪流嘗試打破第一局的比數。

What’s the difference between regular Cricket and T20?

普通板球和 T20 有什麼區別？

The shortest form of cricket is known as Twenty20, where each team gets 20 overs to bat. T20 is more comparable in duration to an MLB game.

最短的板球形式被稱為“Twenty20”，每支球隊有 20 輪擊球機會。 T20 的持續時間與 MLB 比賽更具可比性。

In comparison to Test Cricket, which can see matches lasting north of seven hours and spans over multiple days.

與測試板球比賽相比，測試板球比賽可以持續七個小時以上並跨越多天。

If you don’t have that kind of attention span, T20 may be more appealing.

如果你沒有那種注意力持續時間，T20 可能會更有吸引力。

While there’s a bit of a learning curve, the world’s most popular game could certainly be worth learning more about.

雖然有一點學習曲線，但世界上最受歡迎的遊戲絕對值得更多地了解。