inning
n. countablen. a period of play in a game like baseball or cricket. It ends when a certain number of players are out or the team finishes its turn to bat.
n. a division of a game during which one team has a turn at bat. In baseball, the term is singular for each division; in cricket, the form 'innings' is used for both singular and plural contexts.
The home team scored three runs in the first inning.
The pitcher was replaced after the fifth inning because he had already thrown over ninety pitches.
As the game stretched into the tenth inning, the tension in the stadium became palpable, with every spectator aware that a single mistake could end the season.
Back-formation from innings, mistaken to be plural of the time period, not the entries of the batters/batsmen.
In American English, 'inning' is the standard singular form. In British English and cricket contexts, 'innings' is used as both the singular and plural form.
He played a great inning in the cricket matchHe played a great innings in the cricket matchIn the context of cricket, the word is always 'innings' even when referring to a single turn.