Summary

Cricket ball, used in cricket games with visually impaired players by people who lived or were educated at the Royal Victorian Institute for the Blind. It is made of plaited strips of willow, wound together and bound with wire in two places and is lighter than a conventional cricket ball. The hollow centre of the ball contains metal pieces which rattle as the ball is moved to aid players in tracking the ball's movement.

Blind cricket was invented in Melbourne in 1922 when two blind factory workers started playing a game using a tin can containing rocks. The game soon gained popularity and the Victorian Blind Cricketers' Association was formed. Without a sport ground, the group approached the Association for the Advancement for the Blind for assistance. Land was purchased at Kooyong, a suburb of Melbourne, and in 1928 play began on the world's first sports ground for blind cricketers, in the first official blind cricket match. Blind cricket is now played internationally.

These cane cricket balls were used in Victorian and Australian Blind Cricket from the 1920s through till 1972. From 1972 to 1974 a red nylon blind cricket ball was used and a black nylon blind cricket ball was adopted in 1974, it was used until the end of the 2002/2003 season. A hard white plastic ball was adopted in 2003.

Physical Description

Cricket ball made of plaited strips of willow wound together and bound with wire in two places. The hollow centre contains metal pieces which rattle as the ball is moved.

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