Photo: Milwaukee Panthers Cricket Club - Facebook

There’s a distinct crack of the bat and plenty of cheering on Saturday and Sunday afternoons in Tippecanoe Park. However, the roar isn’t coming from the softball diamond, but rather the strip of artificial turf in the middle of the grass field. The Milwaukee Panthers Cricket Club are hosting a cricket match, and they’re growing the game in Southeastern Wisconsin as well.

Founded in 2009, the club was one of just a handful of teams that made up the Milwaukee Regal T20 Cricket League, which operates out of Lindsay Park on the city’s North Side, as well as Lincoln Park on west Villard Ave. The Panthers, who are the defending champions of the Regal League, are also members of the Midwest Cricket Conference, and play their home matches at Tippecanoe Park. They are the only Wisconsin team in the league, which plays largely in the Chicagoland area. Captain Rizwan Arshad remembers the humble Milwaukee beginnings of the game, which has a major international following but has yet to truly catch on in the United States.

“When I first started playing in the mid ‘90s, there was one team in Milwaukee” recalls Arshad. “It was started with guys from the West Indies, Jamaica and Guyana, who formed it as far back as the ‘70s. We used to have to play in Chicago, because there were no other teams here.”

Photo: Milwaukee Panthers Cricket Club - Facebook

Locally, the growth of cricket can be seen in the number of pitches and clubs popping up in Milwaukee County. The Regal League began their 2022 season in April, with 11 participating teams. The league will have multiple matches every weekend at both of their home grounds through July, before the playoffs begin in August. For the Midwest Cricket Conference circuit, the Milwaukee Panthers have two home matches remaining, on July 24 and August 21 at 10 a.m., but the team will travel to play matches against the league’s 15 other members until the end of August, with that postseason beginning in September.

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If you’ve never watched, the rules of cricket are not terribly complex compared to traditional baseball. The objective for the batter is to score runs by hitting the ball over the boundary, with four runs for the going over on the ground or six (called a maximum) if it goes over in the air. Batters also score runs by running back and forth between wooden stakes (called wickets) before the ball is returned by the fielders. Rather than three outs in baseball, an innings ends when all 10 batters are out, either by a caught ball or when a fielder breaks the wicket before a batter has reached the batting area safely.

Each bowler (similar to a pitcher) only delivers six balls consecutively, which is called an over. The Panthers play T20 cricket in the Regal League, and T30 in the Midwest Cricket Conference, meaning the game is limited 20 and 30 overs per side. Unlike some forms of the game, a typical T20 or T30 match can be completed in a few hours. It also makes for a more manageable watch for those who are curious about taking in a match.

For those interested in learning to play the game, Arshad and the Panthers are very welcoming to new players. He hosts coaching sessions for beginners and lists his contact information on the club’s Facebook page. “We always welcome the neighborhood and people who are interested in cricket” said Arshad. “Everybody is welcome to watch the match and have lunch with us.”

For more information about the Milwaukee Panthers Cricket Club, be sure to visit their Facebook page, or the Regal T20 League page on CricClubs.com.

Allen Halas is a life-long Milwaukeean, and has been in and around local music for over 15 years. He is an avid Milwaukee Bucks follower, and general supporter of all that the city has to offer. Find him on social media: @AllenHalas.

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