T20 Cricket Rules: Know All About Rules in T20 Cricket

T20 Cricket Rules: Once opposed by a large group of cricket pundits, the T-20-over game, today, has become the most popular and loved the format of cricket. 

In a bid to make the game fast-paced and exciting to watch, T20 cricket led to its evolution and in-no time grabbed eyeballs. T20 cricket was first introduced by England and Wales Cricket Board, as the first-ever T20 tournament was played between county teams in 2003.

The first international T20 match was played between Australia and New Zealand in the year 2005 in Auckland. Both the teams were seen wearing jerseys of the 1980s.  

Gradually, other nations adapted to the format as two years later, ICC organised first ever T20 World Cup in South Africa in 2007. A young team led by MS Dhoni took everyone by surprise, winning the title after beating Pakistan in the final.

Once hesitant to even send the team in the T20 World Cup, India, today, has become the biggest ambassador of T20 cricket, courtesy the cash-rich Indian Premier League.

Perhaps, it won’t be wrong to say that T20 cricket has become the most popular amongst all three formats and Test cricket is losing its essence- something which hasn’t gone down well with the purists of the game.

As many as 6 T20 World Cups have been played so far. West Indies has been the most successful team in the format, winning the title twice. They are also the defending champions having won the title 2016 after beating England in the final.

T20 cricket has also been credited for the revival of the game and attracting a new audience. What has attracted the most is the fact the game gets completed in about three hours and runs in a fast pace motion.

Here’s a look at the rules in T-20 cricket:

The rules of the T20 cricket have been evolved over time. Following are all the rules and regulation followed by cricketers while playing T20 cricket:   

• As opposed to 50-over cricket, a T20 cricket match involves 20 overs per side. Each team gets to bat 20 overs and whosoever makes the most runs in their respective innings wins the game.
• A T-20 cricket game must be completed in about 3 hours. The bowling side is given a maximum of 90 minutes to complete their quota of overs- One of the most important rules in T20 cricket.
• Another rule in T20 cricket states that once a batsman is out, the batsman coming next must reach to the crease within 90 seconds. Not following this would lead to his or her suspension.
• The rule in T20 cricket regarding a bowler bowling 4 overs per game is highly applicable. One bowler can bowler at max. fours overs in a game.
• In a bid to encourage big hitting by the batsmen, fielding rule in T20 cricket states that the only two fielders are allowed outside the circle in the powerplay overs, while 5 fielders are allowed outside the circle in the remaining 14 overs.
• Much like the rule in 50-over cricket, the super-over rule also applies in T20 cricket. If a match ends in a tie, it will then go down to the super over and whosoever wins the game will eventually be termed as victorious.

T20 World Cup Results:

The first T20 World Cup title was won by India in 2007, beating Pakistan by 5 runs in the final.   

Pakistan won the following edition in 2009. They locked horns with Sri Lanka and eventually won the game by 8 wickets.

England won their first-ever World Cup title after beating Australia in the finals of the 2010 T20 World Cup.

The 2012 edition of the T20 World Cup saw a new World Cup winner in West Indies. They won the title after beating Sri Lanka in the finals by 36 runs  

Having reached twice in the finals of previous editions, Sri Lanka finally lifted the 2014 edition of the T20 World Cup, beating India in the final by 6 wickets.  

West Indies became the most successful team in the World Cup after winning the 2016 edition of the T20 World Cup. They are currently the defending champions.