Cricket’s exact history is still obscured by mystery, but it is largely accepted that it started in England in the late medieval era.
King Edward III outlawed “pila baculorea” or “club ball,” a game that resembled cricket, in 1369 because he thought it would hinder his attempts to win the war.
A Social History of English Cricket by Derek Birley claims that the game purportedly came to England with the French during the Norman Invasion. According to legend, the French name “criquet” alluded to a form of club ball, the same game that Edward III wished to ban.
The phrase “creag,” which could be connected to the word “creaget,” is mentioned in the Royal Wardrobe Accounts, which date back to 1299–1300. Prince Edward II is said to have participated in “creag” and other games.
However, there is not enough proof to prove a direct relationship between “creag” and “criquet.” The connections between them are too flimsy, and historical accounts from that time period seldom ever refer to games unless they included nobles or were intended to be eradicated because of a supposedly deteriorating moral climate.
Cricket was played for the first time in history by schoolboys in Guildford in the sixteenth century. The game is also mentioned in an Italian-English dictionary from 1598.