Cricket

Cricket is a quick batting game. You stand at the crease, a bowler runs in, and you have a fraction of a second to decide what to do with the ball. Hit it well and it races to the rope for four, or sails into the crowd for six. Get it wrong and you hear the stumps rattle. A match takes a minute or two.

How to play

• Tap anywhere on the field (or press Space) to swing. Contact happens a moment after your tap, so tap just before the ball reaches the bat.
• A yellow ring flashes on the pitch just before each delivery. That is where the ball will bounce, so you can tell a full ball from a short one.
• Choose where to hit with the Leg, Auto and Off buttons, or with the left and right arrow keys. Auto plays with the line of the ball.
• Switch on Loft (the up arrow key does it too) to hit over the fielders. You can also flick up, left or right as you tap to change a single shot.
• You can leave a ball, as long as it isn't going on to hit the stumps.

Timing

After every shot a meter shows how close you were. Perfect timing sends the ball exactly where you aimed with full power: a lofted perfect shot clears the rope, a perfect ground shot beats the inner fielders. Good timing still goes your way, with a little less on it. Early means you were through the shot too soon, and the ball skews off to the leg side, often straight up in the air. Late means the ball took the edge: it might run down to third man, fly to the keeper, or drag back onto your stumps. Miss completely and a straight ball is bowled.

Know the bowling

The bowlers mix it up as you climb the levels. Pace comes at you straight and quick. Swing curves in the air, so watch the ball, not the hand. Spin is slower and turns after it bounces. A bouncer rears up at head height: loft it to hook for six, because keeping it down often ends in a top edge. A yorker lands at your toes and is the hardest ball to time. The slower ball comes from the same run-up with much less speed, so players who tap on rhythm are early.

Modes

Super Over gives you six balls and two wickets to chase a target. Win and you climb the ladder to a bigger target and tougher bowling. Endless lets you bat until three wickets fall while the bowling gets faster. The Daily Challenge is the same two overs and the same target for every player that day. Win it on consecutive days to build a streak. Fielders stand in fixed spots, so find the gaps: straight, between cover and mid-off, and square. Your highest score, sixes, best level and longest six are saved in this browser.