Kilikiti (syn. kirikiti, Samoan cricket, pronounced ki-ree-kiss) is one of several forms of cricket. Originating in Samoa (English missionaries introduced their game of cricket in the early 19th century), it spread throughout Polynesia and can now be found around the world in areas with strong Polynesia populations. The game is the national sport of Samoa, it is played in Tuvalu, and is particularly popular in New Zealand.
The ball is made of a very hard rubber wrapped in pendants. Players are not protected by any padding or masks, and will often wear only a lava-lava. The sennit-wrapped wooden bats, which are shaped to individual players' likings and can be over a meter long, are three-sided, which means that the path of a hit ball is extremely hard to predict.
There is no limit to team size, and teams are made up of whoever turns up regardless of gender or age (tourist accounts referenced below mention that strangers are often welcomed). Players are typically all-rounder’s. A kilikiti game is a multi-day community event full of singing, dancing, and feasting.
Entire villages will compete and everyone will be involved, whether as player, cook, or spectator. (According to one source (see India Engineers Cricket Club in "External links") the only universal rule is that the host team forfeits if it cannot provide enough food.).The New Zealand Kilikiti Association (NZKA) is working to standardize the rules of kilikiti. In 1999 the NZKA started a national tournament, called the Supercific Kilikiti..
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