The Grand Cricket Appraisal

With the sheer variability of cricketing conditions - from the pitch to the weather conditions - affecting cricket scores, putting some sort of yardstick or benchmark for what determines good team scores, batting and bowling in the three forms of the game might sound like sheer stupidity.

But I’m embracing that stupidity and making a list of yardsticks for the fun of it, knowing very well how subjective it is.

There is a mild degree of objectivity in these yardsticks though. And in some ways one can use these yardsticks as a very broad thumb rule for the success or failure of teams and individuals.

OK here’s the Grand Cricket Appraisal

These are what I consider good or bad scores for teams:

Test

Lousy
100-200

Average
200-300

Good
300-400

Very Good
400-500

Outstanding
500+



ODI

Lousy
100-200

Average
200-250

Good
250-300

Very Good
300-350

Outstanding
350+



T20

Lousy
100-120

Average
120-150

Good
150-180

Very Good
180-200

Outstanding
200+

And here are what I consider good batting averages for individual players (for ODIs and T20s strike rates are essential too)

Great Test Batsman
Average – 50+
Strike Rate – N.A.

Great ODI Batsman
Average – 40+
Strike Rate 100+

Great T20 Batsman
Average – 35+
Strike Rate 140+

And for bowlers:

Great Test Bowler
Average – below 25
Economy Rate – N.A.

Great ODI Bowler
Average – below 25
Economy Rate – below 6

Great T20 Bowler
Average – below 20
Economy Rate – below 8

All comments, tomatoes, rotten eggs, suggestions, solutions, opinions invited