Current run rate (CRR) shows how quickly a team has scored so far. Required run rate (RRR) shows how quickly the chasing team must score from the balls remaining to reach its target. Both are measured in runs per over, but they answer different questions.
A side can have a healthy current run rate and still be falling behind a demanding target. Reading the two numbers together helps explain why a chase that looks comfortable can suddenly become difficult.
What is current run rate in cricket?
Current run rate is the team’s total runs divided by the overs it has faced, expressed correctly as a fraction of six-ball overs. It includes extras because it measures the whole innings, rather than an individual batter’s scoring.
CRR = runs scored × 6 ÷ legal balls faced.
Suppose Team A finishes on 180 in a full 20-over match. Team B therefore needs 181 to win. At 90/2 after 10 overs, Team B has faced 60 legal balls. Its current run rate is 90 × 6 ÷ 60 = 9.00 runs per over.
The wickets column does not enter this formula. For help reading the rest of that display, see our guide to how to read a cricket scorecard.
What is required run rate in cricket?
Required run rate is the runs still needed to win divided by the overs remaining. Use the winning target, not simply the opposition’s total.
RRR = runs needed × 6 ÷ legal balls remaining.
In the same chase, Team B needs 181 − 90 = 91 more runs, with 60 legal balls left. Its required run rate is 91 × 6 ÷ 60 = 9.10 runs per over.
That is slightly higher than its current rate of 9.00. Repeating the first ten overs exactly would take Team B to 180, level with Team A, rather than to the winning target of 181.
Required run rate vs current run rate: the chase compared
| Measure | At 90/2 after 10 overs |
|---|---|
| Current run rate | 90 runs from 10 overs = 9.00 |
| Required run rate | 91 needed from 10 overs = 9.10 |
| What the comparison means | The chase needs a slightly faster scoring rate from here. |
Now let Team B score 50 runs across the next five overs without losing another wicket. At 140/2 after 15 overs, its CRR rises to 140 ÷ 15 = 9.33. It needs 41 from 30 balls, so its RRR falls to 8.20. A productive passage has reduced the remaining task.
If it instead makes only 30 in those five overs, it reaches 120/2. Its CRR drops to 8.00, while 61 needed from 30 balls gives an RRR of 12.20. These are alternative paths in the same hypothetical chase, not real match results.
How do you calculate run rate at 12.3 overs?
The notation 12.3 means 12 completed overs and three legal balls, or 75 balls. It equals 12.5 overs mathematically, not 12.3 decimal overs. The remaining allocation in a 20-over innings is 45 balls, written as 7.3 overs.
If Team B is 110/3 at that point, CRR = 110 × 6 ÷ 75 = 8.80. With 71 needed from 45 balls, RRR = 71 × 6 ÷ 45 = 9.47, rounded to two decimal places.
The MCC Laws of Cricket, Law 17 specify six valid balls per over. As explained in our guide to cricket extras, wides and no-balls do not consume one of those six balls. Their runs still increase the team total, so they can improve CRR and reduce RRR without reducing the legal balls remaining.
What can run rates tell you about a chase?
A required rate below the current rate means the remaining scoring pace can be lower than the innings average so far. It does not guarantee victory. Two teams on the same score after the same number of balls have identical rates even if one has lost two wickets and the other eight.
Wickets in hand, the batters at the crease, remaining bowlers and conditions affect how achievable the task is. A dot ball raises RRR because time has been used without reducing the runs needed. A boundary usually lowers it, though the exact change depends on the match situation.
If rain changes the target or innings allocation, recalculate using the official revised figures. The ICC’s explanation of the DLS method describes why interruptions can require adjusted targets. Comparing CRR alone does not replace that calculation.
Neither number is tournament net run rate. NRR compares scoring and conceding rates across the matches that count, while CRR and RRR describe the current innings and chase.
Required run rate vs current run rate FAQs
These current run rate and required run rate questions cover the most common calculation mistakes and scoreboard situations.
1. Can current run rate be shown in the first innings?
Yes. CRR describes scoring speed in either innings. RRR is normally used during a chase, once a winning target and remaining ball allocation are known.
2. Does losing a wicket change required run rate?
The wicket itself is not part of the formula. If it falls on a legal dot ball, RRR rises because one ball has gone. The loss also makes the chase harder in ways the rate cannot measure.
3. Is required run rate the same as runs needed per ball?
No. RRR is runs needed per six-ball over. Divide it by six for the average runs needed per legal ball. Needing 12 per over means an average of two per ball.
4. What happens to required run rate when the chase ends?
Once the target is reached, there is no remaining scoring requirement. If the allocation ends with runs still needed, the chase is over; do not calculate a new rate by dividing by zero.
