What is Batting Average in Cricket? How to Calculate it?

If you follow cricket closely, you must have come across this stat: Don Bradman’s batting average of 99.94 is the highest in Test cricket.

But what is batting average? And why is it such a big deal in cricket?

Here, we’ll understand the batting average and its significance in cricket.

Batting Average in Cricket and its Significance

See, cricket and statistics go hand in hand. These stats help determine a player’s performance and quality over a certain period.

To judge a batter’s performance, one can go through their stats, which include batting average, batting strike rate, etc.

The batting average provides a glimpse into a batter’s consistency with the bat. It showcases their effectiveness while scoring runs consistently.

The batter with the highest batting average means they are among the runs regularly, amassing significant scores before their dismissal.

So how to calculate batting average?

You can calculate the batting average with a simple division of 2 numbers. Divide the total runs scored by the number of times the batter got out.

Now how to determine the number of times a batter was dismissed? It’s simple. Just subtract the number of not outs from the total innings the batter played in. You will get the batter’s total dismissals.

Now, insert the total runs and total dismissals in the below formula:

Batting Average = Total Runs Scored / Total Dismissals

Let’s understand it with an example.

We will consider Sachin Tendulkar’s Test career stats. We need 3 numbers — Sachin’s total runs, the total innings he batted in, and the number of times he remained unbeaten.

So, the Master Blaster scored 15921 runs in 329 innings, while he remained not out in 33 innings.

His total dismissals can be extracted by subtracting 33 from 329. Sachin was dismissed 296 times.

Now, put the total runs and dismissals into the equation. After the calculation (15921/296), we get 53.78 as Sachin’s batting average.

What is an ideal batting average?

An ideal batting average can differ in all 3 major cricket formats. A batter’s wicket carries a significant value in Test and ODI formats, while it’s not that important in T20 cricket.

So, having a good batting average in Tests and ODIs tells a batter’s temperament to bat for a longer period. But in T20s, it’s a mixture of average and strike rate, with more importance on how fast they score rather than how long they bat.

In Test cricket, the batting average above the range of 40-45 is good. Some top batters may even average in excess of 50. 

The above averages are also good in ODI cricket. But in T20 cricket, a batter with an average of around 30 is considered ideal. The top-order batters may average above 35 given they have enough resources to bat.

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