Batting Averages in Cricket: How They Work and What They Mean
The batting average is cricket's most fundamental statistic — total runs scored divided by the number of times dismissed. This guide explains how batting averages are calculated, why they differ between formats, the significance of high averages, and why Don Bradman's 99.94 is considered the greatest statistical outlier in sport.
A batting average in cricket is calculated by dividing the total number of runs a batsman has scored by the total number of times they have been dismissed. If a batsman scores 1,000 runs across 20 completed innings (i.e., 20 times dismissed), their average is 50.00. Not-out innings — where the batsman remains unbeaten at the end of an innings — do not count as dismissals in the denominator. This means that batsmen who frequently bat at the end of an innings (lower-order players) can have inflated averages due to high not-out percentages.
What Makes a Good Average
Test batting averages above 50 are considered exceptional — only a handful of batsmen in Test history have sustained an average above 50 across 50+ Tests. An average of 40-50 is very good; 35-40 is competent for a top-order Test batsman; below 30 signals a batsman struggling at Test level. In T20 cricket, averages are less meaningful because of the higher proportion of not-outs — a T20 average of 35 with a strike rate of 140 is excellent; the same average with a strike rate of 100 is ineffective.
Averages Across Formats
Batting averages differ significantly between formats and should not be compared directly. Test averages are generally the most meaningful measure of batting quality because Tests involve the most deliveries, the most varied conditions, and the most time for statistical regression to mean. ODI averages for batsmen are typically 5-10 lower than their Test averages — the pressure of run-rate management and wicket preservation affects batting freely. T20 averages are the least reliable indicator of batting quality because sample sizes are small and not-outs heavily distort the denominator.
Strike Rate vs Average
In limited-overs cricket, strike rate (runs per 100 balls) is increasingly considered alongside or above batting average as the key efficiency metric. A T20 player who averages 45 at a strike rate of 110 is less valuable than one who averages 35 at a strike rate of 160 — because the lower average is offset by scoring runs much faster. Modern franchise cricket analytics combine average and strike rate into composite metrics (e.g., runs per match, value over replacement player) that account for both.
Frequently asked questions
How is batting average calculated in cricket?
Batting average = total runs scored ÷ total innings dismissed (not total innings). A batsman who scores 1,500 runs across 30 dismissals has an average of 50.00. Innings where the batsman is not out do not count as dismissals — so a batsman with 10 not-outs from 30 innings has only 20 dismissals in their denominator.
What is Don Bradman's batting average?
Don Bradman's Test batting average is 99.94 — scored across 52 Tests and 80 innings. Bradman needed just 4 more runs in his final Test to retire with an average of 100, but was dismissed for a duck in his last innings. His average is 38% higher than the next-best sustained average in Test history.
What is a good batting average in Test cricket?
A Test batting average above 50 is exceptional — only a handful of batsmen in history have sustained this. An average of 40-50 is very good; 35-40 is competent for a specialist top-order batsman; below 30 signals difficulty at Test level. These benchmarks apply only to specialist batsmen — all-rounders and lower-order contributors have different expectations.