In
cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...
, a bowler's economy rate is the
average
In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7, ...
number of
run
Run(s) or RUN may refer to:
Places
* Run (island), one of the Banda Islands in Indonesia
* Run (stream), a stream in the Dutch province of North Brabant
People
* Run (rapper), Joseph Simmons, now known as "Reverend Run", from the hip-hop group ...
s they have conceded per
over
Over may refer to:
Places
*Over, Cambridgeshire, England
*Over, Cheshire, England
*Over, South Gloucestershire, England
* Over, Tewkesbury, near Gloucester, England
** Over Bridge
*Over, Seevetal, Germany
Music
Albums
* ''Over'' (album), by Pe ...
bowled. In most circumstances, the lower the economy rate is, the better the
bowler is performing. It is one of a number of statistics used to compare bowlers, commonly used alongside
bowling average
In cricket, a player's bowling average is the number of runs they have conceded per wicket taken. The lower the bowling average is, the better the bowler is performing. It is one of a number of statistics used to compare bowlers, commonly use ...
and
strike rate
Strike rate refers to two different statistics in the sport of cricket. Batting strike rate is a measure of how quickly a batter achieves the primary goal of batting, namely scoring runs, measured in runs per 100 balls; higher is better. Bowling ...
to judge the overall performance of a bowler.
Calculation
The calculation is:
Overs are conventionally represented as decimals from 0.1 to 0.6, so must be converted into true fractions before used in the calculation (e.g. "0.3 overs" represents three balls, which is half a six-ball over). For example, a bowler conceding 31 runs from 10.2 overs (i.e. 10 overs and 2 balls), has an economy rate of 31/10.33333 = 3.0 runs per over. If the bowler then bowls again, conceding a further 20 runs from 5.5 overs (i.e. 5 overs and 5 balls), then overall they have conceded 51 runs from 16.1 overs, so their overall economy rate is 51/16.1667 = 3.15 runs per over.
Byes and leg byes are not charged to the bowler's analysis, and so do not harm their economy rate. On the other hand, the bowler is penalised for
wides and
no-ball
In cricket, a no-ball is a type of illegal delivery to a batter (the other type being a wide). It is also a type of extra, being the run awarded to the batting team as a consequence of the illegal delivery. For most cricket games, especially a ...
s, though neither adds a ball to the over.
Overview
The economy rate is typically more important in limited-overs cricket than in the longer Test match format. The shorter forms of the game demand that bowlers (and fielders) restrict the flow of runs from the opposition to limit the total accrued by the point at which the overs run out, giving their own team a better chance of making the winning score. In Tests and other
first-class matches, time is more plentiful and the innings usually terminates once all ten wickets are taken rather than after a pre-determined number of overs; the priority of the bowling side is then to limit the runs scored per wicket rather than per over. However, there is a balance to be struck - a bowler with a high economy rate in a Test match is generally still aiding the batting side's total, while taking a wicket in limited overs matches usually helps the bowling team by slowing the run rate.
Prior to 8th September 2020, the mean economy rate across all Test matches was 2.75, in one-day internationals 4.70 and in Twenty20 internationals 7.44.
Although styles of play have evolved over the years, and bearing in mind that limited-overs cricket is a more modern phenomenon, it is evident that bowlers' economy rates tend to be higher for shorter formats of the game.
See also
*
Cricket statistics
Cricket is a sport that generates a variety of statistics.
Statistics are recorded for each player during a match, and aggregated over a career. At the professional level, statistics for Test cricket, one-day internationals, and first-class crick ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Over (Cricket)
Bowling (cricket)
Cricket laws and regulations
Cricket terminology
Scoring (cricket)