Visually Impaired Cricket Blue Peter Bite

This is Blue Peter. But mini.

Expect epic adventures,

makes, bakes,

badges, pets,

presenters and your post.

We've only got five minutes, so get ready for your Blue Peter adventure.

Welcome to Headingley, one of the country's top cricket grounds.

But today, I'm not just here for a nice little sit in the sun, oh, no.

You may remember a couple of years ago,

Radzi and I took on a bowling challenge.

And it's safe to say I wasn't particularly great.

But this is Blue Peter,

which means we don't do things by halves, oh, no.

I'm going to step it up a notch and, later on today,

I'm going to be out on that pitch, giving cricket a go,

but with a difference.

Meet some of the stars of visually impaired cricket.

These guys aren't just ace with bat and ball,

they do it with little or no vision.

Whoa, they don't mess about.

But how does it work? Well, I'm meeting coach John to find out.

So, John, it's great to meet you and it's really exciting to be here.

How exactly does visually impaired cricket work?

It's not a lot different from mainstream cricket, really.

A few little rule changes.

We have sight categories.

Everybody's severely visually impaired

down to totally blind, and we have four different categories.

So...

But that high partial is still very severely impaired.

But we need those people on the outfield to do the fielding,

otherwise, if everyone was totally blind, it'd be a bit of a struggle.

-Yeah, so it's a real teamwork sport, isn't it?

-It is, yes.

As you can see behind us, the ball's a size-three football

filled with ball bearings, so you can hear the ball.

And it's all about communication.

I was going to say, there's a lot of chat going on behind us.

-Yeah, that's key.

-So, how can I get involved today?

Well, we've got what we call simulation specs,

which replicate various eye conditions,

so we'll get you in those.

The simulation specs mean I can experience what it's like

to be visually impaired.

The first category I'm trying is B3, or mid partial.

Even that's quite off-putting.

I can't see your face properly,

I've got no peripheral vision at this point.

OK. Right, I'm ready for the ball.

-And now you're going to have a ball coming towards you.

-Yeah, great!

-OK?

-OK.

John starts me off with some basic fielding.

-Yeah?

-I'll always tell you when it's coming towards you.

-OK.

-It's coming towards you, John.

-Yep.

Ready.

-Cool.

-What are you doing on Saturday?

Sign me up!

Once I'm comfortable with the ball, we move on to batting practice.

Oh, my gosh!

That's a good start. That's not bad.

Boom!

It's time to step up to the B2 shades,

which are just one level below totally blind.

Wow. Already, that's much harder,

-I'm not going to lie.

-OK.

Whoa! That made me jump!

-I'll roll it back to John.

-Roll it back, yeah.

This is such a strange sensation.

But by using the sound of the ball coming towards me,

I managed to hit a few.

My hearing and how much I was trying to listen

went through the roof then

because you're relying on it so much more when you can't see.

However, things are about to get harder.

The final part of my challenge is out on the actual Headingley pitch.

As home team Yorkshire break for lunch, I'm going

to be facing six balls from a top bowler.

And that's not all, I'll be wearing B1 shades,

meaning I'll have no vision at all.

This is going to be tough.

I feel so vulnerable.

Here we go, ball number one.

Did I get out?

Stop it!

No!

For real?

Ball three isn't much better either.

Kahlil, this is going to go for six, just so you know, mate.

As well as dealing with no vision,

I'm also struggling to hear the ball bounce out here on the soft grass.

I'm not out again? This is becoming a farce.

-No!

-Out!

-Again?

-Again.

How many times have I been out?

Pressure's on, I've only been out five times.

This is it, my final chance.

I just want to hit one.

Yes! I hit it!

Well, it wasn't pretty, but, hey, I hit a ball that I couldn't even see.

So that's something.

That has got to be one of the most difficult sports I've ever tried.

It just goes to show, there's a sport out there for everyone.

So give VI cricket a go. It's amazing.

And guess what, you'll be better than me.

Join in every Thursday on CBBC.