Test Match (board game)

Test Match refers to two cricket-themed board games. Both are distinct from table-top football game Subbuteo's cricket variation.[1]

John Waddington version

The first version was first published in 1955 by John Waddington Limited in the United Kingdom and John Sands Pty. Ltd. in Australia.[2]

Russell Jackson notes that "you pulled on a couple of cardboard tabs to randomly generate a type of delivery before your batting opponent did the same on the other end of the board, but if you were a genuinely competitive player, the reliance on luck over skill would eventually start to grate."[3]

The original game depends entirely by chance, and is similar in principle to pencil cricket.

Crown and Andrews version

A three-dimensional version was released by Crown and Andrews in the 1977. It was originally made by Peter Pan.[1] The figurines came unpainted allowing for the caps or shirts to be painted in the player's favourite colours.[4] The game involves one player rolling a ball-bearing down a plastic chute attached to a plastic bowler, while another player operates the batter.[4][5] Fielders catch the ball by stopping it between their feet.[1] According to Jackson, this is "the greatest cricket board game of all time."[3]

In 2010 Crown and Andrews introduced Test Match Ashes Edition with rules for limited overs and Twenty20 variations. New features included: over arm bowling with controllable speed; a bouncing ball; the batsman used a trigger action; and the fielders included magnets to attract the magnetised ball. The recommended retail price was A$59.99 (equivalent to $79.47 in 2022).[6]

Test Match is Crown and Andrews' most popular game,[7] despite producing various sports games.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b c Turbervill, Huw; Morshead, Sam; Patel, Shamir; Blow, Thomas; Friend, Nick (2020-05-01). "11 Crickety things to do in the Corona Crisis". Cricketer. 100 (2): 40–45.
  2. ^ "2003/102/9 Board game with packaging, cricket, "Test Match", cardboard / metal, John Sands Pty Ltd, Australia, [1955]". Powerhouse Museum. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  3. ^ a b Jackson, Russell (9 December 2013). "The Joy of Six: Cricket board games and video games". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  4. ^ a b Patel, Shamir (April 2017). "Six of the best". Cricketer. 14 (7): 22–22.
  5. ^ Hogg, Nicholas (4 November 2014). "Dear West Indies cricket". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  6. ^ "Xmas gift guide". Inside Cricket (ACP Publishing PTY Limited): 96–97. December 2010.
  7. ^ Ham, Larissa (1 August 2009). "She stuck with her game plan". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2025-12-31.
  8. ^ Humphries, Glen (30 June 2001). "Not just a game; In the world of board games, competition is cutthroat. GLEN HUMPHRIES meets the people who regard them as more than child's play". Illawarra Mercury. Retrieved 2025-12-31.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.