The Evolution of Cricket
Snickometer- This technology is used in televising Cricket to graphically analyse sound and video and show the noise frequency to find out whether the ball touched the bat before going to the fielder. It was invented by a British computer scientist in the mid-90s and since then, it has become a key technology to find out if the ball touched bat or not. The Snickometer is frequently used by third umpies to take a decision on a complex catch appeal. If there is a sound of leather on willow, which is usually a short sharp sound in synchrony with the ball passing the bat, then the ball has touched the bat. The shape of the sound waveform helps the third umpire reach a decision. When there is a fat waveform, it means that the bat has touched the ball.
Hot spot- Since there was a controversy whether Snicko was accurate enough, Hot Spot was introduced to cricket. It is an infra-red imaging system used to determine where the ball has struck the bat before going to the fielder.This system shows a bright spot where contact friction from the ball has elevated the local temperature. There are two cameras positioned on the either end of the ground and measures heat friction generated by a collision, such as ball on pad, ball on bat, ball on glove etc.
HawkEye- This technology is not only used in cricket, but quite a few other sports. It is used for visually tracking the ball and displaying a record of its statistical path through movie image. This technology was developed by Dr Paul Hawkins from the UK and the system was originally executed in 2001 for making the television broadcast more interactive. The technology works via six or seven powerful cameras, normally positioned on the underside of the stadium roof, which track the ball from different angles. The video from the cameras is then triangulated and combined to create a three-dimensional representation of the trajectory of the ball. The Hawk Eye technology helps the umpire by watching where the ball pitched, location of impact with the batsman's leg and projected path of the ball past batsman. It helps bowlers to measure and record pace, line, length, deviation, bounce and foot position on bowling crease ball by ball.It also helps the batsman to see whether their shots would have pierced the field, identify which specific deliveries get you in trouble, compare performance against different bowlers, bat in real game scenarios against real field placements, see a 'Wagon Wheel' of shots from the session and confirm whether the batsman is constantly getting to the pitch of the ball. This technology is excellent for cricketers to improve their game by reflecting on their performances, which can be done by this technology.
SpiderCam- The SpiderCam enables film and television cameras to move both vertically and horizontally over a predetermined area, typically the playing field of a sporting event such as a cricket pitch. The SpiderCam operates with four motorised winches positioned at each corner at the base of the covered area, each of which controls a Kevlar cable connected to a gyro-stabilised camera-carrier, or dolly. By controlling the winding and unwinding of the cables, the system allows the dolly to reach any position in the three-dimensional space. The inputs of the SpiderCam "pilot" are processed by a software that forwards the commands to the winches via fibre optic cables. The SpiderCam was first used in the Indian Cricket League followed by the semi finals of 2010 IPL in Champions League Twenty20 in South Africa.
LED Bails- Using LED technology, the Bail glows once anything strikes the wicket/bail. It was developed by Bronte EcKermann, an Australian mechanical industrial designer, and created by South Australian manufacturer Zing International. The LED Bails are an expensive solution to notice falling of the bails.The bails pack a microprocessor and sensor in each bail along with a low voltage battery to determine if the wicket is broken in one thousand fraction of a second. When a third umpire is asked to decide whether it is a run out or not, this technology really helps them.
​​​Bowling Machine- A bowling machine enables batsmen to practice for hours and hours at a specific shot that they want to work on. One can choose the line, length,speed, turn and swing of the ball. This technology has brought cricket practice for batsmen to a new level. The main mechanism of the machine consists of two heavy wheels, each driven by its own electric motor. These are mounted in a frame such that the wheels are in the same plane. A ball joint allows the machine a wide range of movement. The whole assembly is mounted on a sturdy tripod or other frame so that the plane of the wheels is roughly at the height that a typical bowler would release the ball.