Cricket fighting is a hobby and gambling activity involving the fighting of male crickets.[1][2] Unlike blood sports such as bullfighting and cockfighting, cricket fighting rarely causes injuries to the animals.[3] It is a popular pastime in China and dates back more than 1,000 years to the Tang dynasty.[3] However, the sport has been losing its popularity in China.[2]
| Cricket fighting | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 鬥蟋蟀 | ||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 斗蟋蟀 | ||||||
| |||||||
History
edit
Cricket fighting was nurtured by Tang dynasty emperors more than 1,000 years ago, and later popularized by commoners. In the thirteenth century, the Southern Song dynasty prime minister Jia Sidao wrote a how-to guide for the blood sport. Jia's obsession with cricket fighting is believed to have contributed to the fall of the empire. During the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) China's Communist government banned cricket fighting as a bourgeois predilection, but it is now undergoing a revival among a younger generation eager to embrace traditional Chinese pastimes.[3]
Culture
editThis section needs additional citations for verification. (June 2021) |
Cricket season begins in summer and championships take place after the autumn equinox in late September.[3] In Beijing, the Association for Cricket Fighting organizes cricket fighting events and championships.
While it is illegal in China to gamble on cricket fights, the fights themselves are legal and occur in most big cities in China.[4] Crickets are sold openly in street markets, with more than a dozen cricket markets in Shanghai alone. In 2010 more than 400 million yuan (US$63 million) were spent in China on crickets.
Hotels in Macau have held cricket fights where bets up to thousands of patacas were waged on a single fight. Prized crickets have become famous, with funeral services on their death.
In Hong Kong, the popularity of cricket fighting has declined since the 1950s and 60s, partly due to pesticides reducing the supply of fighters. In 2004, a champion cricket could cost more than $2,500.[4] Lesser fighters could be bought from bird stalls for up to $30, or searched for in rural areas.[5]
Care and breeding
editThe best crickets are from a few counties in northeastern Shandong Province.[3] Crickets have pedigrees and would be carefully bred by knowledgeable keepers. Each cricket must be kept in its own clay pot and their diets include ground shrimp, red beans, goat liver, and maggots. Before fight night, female crickets are dropped in the pot to increase the male's fighting spirit.[3]
Flight and anger
editCrickets fights are arranged according to weight class.[6] In a fighting container, handlers stimulate their cricket's antennae using a straw stick, causing the crickets to become aggressive. When both crickets are sufficiently agitated, a divider separating the pair will be lifted, and the two crickets will begin the match. The loser is the cricket that first begins avoiding contact, runs away from battle, stops chirping, or jumps out of the fighting container.
Studies done indicate that the sense of "flying" encourages a cricket's fighting spirit.[7] In one such study, a losing cricket put back into the ring will only go back to fight one out of ten times.[7] If crickets are shaken and thrown in the air repeatedly, they will fight again six out of ten times.[7]
Tournaments
editThe Yu Sheng Cup,[8] another national cricket fighting tournament,[9] is held annually outside the Xilai Ranch in Lühua during the National Day holiday in early October, with a purse of 10 000 RMB.[8]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Cricket matches - Chinese style Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine Xu Xiaomin Shanghai Star. 2003-09-04
- ^ a b CTV: Ancient sport of cricket fighting loses popularity in China
- ^ a b c d e f "Chirps and Cheers: China's Crickets Clash". New York Times. November 5, 2011.
- ^ a b Hogg, Chris (16 August 2004). "HK arrests 'insect gamblers'". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
- ^ "Cricket-fight 'betting' club busted". South China Morning Post. Alibaba Group. 16 August 2004. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
- ^ Bradley, Dan (Producer). Frank, Joshua (Host). (2 December 2014). A Day of Cricket Fighting in Beijing. Vice Media. Event occurs at 2'06". Retrieved 8 July 2018.
- ^ a b c Laufer, Ph.D., Peter (2011). No Animals Were Harmed: The Controversial Line Between Entertainment and Abuse. Guilford, Connecticut: Lyons Press. pp. 144–145. ISBN 978-0-76276-385-6.144-145&rft.pub=Lyons Press&rft.date=2011&rft.isbn=978-0-76276-385-6&rft.aulast=Laufer, Ph.D.&rft.aufirst=Peter&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Cricket fighting" class="Z3988">
- ^ a b Kaushik "Cricket Fighting Contests in China". Amusing Planet, 9 Nov 2011. Accessed 11 Jan 2015.
- ^ "Chongming County" in the Encyclopedia of Shanghai, pp. 50 ff. Archived January 10, 2015, at the Wayback Machine Shanghai Scientific & Technical Publishers (Shanghai), 2010. Hosted by the Municipality of Shanghai.