Artificial intelligence in cricket evaluates a player's luck and other parameters

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Cricket is a popular game, and new technologies have significantly influenced it. With their help, you can more accurately monitor all game processes, controlling even the smallest details. Cricket and technology have recently gone hand in hand, and the coaching staff has the ability to track the speed of the ball, predict the distance the ball travels when it bounces off the bat, and the time it will reach the edge of the playing field. With technology, you can better understand the intricacies of the game. And in a few years, the need for refereeing will disappear, since artificial intelligence will replace it.



AI and data science are revolutionizing all areas of industry, including cricket. Microsoft is developing technologies that allow the collection of detailed information about hits (on the ball) during a match. And Spektacom, founded by the former captain and coach of the Indian national cricket team, is exploring the science behind the game using AI and the Internet of Things.



There are two main characters in cricket: a bowler serves the ball, and a batsman hits the ball with a bat. What is science here?



Former captain and coach Anil Kumbleone of the first to study the game from a scientific point of view. Camble created a scoring sheet-like software for data analysis in 1996. At that time, the Indian team introduced a digital system for the first time in their cricket strategy to improve the efficiency of the game.







“In conversations with a professional, we mostly heard that the batsman has a more important role in the game than the bowler,” explains Kumble. According to him, bowlers simply have no right to say that the ball is not right for them. But, on the other hand, batsmen can adjust the thickness of their bat in millimeters or change its weight in ounces. They can make any changes to their bat that will ultimately affect the game.



This is how Spektacom was born: a technology that discreetly monitors and analyzes the progress of the game.

AI and Power Bat

Artificial intelligence and advanced analytics are slowly taking over the world. At the 2017 ICC Champion Trophy , a new cricket bat with a sensor on the top was unveiled . The technology was developed and then refined by Intel. The invention was named Power Bat. The technology can provide four parameters of data on any impact in real time:

• Ball flight speed
• Batsman throw quality
• Ball trajectory after hitting the bat or its edge
• Throwing force

A little later, a sticker with an IoT sensor was created. It is about the size of a credit card and weighs only five grams. The sticker in the same way records information from the bit about the speed, the quality of the impact and the twist after the impact. This data is then combined and can be displayed on the screen of commentators and viewers, or transferred to the application.

How do sensor stickers work?

On the back of the bat, next to the sponsor's sticker, is the same sensor “sticker”. It is almost invisible. The sensor is unique as it is equally effective for all types of bits. It collects information and processes it using machine learning, allowing players and coaches to receive game statistics in real time. By the way, the sensor sticker needs to be charged for about 90 minutes. So the phrase "put the bat on exercise" may soon become quite common in this world of sports.



For everything to work as it should, it's important to place the sticker in the right place. Real-time data is collected in the cloud to provide game analytics... There, they are processed by the AI, and you can view prediction tables and graphs right during the game. Transferring data from bits to translators for timely analysis requires a transmission rate equal to the speed of light.



Unfortunately, the cricket courts are not level enough as they should be for maximum play efficiency. In addition, there is no wireless connection at the sites for fast data transfer. Therefore, to transmit and display data in real time, a new reliable technology is needed.



Microsoft suggested its own approach. The company used the Stump Box, an energy efficient device that connects to the sensor via Bluetooth. The Stump Box is placed underground behind the gate (these are three wooden posts). Data (for example, impact characteristics) are taken from the Stump Box and shown to commentators at the same second. True, there are still some problems with the exchange of data between the bit and the device on the Microsoft platform.







Using AI in cricket looks very exciting and promising. Technology is changing the way we choose players and coaches. And, of course, it can radically change the game that is loved in Great Britain, India, North America, the Caribbean, South Africa and Australia.



Benefits of touch stickers on bits

• The above functionality is available in the mobile application.
• Coaches get a visual picture of the batsman's strengths and weaknesses.
• Coaches can advise athletes to improve their play.

How are national cricket leagues using artificial intelligence to select superstars in sports?

Now we can talk about the perspectives of artificial intelligence and machine learning in cricket. The Indian Institute of Madras, together with the sports media organization ESPNcricinfo (they have a large, up-to-date cricket database.) Have presented a unique technology program "Superstars" that predicts the fate of the player as well as the game plan.



Researchers tried to identify several cricket superstars from hundreds of thousands of participants. The database containing detailed player information has been collected for almost 10 years using sophisticated algorithms and scientific methods. These techniques are linked to machine learning, which allows real-time access to player data. Another plus of the technology: it contributes to the transparency of the selection process. No one will be able to challenge the decisions on the player's choice, since it is based not on human preferences, but on dry computer analysis. The algorithm evaluates the reaction speed in real time, evaluates the player's actions and the entire game process.



But you need to consider the other side of the game. Machine learning reacts to human-driven events. That is, it is impossible to correctly predict each specific situation. The algorithms work on the basis of qualitative analysis and tell about the fate of the match. For example, a bowler can exhaust Batman, but not every attempt succeeds. Bowler may be smart enough to keep the team from chasing the highest possible winning score, but the algorithm only counts the victory points he takes. In short, this is not an absolute way of counting luck in a match or team.



Forecast metric

• The platform is used to predict game events. She:
• Predicts the probability of the serving team winning.
• Predicts the winning odds of the team that chooses to beat first.
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Historical data allows you to train forecast metrics, increasing the accuracy of predicting various events in the game. The metric then compares the results of the game in real time with the information already flowing into it to form the outcome. 



Smart Statistics



All interested parties have the opportunity to explore exciting new features of the game, including pressure indices, quick wickets (wickets), player quality index, etc. The technology reveals the ideal batsman or bowler based on the points he earns or retains during power play and decisive overs (streaks).



Data mining strategy for selecting players



Sports organizations use this technology to select players for a match to achieve outstanding results. This tactic also helps to find the optimal order of players. She helps the coaches by showing the average performance of the bowlers and identifying the best player for the team.



In addition, technology helps improve the skills of individual players and their overall performance. The team works on its weak points before the matches, which increases the chances of winning.



Data analysis techniques in cricket



AI-assisted machine learning data helps identify the strengths and weaknesses of an opponent. The team can find new ways to deal with principal rivals. Moreover, it also helps the coach to manage the team based on visual presentation of data. It becomes possible to analyze in real time small details like a field map, the area around the field, etc. This forms the basis of the team's training and work plan on the field.

Technological advances

Over the years, technology has greatly influenced cricket, making it more fun. The cricket match won more fans and fans after opening the snimeter (technology that allows you to determine if the cricket ball touched the bat on its way to the wicket), the stump camera (this is a micro camera built into one of the three stumps), LED jumpers-bails (located on poles) and Hawk-Eye (software and hardware complex that simulates the trajectory of a game projectile).



The snikometer helps the referee in making decisions, as it makes it possible to determine whether the ball hit the bat or not. Allan Plaskett, an English researcher, first introduced this device in the mid-1990s. Hawk-Eye assists in making the final decisions related to LBW (Leg before wicket) when the batsman is sent off the field for kicking the ball in front of the wicket. The use of drones with a camera during a match is also admirable and cannot be overlooked. With their help, it is convenient to analyze what is happening inside the pitch (area in the center of the field).



For the Batsman



Does Data Science Influence the Batsman? Yes, and very much. To summarize, the following information will be useful to him:

• Total number (points) of runs in the match
• The number of balls he hit
• The number of fours and sixes earned with it
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Thus, the technology has served as an incentive for the development of cricket and increase its entertainment. It helps the bowlers to serve the ball correctly, which the batsman cannot reflect. This in turn helps the batsman understand how to effectively respond to the bowler's serve.



Machine learning techniques in predictive analytics help predict the odds of winning or losing a game. Scott Brooker and Seamus Hogan first used this strategy to predict run rate .



In addition, there is a need for more development of artificial intelligence in cricket to make the game even more exciting. In addition, AI reduces the need for some expensive specialists and saves money on their transportation, food, and accommodation.





What else is interesting in the Cloud4Y blog



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→ US Department of State will create its great firewall

→ Artificial intelligence sings about revolution

→ Inside Bell Labs data center, 1960 -e



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