Know what is Duckworth-Lewis Stern (DLS) method in cricket, and how does it work in rain-shortened limited-overs matches
In a limited-overs cricket match that is delayed by bad weather or other events, the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method (DLS) is a mathematical formula used to determine the target score (amount of runs required to win) for the side batting second.
Duckworth-Lewis Stern (DLS) Method In Cricket Means What, Formula And Full Form
The Duckworth-Lewis approach (D/L) was developed by two English statisticians, Frank Duckworth and Tony Lewis (not to be confused with former cricketer Tony Lewis). It was first presented in 1997, and the ICC formally accepted it in 1999. Till 2015, the D/L approach was effective. When the team’s scoring rates spiked during the 2015 World Cup, it became clear that the technology needed to be changed. When Australian Professor Steven Stern introduced a new algorithm, the name of the D/L technique was modified to the D/L/S method.
How does DLS work in cricket?
The DLS (Duckworth-Lewis-Stern) approach is based on the idea that a batting side has 300 balls and 10 wickets available when an ODI inning begins. These resources gradually run out as the innings go on and are gone after a side either bowls out all 300 deliveries or lose all 10 wickets.
The batting side is prevented from using all of its resources whenever it loses overs for whatever reason. As a result, targets are adjusted in a way that is proportional to the number of resources that each team has access to. The pace at which these resources drain changes based on the ODI scoring patterns and are not constant throughout the overs (calculated from studying matches over several years). The resources depleted as a result of an interruption depend on:
– number of lost overs
– the point in an innings when the overs are lost – the number of wickets in hand when play is interrupted
Losing overs later in an innings normally has a greater impact on a team than losing the same number of overs earlier in the innings, because those overs are more productive, and teams have less time to adjust their objectives than if overs are lost earlier in the innings. A team that is already six down after 20 overs will lose less from a 10-over break than a team that is just two down at that point. Because, in the first example, the team has already lost a significant portion of its batting resources due to the dismissals of six top-order batters. A team that is just two down can capitalise on the final 30 overs better than a team that is six down.