Union City Cricket Showcase May 31, 2009

Union City's Cricket Showcase at Sea Breeze Park's cricket ground includes free cricket clinics for all ages (10 a.m.), a women's cricket clinic (11 a.m.), and a noon exhibition cricket match between the East Bay Cricket Club and the Valley Cricketers.

Jiminy. That's a lot of cricket!

Part of the Union City 50th Anniversary Sports Festival Showcase, the May 31 event "is a hat-trick for us," said Sonny Singh of the East Bay Cricket Club. "We're tickled to teach others about the sport we love, play an exhibition match, and help Union City celebrate its half century."

"Cricket is played in more than 100 countries around the world, and is the national sport of countries ranging from Bangladesh to Barbados," added City Recreation Supervisor Larry Orozco. "What better place to hold an exhibition than in one of the Bay Area's most diverse communities."

The Twenty20 match will be a sight to see! Don't worry if you are unfamiliar with the game. It involves two teams, bats, balls, fielders, innings and even pinch hitters - how hard can it be to figure out? There are also pitches, swings and strikes, although they don't mean what the typical American might think.

You needn't understand terms such as stumps, mullygrubbers, ferrets, googlies and silly midwickets to enjoy the game. Being an English sport, it breaks for tea instead of a 7th inning stretch, and if you order a Manhattan you'll get a score card.

Furthermore, it's the batter who wears a glove, the pitcher is really a bowler, throwing is illegal, the ball is supposed to bounce before it gets to the batter, and the tail usually has a rabbit, rather than the other way around.

Whether or not you understand the sport, you simply must attend the event. To miss it just wouldn't be cricket.

Free.

Official Website: http://www.unioncity50.com/Events/sport.htm