Match results
The side with more runs wins. Equal scores with every innings complete is a tie. A match that doesn't finish is a draw — unless the competition has other rules for that.
What you need to know
- If the side batting last wins, it wins by the number of wickets it had left.
- If the side fielding last wins, it wins by runs.
- A tie: every innings finished and the scores are level.
- A draw: the match ended without a win or a tie — typically when time runs out.
- The match ends the moment the result is reached. If the winning runs come from a boundary, the whole boundary counts.
- In limited-overs matches the sides must agree beforehand how to decide the result if neither side has won in the normal way — for example if rain stops play.
Examples
In some competitions — not a Law
The Super Over is not a Law. In ICC T20 internationals a tie is broken with a Super Over, repeated until there is a winner. Local tournaments use one only if the organizer says so. Points tables and net run rate are also competition rules, not Laws. View ICC T20I clause 16.3.1 →
Specific situations
Scores level at the end
Under the MCC Laws it's a tie, once all innings are complete and the scores are equal. In ICC T20 internationals a Super Over is played instead — and repeated until there's a winner. A local tournament follows whatever its organizer set.
- Law 16.5.1.
- ICC Men's T20I playing condition 16.3.1.
Not a Law: The Super Over is a playing condition, not a Law.
Source: MCC Law 16 · ICC T20I clause 16.3.1
Official source
The Laws of Cricket, 2017 Code 4th Edition (2026). Summary in Inswing's own words — follow the link for the official text.
Related: Innings · Boundaries · Basics of cricket