Forget Gully Boy (sorry, Ranveer Singh). We have gully cricket. Our childhood was sweet. The streets were our playground. The road was our pitch. A single wooden stick, a disfigured stone, or just a bicycle parked behind the batsmen was our stumps. We stopped at nothing (except when a vehicle had to pass through, embarrassingly). It was indeed legendary.

With the IPL fever full ablaze, we at Indiaglitz have compiled some ‘malarum ninaivugal’ moments that will put an ears-wide smile on your face!

Take a seat ladies, and gentlemen. This is the Indian Gully League for you.

Rule 1: Six adicha out’tu!

It was a dangerous rule, especially if the batsman was a good one. And those sly bowlers, how they’d tempt you with ridiculous slow balls? It was truly a test of being in control don’t you think?

Rule 2: One pitch-catch out!

Even the brave have fallen for this rule. You try to drive the ball to the boundary or lock it within your circle. Hard rules baby, hard rules…

Rule 3: Common player/ joker

The streets follow the rule of equality. Even if you’re an extra and neither teams don’t want you, you always had the option of being a common/joker. You get to bat for both the teams, but mind you, you will also be the wicket keeper. Each ball you miss, you have to run till the end of the street to fetch the ball back.

Rule 4: Wall’la adicha out’tu!

Really, gully cricket was a batsmen’s nightmare. If you hit the ball directly on a wall, you’re screwed. You’re out. Don’t ask why. Gully cricket has many such unexplainable, difficult rules.

Rule 5: Does the keeper has ‘power’ or ‘no power’?

No we’re not talking about the power to shoot webs like spidey and catch the ball. If you’re a common/joker usually you’re allowed ‘power’. If the ball tipped the batsman’s bat and you catch it, he’s out. But if you’re a keeper from the same team, you don’t have power. Crazy, right?

Rule 6: Fatsos get an equal 'footing' too!

Or simply put: gundu batsmen’ku olli by-runner. For all the Inzamam ul Haqs of street cricket, an efficient and fast runner from the team was allocated. No questions asked. Gully cricket is truly inclusive.

Rule 7: Same side umpire atrocities

The player cum umpire from the batting team might truly be a clever ass. Never let him referee the match. You’ll then have to wonder later why that clear run-out was given a ‘not out’.

Rule 8: Aunty veetu window odacha batsman yaaru?

Who? Wo kon hai? If you hit a ball cracking the neighbour’s window, then you’re doomed to retrieve the ball from them. Sometimes, another smooth-talking kid may come to your help, charm the angry aunty with his words and get the ball. If not then you’re on your own. Get back the ball and beg your parents to pay the money for the cracked window. And get ready to be the butt of all jokes for at least the next month from your gully cricket crew.

Rule 9: Mokka batsman ku substitute ah!

We’ve all been there. If the chase is getting crucial and only a few balls left, then a trouser-laden hero will step in. He might be a great right-handed batsman, but he will suddenly and confidently evolve into a left-hander and replace you. We know how long you waited to bat, but hey, take one for the team. Now, don’t ask how good he’ll be as a left-handed batsman. Gully cricket is beyond logic, bruh!

Rule 10: Trial ball no wicket

Only in gully cricket. We never knew how or why it became a ritual. We really don’t know.

Rule 11: Baby-cut for weak bowlers

No, don’t get scared. There are no babies involved. But if it seems like a bowler is bowling even worse than how a baby would bowl, then he’d have to face shame. After three balls of an over, it’s some other bowler. That’s how life is in the streets. Opportunities- use it or lose it.

Rule 12: Underarms over, only for kids

Sometimes a young five year old something douchebag with eyes gleaming of hope would turn up at the pitch (the road). With his father, that too. ‘Thambiyavum koncham team’la sethukonga’, he would request to the players. Then the gully boys would let him bat a single over. The bowler would be extremely cautious in being slow, so that it doesn’t hurt the kid or something. Don’t know, just sowing the seeds of fire for future gully cricket heroes…

Rule 13: Ball in the ditch machi, call the batsman!

Again, here we are! Can’t gully batsmen just bat and be done with it? No bruh…that’s the rule. You have to pick up the ball from the ditch if you’re the one who hit it. Some flinch. But you’d be surprised how sometimes the brave batsman will just put his hand down and take the ball like picking laddu from the plate. Sometimes the ball was washed. Other times it was roughed against the ground. Enough sanitation, get to playing already!

Rule 14: No da, I’m not out!

That one batsman who made playing hell for us. He’d never admit he was out. Sometimes we just had to bear with him. Because only he had a bat and no one else did.

Rule 15: Winning team batting first!

Another confusing rule in the gully cricket format. For all the downsides that batsmen had in gully cricket, it's a perplexing affair why the winning team always wanted to bat first in the following match.

Not only memories, many talents stopped with gully cricket and moved onto jobs, and what we call ‘life’. But one’s never old to play a match of gully cricket. Call your neighborhood buddies and play a match!*

*We’re not responsible if you break neighbor aunty veetu window :P

Did we miss any gully cricket rules? What other similar content would you like from us? Tag your mates and fire up the comments section!