Recording Bowling Figures

In this lesson you will meet the bowling analysis, the part of the scorebook that tells the story of each bowler's spell. Each bowler has a row of boxes, one box per over. Inside each box you record what happened on every delivery: dots, runs off the bat, wides, no balls and wickets. At the end of the innings these boxes are summarised into the familiar figures written as overs, maidens, runs and wickets, often shortened to O, M, R and W. A bowler who bowled four overs, one maiden, conceded twenty-two runs and took two wickets would be shown as four, one, twenty-two, two. In this module you will learn to produce those figures accurately every time.

• Each bowler has a row of over boxes
• Every delivery is recorded in the box
• Figures are overs, maidens, runs, wickets
• Example: 4-1-22-2

In this lesson you will practise recording a complete over. Before the first ball, write the bowler's name in the next free row if they are new, or move to their next box if they have bowled before. Record each delivery in order. Use a dot for no runs, the number for runs off the bat, the wide or no ball symbols for those extras, and the wicket symbol for a bowler's wicket. When the over ends, total the runs charged to the bowler and write it beside or beneath the box, depending on your book. Many scorers also note the team total at the end of each over, which makes later checking far easier.

• Use the next box in the bowler's row
• Record each delivery in order
• Total the runs charged at the end of the over
• Note the team total at each over's end

In this lesson you will learn what a maiden over is. A maiden is a completed over in which the bowler concedes no runs. Because byes, leg byes and penalty runs are not charged to the bowler, an over can still be a maiden even if some of those were scored. However, wides and no balls are charged to the bowler, so a single wide or no ball means the over is not a maiden. Many scorers mark a maiden by joining the dots in the box to form an M. A wicket maiden is a maiden in which the bowler also took a wicket, often marked with a W shape. An over that is not completed cannot be a maiden.

• A completed over with no runs charged to the bowler
• Byes and leg byes do not spoil a maiden
• Any wide or no ball means no maiden
• A wicket maiden includes a bowler's wicket

In this lesson you will learn what goes into the runs and wickets columns. The runs column is every run charged to the bowler: runs off the bat, all wides and the no ball penalties, plus runs hit off no balls. It does not include byes, leg byes or penalty runs. The wickets column includes only dismissals credited to the bowler: bowled, caught, leg before wicket, stumped and hit wicket. Run outs are not included. At the end of the innings, add up the runs column for all bowlers, then add byes, leg byes and penalty runs. The result must equal the team total. If it does not, there is an error to find.

• Runs: off the bat, wides and no balls
• Excludes byes, leg byes and penalty runs
• Wickets: only those credited to the bowler
• Bowlers' runs plus other extras equal the total

In this lesson you will learn how to record overs that are not completed. Overs are written as completed overs, a decimal point, and the number of legal balls in the unfinished over. So three overs and four balls is written as three point four. This is not a decimal fraction; it means three full overs plus four balls. Partial overs happen when an innings ends mid-over or when a bowler is injured or suspended and another bowler completes the over. If another bowler finishes the over, record their balls in a separate box. A spell is a continuous sequence of overs by the same bowler; noting when spells start and end helps captains and analysts later.

• Write overs as completed overs point balls
• 3.4 means three overs and four balls
• This is not a decimal fraction
• Record a bowler who finishes another's over separately

In this lesson you will learn how to track bowler limits. In a twenty-over innings, standard T20 playing conditions allow each bowler a maximum of four overs. The Laws also say that no bowler may bowl two consecutive overs. As a scorer, you are often the first to know when a bowler is close to their limit, so keep a running count in your book. If a captain or umpire asks how many overs a bowler has left, you should be able to answer at once. If an innings is reduced in length, the maximum per bowler may also be reduced; check the WFA competition regulations for how this is calculated in league matches.

• Standard T20 limit: four overs per bowler
• No bowler may bowl consecutive overs
• Keep a running count of each bowler's overs
• Reduced innings may change limits; check regulations

In this final lesson you will learn to calculate a bowler's economy rate, the average number of runs conceded per over. Divide the runs conceded by the number of overs bowled. Partial overs must be converted correctly first. Three point four overs is three overs and four balls, which is twenty-two balls. Divide twenty-two by six to get about three point six seven overs. If the bowler conceded twenty-eight runs, the economy is twenty-eight divided by three point six seven, which is about seven point six four runs per over. Never divide by three point four, as that gives the wrong answer. Economy is a key measure in T20 cricket, where restricting runs can matter as much as taking wickets.

• Economy = runs conceded divided by overs
• Convert partial overs to balls first
• 3.4 overs is 22 balls, or 3.67 overs
• Never divide by the written figure 3.4