The basic aim in all forms of cricket is to score more runs than the opponent in the game. But how does cricket scoring work? This article will elucidate all how runs can be assigned and this includes runs from the bat, extras, and penalties.
How To Score in Cricket
Having considered the question of how scoring works in cricket, there is a need to segregate how runs can be allocated.
In any cricket match, a greater number of runs will be scored if the batsman hits the ball. The individual objective is to add runs to their score and, hopefully, to make centuries that will help to promote their career. Sometimes, every run that a batsman scores will also be added to the team total which explains who wins and who loses in the match.
In addition, runs can be awarded to the batting team through actions made by the bowling side:
In any game of cricket, the fielding team may have made small assistance to the batting team’s total. Extras can be divided into two sections – fielding extras and bowling extras. Finally, runs can be allotted as penalties through a range of law infringements.
Ways to Score in Cricket
The score in a cricket match will be decided by ‘runs’. They are the equivalent of goals in football or points in a basketball match that the players can score. The primary objective of any cricket match is to score more runs than the opposition in the game.
If the team batting last hasn’t been able to reach the target to win, and they haven’t lost all of their wickets, the match will be proclaimed as a draw. Runs may therefore not guarantee a win, but they remain important in the context of the final result.
Regardless of what the form of the game may be, runs are more important to the outcome, and below are ways they can be achieved
1. Completing Runs
Batsmen are striving to score runs by hitting the ball into gaps at the field. Likewise, there are two batsmen at each end of the pitch, one of them is the striker, while the other one is the non-striker batsman. After the striker hits the ball, if the two batsmen cross successfully to the other end of the pitch, they will score runs, adding them to the individual and the team total. If they can do this once, the batting side is assigned to one run and if they can cross successfully, then they score two runs.
In all probability, the fielding side will have fetched the ball and thrown it back to the bowler or wicket-keeper. Alternatively, it would have passed over the boundary before the third or fourth run.
2. Hitting Boundaries
The cricket field is restricted within a boundary and, if the batsman hits the ball far beyond that boundary, they will score additional runs.
There will be four runs to be scored if the ball is hit beyond the boundary, and it bounces at least once before it leaves the playing field.
There will be Six runs to be awarded if the ball is struck over the boundary without it bouncing before it leaves the field. Similarly to scoring, scoring sixes is deemed somewhat of an achievement, therefore the batsmen with the most sixes are given high regard.
3. Losing Wickets
A lost wicket does not add any runs to any of the team’s score, but it is important for several reasons. A team has 10 wickets before the beginning of the game and, when all these 10 are lost, the innings are complete, and they cannot score any more runs.
Secondly, in some limited overs matches, the result can be decided through the lost wickets if a game is tied. For example, if a side scores 225 and has the loss of five wickets, they are more likely to beat the team that scores 225 runs with the loss of seven wickets.
4. Extra Runs
Additional runs can be scored which does not come from the bat. These are commonly called ‘extras’ and they can be divided into two categories – fielding extras and bowling extras.
Bowling extras are wide and no balls. These add runs to the batting team, and they are debited to the bowler’s figures.
Finally, there are penalty runs that can be awarded due to various reasons. Generally, they are related to law infringements on behalf of the fielding side such as slow over rates, fake fielding, or illegally fielding the ball with a cap or another part of the player’s clothes, equipment,t or body. Penalties will be added to the total of the batting team.
Overthrow in Cricket
In the sport of cricket, an overthrow, also known as the buzzer is an extra run that’s scored by a batsman due to the inability of the fielder to collect the ball in the center after being thrown from the outfield. Overthrows often happen when a fielder unsuccessfully targets the stumps in an attempt to clear out a batsman, although sometimes it’s due to handling errors by the fielder receiving the ball.
Runs that are scored this way are counted as an addition to any runs which have already been scored before the fielding error started, and are credited to the batsman. If the ball gets to the boundary as a result of an overthrow then the four runs for the boundary is added to the number of the runs completed before the beginning of the overthrow, which can lead to the unusual event of a batsman scoring more than six runs out of a single ball.
Basic Rules of Cricket
The team that wins in cricket is the side that scores the most runs, although in some circumstances there can be a draw recorded if both teams get the same number of runs.
The players in cricket consist of 11 players and they take it in turns to bat and bowl.
A batter is declared out if the arbitrator believes that the bowler’s ball would have touched the stumps if the batter had not hindered the ball with their pads. This can be referred to as leg before wicket (or LBW).
A batter will be declared run-out when they are going for a run but do not make the batting crease before the fielding team knocks off the cricket stumps.
A batter is declared out if the keeper stumps them.
Officials in Cricket Scoring
At the beginning of a competitive game of cricket, two umpires are officiating a match. An umpire is required to execute the laws of the MCC by making decisions on:
no balls
byes
legs byes
wides
boundaries
One umpire is placed at the back of the stumps at the bowler’s end of the pitch and they make decisions on LBW (leg before wicket) appeals, no balls, wides, and leg byes.
Average Scores in a Cricket Match
Cricket is a game where statistics serve an important role, and they help to predict the outcome of the matches. After a certain period, the statisticians will analyze previous games to decide some average scores.
If two or one-day internationals in a series have provided first innings scores of 350 and 300, the average is 325. And, if both of those scores have been winning totals, it may be fair to assume that a team making an above-average total of 330 in the third game will have a higher chance of winning the match.
The above figures include very small sample size, and it may not be enough to foretell future outcomes with any level of validity. However, when applying average scoring, it is possible to put many other factors into consideration.
For instance, if England is playing against India, the statisticians may be able to make use of the previous results of the game l between the two sides. This makes use of a bigger sample size and may be able to foretell what the score will be in the future.
The average scoring can also be calculated on certain grounds. As an example in this instance, let’s say that the final game of the Indian Premier League will be due to be played at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. In the previous eight matches in the tournament, there has been a total of 1400 runs scored in the first innings. This implies that the average first innings score across those eight games is 175.
Six out of the eight games have been won by the side batting first. Therefore, in the final, Team A scores 185 in the first innings of the game. By using the average scores, we can see that they have a higher chance of winning the match.
Average scores are used primarily in Day and T20 cricket. For instance, results obtained from The Sydney Cricket Ground may tell us that the average first innings score is 425. If South Africa bat in the next test match and make 300 in the first innings, they are below that average score and may struggle to win the game as a result of that below performance.
Conclusion
The question of cricket scoring has been answered by now, you should be able to follow a match and keep up with the total as it builds. Runs are usually scored by the batsmen who make use of their bats to hit the ball into the field or beyond the boundary.
Being able to score as many runs as possible in one’s career is also highly expressive of the player’s performance. Batsmen with the most runs in their career are considered to be among the best cricketers.
Meanwhile, the fielding team can also add runs to the batting team’s total through extras such as wide, byes, and leg byes. Penalty runs are unusual, but this is another way in which the fielding team can add runs to the batting side’s total. Runs win matches, so it’s very important to study this guide and to understand how the whole system works.
