This guide shows you how to calculate required run rate for any chase, from a T20 to a 50-over game or a 12-over match at your local ground. You’ll see how to count the balls left when the scoreboard says something like 12.4 overs, and why a dot ball moves the asking rate more than you might expect.
Quick Answer
Required run rate is the number of runs per over a chasing side needs from now on to win. Subtract the current score from the target to get the runs needed, count the legal balls left, then divide runs needed by balls left and multiply by 6. Always count the remaining overs in balls, because 12.4 overs means 12 overs and 4 balls, not 12.4 of an over.
What the Required Run Rate Tells You
Broadcasters often call it the “asking rate”, and scoreboards shorten it to “RRR” or “Req RR”. It looks forward: it ignores how the runs so far were scored and tells you only what the rest of the innings has to produce.
That makes it the most useful single number in a chase. A side on 89 sounds comfortable or desperate depending on the target and the balls left, and the required rate puts both into one figure you can compare with the current run rate.
Start with the right target. Under MCC Law 16 (The Result), a side wins by scoring more runs than the opposition. So the target is one more than the first-innings total. Matching the total only ties the match. If the side batting first makes 167, the target is 168.
Formula
Required Run Rate = Runs Needed ÷ Overs Remaining
Where:
- Runs needed = target − current score.
- Overs remaining = balls remaining ÷ 6.
- Balls remaining = (overs in the innings × 6) − legal balls already bowled.
Because overs remaining is just balls divided by 6, the version that’s hardest to get wrong is:
Required Run Rate = Runs Needed × 6 ÷ Balls Remaining
Only legal balls count. Under the ICC playing conditions an over is six valid balls, and wides and no-balls are not counted as one of them.
Step-by-Step Calculation
A team chasing 168 in a T20 is on 89 after 12.4 overs. Here is the calculation:
- Runs needed: 168 − 89 = 79.
- Legal balls bowled: 12 overs × 6 = 72, plus 4 balls = 76.
- Balls remaining: 120 − 76 = 44.
- Required run rate: 79 × 6 ÷ 44 = 474 ÷ 44 = 10.77…, which is 10.77 runs per over.
For comparison, the side’s current run rate is 7.03. When the required rate is that far above the current one, the batting side has to find almost four extra runs every over from here. That’s a reading of the numbers, not a prediction of the result.
If you prefer to think per ball, 79 ÷ 44 is just under 1.8 runs a ball.
Counting the Balls Left Without the Decimal Mistake
The most common error is subtracting the overs as if they were ordinary decimals.
Treat 12.4 as a decimal and you get 20 − 12.4 = 7.6, then 79 divided by 7.6 = 10.39. That’s wrong, and it makes the chase look easier than it is.
In cricket notation the digit after the point counts balls, from 0 to 5. 44 balls left is written 7.2 overs (7 overs and 2 balls), which is 7.33 overs in the maths (44 ÷ 6). Dividing 79 by 7.33 gives the correct 10.77.
The safe habit is to convert everything to balls first, subtract, and only divide by 6 at the end.
| Scoreboard shows | Balls bowled | Balls left in a T20 |
|---|---|---|
| 12.4 overs | 76 | 44 |
| 15.0 overs | 90 | 30 |
| 18.3 overs | 111 | 9 |
| 19.5 overs | 119 | 1 |
How One Ball Changes the Required Rate
Required run rate changes on every legal ball, even a dot ball, because the balls left always shrink. Here is what the next delivery does to the same chase (168 to win, 89 for x after 12.4 overs, needing 10.77):
| Next delivery | Score after it | Balls left | Required run rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dot ball | 89 after 12.5 | 43 | 11.02 |
| Single | 90 after 12.5 | 43 | 10.88 |
| Four | 93 after 12.5 | 43 | 10.47 |
| Wide (1 run, ball not counted) | 90 after 12.4 | 44 | 10.64 |
Two things stand out. A single still raises the asking rate here, because scoring one run off a ball is below the 1.8 runs a ball the chase needs. A wide, on the other hand, helps the batting side twice: the one-run penalty comes off the runs needed, and the ball has to be bowled again.
A wicket doesn’t change the number at all. It is still the same runs needed from the same balls. What it changes is how realistic that rate is with fewer batters to come. That part is judgement, not arithmetic.
Important Points
- Target means first-innings total plus one. Use the tie score by mistake and every number in the chase is one run off.
- Count balls, not overs. Work in legal balls and divide by 6 last.
- Extras count for the batting side. Byes, leg byes, wides and no-balls all go into the score and reduce the runs needed. Wides and no-balls also don’t use up a ball.
- Reduced-overs chases use the revised target and revised overs. If rain shortens a match, the official target comes from the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) method in international and IPL cricket. Plug that revised target and the revised number of overs into the same formula. Never estimate a DLS target yourself, because the professional DLS calculation isn’t public.
- Late in an innings the rate swings sharply. With few balls left, each one is a large share of what remains. Needing 17 off the last 9 balls (141 chasing 158 after 18.3 overs) is a required rate of 11.33, and one dot ball takes it much higher.
Another Example: A 12-Over Local Match
Corporate and weekend matches are often shorter, but the method is the same. Only the total balls change: 12 overs is 72 balls.
The side batting first makes 120 in 12 overs, so the target is 121. At the start of the chase that’s a required rate of 10.08.
After 5 overs, the chasing side is on 46:
- Runs needed: 121 − 46 = 75.
- Balls remaining: 72 − 30 = 42.
- Required run rate: 75 × 6 ÷ 42 = 450 ÷ 42 = 10.71 runs per over.
The side is scoring at 9.20 so far, so the asking rate has crept up from 10.08 to 10.71. That’s a useful number for a captain to have at the drinks break.
Here’s a 50-over version for comparison. Chasing 276 in an ODI, a side is on 131 after 27.3 overs. That’s 165 balls bowled and 135 left, with 145 runs needed: 145 × 6 ÷ 135 = 6.44 runs per over.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you calculate required run rate in cricket?
Subtract the current score from the target to get the runs needed. Count the legal balls left, then calculate runs needed × 6 ÷ balls left. For example, needing 79 from 44 balls is 79 × 6 ÷ 44, a required run rate of 10.77 runs per over.
Is the target the same as the other team’s score?
No. The target is one run more than the first-innings total, because a side has to score more runs than the opposition to win. If the team batting first makes 167, the chasing side needs 168. Reaching 167 only ties the match.
Why does the required run rate go up after a single?
Because the balls left fall too. If a chase needs about 1.8 runs a ball, a single scores less than that, so the remaining runs have to come from fewer balls at a higher rate. Only scoring above the required rate per ball brings it down.
Do wides and no-balls change the required run rate?
Yes, they bring it down. Each adds at least a one-run penalty to the batting side’s score, and neither counts as one of the six balls in the over. So the runs needed drop while the balls left stay the same.
What is the difference between current run rate and required run rate?
Current run rate is how fast the chasing side has scored so far: runs divided by overs faced. Required run rate is how fast it must score from now on: runs needed divided by overs left. When the required rate is higher, the side needs to speed up.
How is required run rate worked out in a rain-reduced match?
Use the same formula with the revised target and the revised number of overs. In international and IPL cricket, the revised target is set officially using the DLS method, so take that figure from the scoreboard rather than estimating it.
Related Criko Tools
- Required run rate calculator: enter the target, score, overs and balls, and it counts the balls left for you.
- Target score calculator: turns a first-innings total into the target to win.
- Overs to balls converter: converts notation like 12.4 into 76 balls.
Related Cricket Guides
Conclusion
To calculate required run rate, take the runs needed, count the legal balls left, and work out runs needed × 6 ÷ balls left. Get the target right (first-innings total plus one) and convert overs to balls before subtracting, and the number will match the scoreboard.