This is Part 1 of Sports Explained, our 12-part series of simple guides to the rules of the sports Indians love.
Cricket is unusual: the same sport is played in three very different formats, lasting anything from about three hours to five days. Here is how each one works.
Test cricket: the original format
- Duration: Up to five days, with about 90 overs scheduled each day. An over is six legal deliveries.
- Innings: Each team bats twice. There is no limit on overs per innings; a team bats until 10 batters are out or the captain declares.
- Results: A team wins by bowling the opposition out twice for fewer runs. If time runs out before that happens, the match is a draw.
- Follow-on: If the side batting second trails by 200 runs or more after the first innings, the other side can make it bat again straight away.
- Ball and clothing: Players wear white and use a red ball, or a pink ball in day-night Tests.
Tests are counted towards the World Test Championship, a two-year league that ends in a final.
One Day Internationals (ODIs)
- Overs: 50 per side, played in a single day.
- Balls: Two new white balls, one from each end, until the 34th over; from the 35th over, only one ball is used.
- Powerplays: Fielding restrictions in three phases, with only two fielders allowed outside the 30-yard circle in the first ten overs.
- Results: One side wins, or the match is tied or abandoned. Rain-shortened games use the DLS method. See Part 4: The DLS Method.
The ODI World Cup is held every four years. India won it in 1983 and 2011.
T20 cricket
- Overs: 20 per side, usually about three and a half hours in total.
- Powerplay: The first six overs, with only two fielders outside the circle.
- Ties: Decided by a Super Over, one over each, repeated until there is a winner in most major tournaments.
- Leagues: T20 powers franchise leagues like the IPL. See Part 5: How the IPL Works.
India have won the men's T20 World Cup in 2007 and 2024.
Quick comparison
- Test: Tests skill, patience and endurance. Draws are possible.
- ODI: A balance of building an innings and attacking at the end.
- T20: Big hitting from ball one, and the most popular with new fans.
Meet the stars who excelled across formats in our series Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli.
Rules are explained as they stand in October 2026. Governing bodies update their rules regularly, so check the latest official regulations for any competition.
Next in the series: Part 2: How Cricket Is Played.
