Sports In New Zeland

Sports in New Zealand largely reflects its British colonial heritage. Some of the most popular sports in New Zealand, namely rugby, cricket and netball, are primarily played in Commonwealth ofNations countries. Sport is very popular in New Zealand, and despite New Zealand being a very small nation, it has enjoyed great success in many sports, notably rugby union (the national sport), rugbyleague, cricket, Americas Cup Sailing, netball, motorsport, and many other sports.
New Zealand's most popular sport is rugby union, also known as the "national sport". Other popular sportsinclude cricket (which is considered the national summer sport), rugby league, basketball, soccer and netball (the top ranking female sport by participation); golf, tennis, rowing, and a variety of water sports,particularly sailing and surf sports. Winter sports such as skiing and snowboarding are also popular as are New Zealand Indoor Bowls and Lawn Bowls.
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teamsof 11 players on a field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismissthe batsmen and thus limit the runs scored by the batting team. A run is scored by the striking batsman hitting the ball with his bat, running to the opposite end of the pitch and touching the creasethere without being dismissed. The teams switch between batting and fielding at the end of an innings.

Netball is a ball sport played between two teams of seven players. Its development, derivedfrom early versions of basketball, began in England in the 1890s. By 1960, international playing rules had been standardised for the game, and the International Federation of Netball and Women'sBasketball (later renamed the International Federation of Netball Associations (IFNA)) was formed. As of 2011, IFNA comprises more than 60 national teams organized into five global regions.

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