When describing a draw in cricket, most of the people who have not seen a match before or are new to cricket get confused as to what is meant by a draw in cricket.

On the other hand, the other thing makes it difficult to understand them, like other sports, American football, basketball, tennis, all these matches will be over in three to four hours.

However, how a cricket match that lasts for five days ends in a draw is what makes it unique from other games by explaining the complexity of cricket along with the different formats of cricket. 

In this post, I will give you complete information about draw, what is the concept of draw in cricket, how it relates to different cricket formats, and which matches have ended in draw.  Along with this, we will also understand draw vs. tie in cricket.

A Brief Concept of Draw in Cricket:

Let’s quickly approach the concept of draw in cricket:

The concept of a draw in cricket refers to when both or one of the teams cannot    complete their innings within the stipulated time when the game ends.

When Do Draws In Cricket Occur?

There are two cases when draw in a cricket mostly occurs:

1. A draw occurs when the batting team fails to make the required score to win the game in the fourth innings of the match and a draw occurs when the bowling team fails to bowl out the batting side in the fourth innings of the match.
2.  In the fourth inning of a match a draw occurs when the bowling team fails to bowl out the batting side. 

And even if the match is over due to the time limit before the fourth innings, it is considered to be a draw.

It is very important to note here that the draw takes place only in first class cricket matches. It should also be noted here that there is no draw in shorter formats of cricket such as 50 over cricket and 20 over cricket.

What is the difference between a draw and a tie in Cricket?

A draw and a tie in cricket are not the same things. These are two different things. Lets understand ‘how’?

 A draw in cricket is when the results cannot be reached by the end of the fifth day, usually in Test cricket, on the other hand, a tie in cricket means when both teams’ scores are equal.  

Can short formats of cricket end in draws?

As I have mentioned earlier, only first class cricket matches like test matches end in a draw.  Shorter formats of cricket, one day cricket matches do not end in a draw, 50 over cricket and 20 over cricket which are one day cricket matches have different rules for them.

There are several different ending rules for these matches, including the DLS method, Match Abundant, No Result, and, A Tie.

How can a Test Match Be A Draw?

Test cricket usually has a game schedule for a total of five days and there is no restriction on the number of overs that can be bowled. 

However, if it is not possible to get results within five days, then the match ends in a draw.

How often Do Test Matches Draw?

The number of draws in modern day cricket is very low as it used to be in the past because the pace of Test cricket has picked up in the last 20 years. For example, if we look at  the 1997 season , almost half of the tests played ended in a draw that year.

As in 15 years from 2002 to 2017, around one in four Test matches have ended in a draw, so it is not ending in such a way in the modern era.

Examples of Draws In Cricket

There are some examples of matches that ended in draw:  

South Africa vs England (1929-30)

The first many Test matches were played that ended with a time limit, but the fifth Test between England and South Africa in 1929 at Durban was the Timeless Test. 

South Africa gave England a target of 696 to win and on the other hand England reached 654 for 5 and well on their way to win the match. The match was drawn in 11 days after 10 days because otherwise the England team would have missed the boat for home which was due to leave.

India vs West indies – 2011

There have been two Test cricket matches in history in which the match ended in a draw, the second match to be played at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai was between West Indies and India in 2011/12.

India finished at 242 for nine, chasing 243 runs in the fourth innings to win the game. As the pair of ninth wickets went for the winning runs off the last ball of the game, the dismissal of India’s R Ashwin ensured that the match was drawn by a narrow margin.

England vs Australia – 2005 Ashes

During the 2005 Ashes series, there were two draws between England and Australia in the fifth match. 

In the third Test, the last-wicket pair of Brett and Glenn McGrath struck Australia for a few overs to stay within the series and the second draw took place at the Oval to confirm England had won back the Ashes.

Conclusion

Draw in cricket is frustrating and sometimes exciting, so it is a truly important part of the game. However, as we’ve seen from some examples above, it’s clear that draw in cricket has its own importance in the game, while some people find it boring.

I hope you have got knowledge about draw in cricket through this post. If you want to get more information about cricket like this then you can go to the link given below to get very easy and understandable information.