Talk:Batting order (cricket)

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[edit] Established order

"The order in which the 11 players will bat is established prior to the commencement of a cricket match, but can be changed at the captain's discretion"

What does it mean to be established? Is there any limit to the number and nature of changes the captain may make?

Must the second innings match the first in batting order?

(In baseball since the 19th century, a formal exchange of batting orders occurs before the first inning and neither side may vary the order throughout the game. Very early, the batting order was certainly determined only on the first pass, as many as three innings, and the rules for following the order from inning to inning were a little complicated.) --P64 20:55, 1 September 2006 (UTC)

"Established" really just refers to there being an "expected" order to the batting line-up. The batting order will be determined based on where the captain/coach thinks each player will make the most runs or benefit the team best. Some batsmen will have been chosen for the team to fill particular positions in the line-up.

There are no rules about changing the batting order. The batting order for the two innings need not match either. It has even been known for a captain to completely reverse his batting order for the seconds innings of a game when following on!

There are various reasons that the batting order might change from the "expected":

• When a wicket falls near the end of the day, a nightwatchman might get sent in
• A batsman might be injured and unable to bat. The batsman may return further down the order if he recovers or if the situation of the game requires it. For example, if a game is nearly won and a top order batsman has a niggle, he may not want to risk going in unless he is needed, so a few batsmen who usually bat lower than him may go in first.
• In some circumstances, if a player has been off the field during the opposition's innings for a long time, then he is not allowed to come in to bat until a certain number of overs have passed.
• The situation in a game might dictate that a particular type of batsman is required at the crease. For example, in the last few overs of a limited-overs game, a batsman who is known to make runs quickly might be sent in out of turn.

Often, however, captains and coaches prefer not to adjust the batting order unless necessary as it can have a destabalising effect.

Ollie 16:51, 16 November 2006 (UTC)