The D/L Logic

By CAM

When rain interrupts play, the one thing that is almost impossible to do is to reschedule the completion of the match. With all the many factors to be considered, scheduling of events will be near impossible if rain dates were to be incorporated. In the interest of all concerned parties, other than some of the fans of course, it is critical to have a result, even if the result is “No Result”, at the end of a rain interrupted match.

Now if rain washes out the entire match, no genius method or complicated system is required to conclude the match. Typically, the result of the match is stated as “No Result” and if there are points to be had, both teams get an even split. Many argue that in this case, if a minnow team is playing a top seeded team, the minnow team pretty much ends up with a bonus point while the top seeded team potentially lost the points they would have had had the match actually been played. In some instances this can affect the standings in the Points Table for the seeded team. Interesting…

In 2001, the ICC formally adopted the Duckworth-Lewis Method (D/L Method) to reset the target when rain or any other event interrupts the game. While this method was devised for an ODI match, the Twenty20 format was not in the picture at the time. Tony Lewis has been quoted as admitting that “"Certainly, people have suggested that we need to look very carefully and see whether in fact the numbers in our formula are totally appropriate for the Twenty20 game".

No one will agree more to this than Paul Collingwood, England’s captain, whose team seemed to have the game in their hands with a first innings score of 191 in 20 overs against the West Indies during the 2010 ICC World Twenty20. The D/L method applied to this rain interrupted second innings set the target as a relatively easier 60 in 6 overs for the West Indies. This they accomplished easily with a ball to spare. Call this fair if you like. Some say that England should stop whining as they have been on the benefitting end of the D/L application at times. I can’t help but feel that with 191 on the board, the West Indians would have struggled. An example of a near perfect batting display by England only to find themselves at the losing end. Well…

The bottom line here is that the ICC must seriously reconsider the application of the D/L method in the case of Twenty20 cricket. Significant changes, specifically for the Twenty20 format is necessary to truly have a fair system to decide the outcome of an interrupted match. May be the Jayadevan method, adopted by the ICL, is the way to go. Or, some other yet-to-be-devised system. Whatever it may be, we do hope that the powers that be in the world of cricket come to grips with this situation and act in a timely fashion to bring fairness to the game.