SRSport Rules
Limited-overs cricket

DLS resets a rain-affected chase by measuring resources, not just run rate.

The Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method is the standard way many limited-overs cricket competitions set a fair target when time is lost after a match has started. It asks how many scoring resources each side had, based mainly on overs available and wickets in hand.

Quick ruling: DLS applies only when the playing conditions say it applies and an interruption changes the overs or available time in a limited-overs match. Officials calculate a revised target or par score from the official DLS method, then announce the score the chasing side must reach.
Decision path

How officials get to a DLS target

  1. Confirm the match is a limited-overs match using DLS under its playing conditions.
  2. Confirm the interruption has reduced the overs or changed the resources available to one or both teams.
  3. Work out the resources available to the side batting first and the side batting second.
  4. Use the official DLS calculation to produce a revised target, or a par score if the chase cannot continue.
  5. Check that the minimum-overs requirement for a result has been met under the competition rules.
What DLS measures

Overs and wickets are the core resources

DLS treats a team's innings as a pool of resources. The two most important resources are how many overs are left and how many wickets are still in hand. A side with ten overs left and eight wickets in hand can usually score more aggressively than a side with ten overs left and two wickets in hand.

That is why DLS is not the same as dividing the first team's score by the number of overs. Losing wickets before a rain break can make a chase harder, while keeping wickets in hand can make the revised target less forgiving.

When it applies

DLS is for interrupted limited-overs matches

The method is used in one-innings limited-overs cricket when bad weather, poor light, ground conditions, or another permitted interruption reduces the scheduled overs. It can apply after the first innings, during the chase, or after multiple interruptions.

It is not a Law used in every cricket match by default. Test matches and ordinary two-innings matches do not use DLS to set targets. Domestic and recreational competitions may also specify a different rain rule, a simplified DLS table, or no result rules of their own.

Targets and par

The target is one run more than par

In a completed chase, the announced DLS target is the score required to win. If the target is 150, the chasing side wins by reaching 150. One run fewer is level with par and produces a tie if the match ends there under the playing conditions.

When play is stopped and cannot resume, officials compare the chasing side's score with the DLS par score for that exact point of the innings. Above par wins, level with par ties, and below par loses, provided the match has reached the minimum amount of play required for a result.

Minimum overs

A DLS number does not always create a result

Most limited-overs competitions require the team batting second to receive a minimum number of overs before DLS can decide the match. If that threshold is not met, the match may be abandoned as no result even though a theoretical DLS score can be calculated.

The exact minimum depends on the format and competition. International, domestic, youth, and local cricket can use different thresholds, so the playing conditions control the final answer.

Common argument

"They only needed the same run rate"

No. A simple run-rate target ignores how innings are normally paced. A team that knows from ball one that it has only 20 overs can bat differently from a team that started a 50-over innings and lost overs later. DLS tries to account for that difference by comparing available resources.

Another misunderstanding

"DLS punishes wickets twice"

Wickets matter because they change how many runs a team is expected to be able to score from the overs left. A side that has lost many wickets has fewer resources and less freedom to attack. DLS does not add a separate penalty for wickets; wickets are part of the resource calculation.

Officials

Umpires announce, scorers calculate

Officials do not estimate a DLS target by feel. The target is calculated from the official method, usually through approved software or tables specified by the competition. Umpires, scorers, and the match referee or match manager then confirm the revised target and communicate it to both teams.

If another interruption happens, the calculation is updated again. The target that matters is the current official target after the latest confirmed reduction.