Cricket Formats Explained: Test, ODI and T20 Compared
Cricket formats explained: how Test matches, ODIs and T20 internationals differ in innings, overs, match length and results, and what they share in common.
International cricket is played in three main formats: Test matches, One Day Internationals (ODIs) and Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is). A Test gives each side two innings with no overs limit and, under the ICC’s standard Test conditions, is scheduled for five days. An ODI gives each side one innings of up to 50 overs, and a T20I gives each side one innings of up to 20 overs. All three are played under the same Laws of Cricket; what changes is how long each side has to bat and bowl.
Where the Formats Come From
The MCC Laws of Cricket let the teams agree before a match whether each side will have one innings or two. They also allow an innings to be capped at a set number of overs or a set length of time. Every international format is built from those two choices.
On top of the Laws, the ICC publishes separate playing conditions for Tests, ODIs and T20 internationals, explaining how the Laws apply at that level. Those documents fix the number of innings, any overs limit and the scheduled length of the match.
Test Cricket: The Long Format
Test cricket is the longest of the three international formats.
- Innings: each side bats twice, and an innings has no overs limit.
- Duration: the ICC’s standard Test playing conditions schedule each match over five days.
- The toss: the captains toss a coin, and the winner decides whether to bat or field first. Once that choice has been passed on to the other captain and the umpires, it cannot be changed.
- Ending an innings: an innings is over when the batting side is all out, or when its captain declares. Under the Laws, a captain may declare in any innings except the last one of the match.
- Follow-on: if the side batting first has a big enough lead once both first innings are complete, it may require the other side to bat again straight away.
How a Test Is Won
Under Law 16, a side wins a two-innings match by making more runs than the opponents scored in their two completed innings. If every innings has been completed and the totals are level, the match is a tie. A match that ends without a win or a tie is a draw.
ODI Cricket: The One-Day Format
One Day Internationals sit between the other two formats in length.
- Innings: each side bats once, and each innings is capped at 50 overs.
- Duration: one day is scheduled. Countries playing a series may agree to set aside a reserve day, so that an unfinished match can be replayed or carried on.
- Bowling limit: the ODI conditions put a ceiling on how many overs any single bowler may deliver in an innings.
- Result: the side with more runs wins. Level scores lead to a Super Over, and the ODI conditions also provide for a no result.
T20 Cricket: The Short Format
Twenty20 Internationals are the shortest of the three formats.
- Innings: each side bats once, and each innings is capped at 20 overs.
- Duration: one day is scheduled, with the same reserve-day option that applies in ODIs.
- Bowling limit: as in ODIs, the T20I conditions cap the number of overs one bowler may deliver in an innings. With a 20-over innings, that cap is lower than in an ODI.
- Result: the side with more runs wins, and the same Super Over and no-result rules apply.
Ties, Super Overs and Interrupted Matches
The ODI and T20I playing conditions share several procedures.
- Super Over: when the scores finish level, the teams play a Super Over to find a winner. If that is also tied, further Super Overs are played unless exceptional circumstances prevent it. If they cannot be played or completed, the match is a tie.
- DLS: when time lost to a stoppage means overs have to be cut, the Duckworth/Lewis/Stern method sets a revised target for the side batting second.
- Minimum overs: a result can only stand once each side has had the chance to bat for a minimum number of overs, as set in the playing conditions. Otherwise the match is a no result.
- Fielding restrictions: an inner fielding area is marked on the ground. During set phases of an innings, only a limited number of fielders may stand outside it when the ball is delivered.
What All Three Formats Share
The three formats follow the same Laws, so many basics are identical.
- Each side has eleven players.
- An over is six valid deliveries, bowled from each end in turn, and no bowler may bowl two overs in a row.
- The methods of dismissal are the same, including bowled, caught, LBW, run out and stumped.
- The pitch measures 22 yards long, with a wicket of three stumps and two bails at each end.
- Runs, boundaries, byes, leg byes, no balls and wides are scored under the same Laws.
Comparing Test, ODI and T20 at a Glance
- Test: two innings per side, no overs limit, five scheduled days under the standard Test conditions, and the result can be a win, a tie or a draw.
- ODI: one innings per side, up to 50 overs each, one scheduled day, with DLS, Super Over and no-result procedures.
- T20I: one innings per side, up to 20 overs each, one scheduled day, with the same limited-overs procedures as an ODI.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why can a Test match end in a draw?
Under the Laws, a match that ends without either side winning, and without a tie, is a draw. In a Test, that happens when the scheduled days run out before either result has been reached.
How many overs are in an ODI and a T20 match?
The ICC playing conditions cap each side’s innings at 50 overs in an ODI and at 20 overs in a T20 international.
What does T20 stand for?
T20 is short for Twenty20. The ICC’s playing conditions for the international format are titled Twenty20 International, and its playing conditions page uses the short form T20I. Each side’s innings in the format is capped at 20 overs.
