Player Performance Calculator

Raw totals like "412 runs and 9 wickets" are a starting point, but analysts, selectors and fantasy players need ratios. This calculator turns a player's batting and bowling numbers into the seven standard performance metrics in one go: batting average, strike rate, share of runs from boundaries, balls per boundary, bowling average, economy rate and bowling strike rate.

How to use the player performance calculator

1. In the batting section, enter runs, balls faced, innings, not-outs, fours and sixes.
2. In the bowling section, enter overs bowled (cricket notation), runs conceded and wickets. Leave them at zero for a specialist batter.
3. Read all seven metrics in the results panel. Metrics that cannot be calculated, such as bowling average with no wickets, show a dash.

The formulas

Batting

• Batting average = Runs ÷ (Innings − Not outs)
• Strike rate = Runs ÷ Balls faced × 100
• Runs from boundaries = (Fours × 4 + Sixes × 6) ÷ Runs × 100
• Balls per boundary = Balls faced ÷ (Fours + Sixes)

Bowling

• Bowling average = Runs conceded ÷ Wickets
• Economy rate = Runs conceded ÷ (Balls bowled ÷ 6)
• Bowling strike rate = Balls bowled ÷ Wickets

What each metric tells you

• Batting average: reliability. How many runs the batter makes before getting out.
• Strike rate: tempo. Crucial in T20s, less so in Tests.
• Runs from boundaries: style. A batter scoring 70% in boundaries is a power hitter; 45% points to strong running and rotation of strike.
• Balls per boundary: how often the batter finds the rope. Death-overs specialists often hit a boundary every four balls or fewer.
• Bowling average: the cost of each wicket.
• Economy rate: how hard the bowler is to score off.
• Bowling strike rate: how often the bowler takes wickets.

The three bowling numbers are linked: average = economy × strike rate ÷ 6. In the example, 8.00 × 14.67 ÷ 6 = 19.56.

Judging an all-rounder

A common rule of thumb in Test cricket is that a genuine all-rounder's batting average should be higher than their bowling average. In white-ball cricket the picture is more about strike rate and economy: an all-rounder who strikes at 150 and concedes under 8 an over in T20s is extremely valuable even if neither average is spectacular.

Sample size and context

Ratios become reliable only with enough data. A batter with 60 runs from two innings can have an average of 60 and a strike rate of 200, but those numbers say little about what will happen next. As a rough guide, look for at least 10 innings for batting ratios and 100 or more balls bowled for bowling ratios before drawing conclusions.

Context also changes what a number means. A strike rate of 130 in the middle overs of a T20 on a slow pitch can be more valuable than 160 in a high-scoring game on a flat one. Where possible, compare players who batted in similar positions, at similar venues and against similar attacks.

Where the input numbers come from

Scorecards list runs (R), balls (B), fours (4s) and sixes (6s) for batters, and overs (O), maidens (M), runs (R) and wickets (W) for bowlers. Add them up over the matches you want to analyse. Runs conceded should already include wides and no-balls, and exclude byes and leg-byes, as on official scorecards. Overs should be entered in cricket notation; the calculator converts 22.4 overs into 136 balls automatically.

Common mistakes

1. Mixing formats in one set of totals.
2. Entering decimal overs. 3.4 is three overs and four balls, not 3.4 overs.
3. Counting run-outs as wickets. Bowlers are only credited with bowled, caught, LBW, stumped and hit-wicket dismissals.

Compare two players directly with the player comparison calculator, score their fantasy value with the fantasy points calculator, or browse real career stats on CricketSky's players pages.