You need 12 players for a full game - six in each team - umpires and scorers, and the following equipment...

The Pitch

This consists of a table tennis table or equivalent surface area, approx 153cm x 275cm, which is stable, safe and level. Any necessary table adjustment should always allow the ball to travel towards the batter. This usually involves placing ‘spacers’ of wood or cardboard under the wheel/edges/framing to also align the centre edges. A strip of tape across the middle join is also sometimes recommended to remove any slight ridge that may affect the ball when it passes over it.

A white taped batting crease must be marked 36cm out from the batting end of the table, and extended the same distance as the wide markers across the table.

A Bat, Ball and Launcher

Two types of small cricket ball are used to play the game. One runs true but the other, the swing ball, has a bias which makes the ball ‘bend’ in a selected direction. The Table Cricket bat is approximately 27.5cm long. A sloping launcher is used to propel the ball.

Side Panels & Fielders

Side-panels fit around the outside of the table and are 10cm high. Fitting onto these are nine sliding fielders, which are 30cm long and have a central catcher zone marked on them.

The approved Table Cricket equipment is available from two stockists. The sets have been produced in parallel productions so that the basic measurements of the respective equipment - ball, launcher, bat and fielders - are the same.

The original set was produced for the Youth Sport Trust Sportsability bag by Davies Sports and is a basic version. They can be contacted at: Davies Sports, Leigh Fold, Hyde, Cheshire, SK14 4LL (www.daviesports.co.uk – phone: 0845 120 4515).

An updated set of equipment has been produced by AMV and it is a more deluxe version. This, however, has also solved the challenge inherent in the original set, which related to the fixture to the sides of the table. They can be contacted at: AMV Engineering Ltd, Abbey Lane Enterprise Park, Burscough, Lancs, L40 7SR. (www.amv-eng.co.uk – phone: 01704 895 331).