Duckworth-Lewis Calculator — Cricket Rain Rule Target
Work out the revised target under the Duckworth-Lewis (D/L) method when a one-day cricket match is shortened by rain. Enter team 1's score, team 1's overs, and the overs available to team 2 — the calculator applies the published 2002 resource table to set a fair target.
runs
overs
overs
overs
Team 2 must reach this score to win
- 1
Team 1 resource (R1)
Z0[0] × (1 − e^(−b[0] × 50)) = 97.82Published D/L coefficients: Z0[0] = 100, b[0] = 0.0765. - 2
Team 2 resource (R2)
Z0[0] × (1 − e^(−b[0] × 30)) = 89.92 - 3
Resource ratio (R2 ÷ R1)
89.92 ÷ 97.82 = 0.9193 - 4
Revised target
⌈250 × 0.9193⌉ + 1 = 231
How does this calculator work?
D/L target = ceil(Team1_score × R2/R1) + 1. R1 is team 1's resource (typically ~97.8 for 50 full overs), R2 is team 2's resource after rain using the formula Z(overs_left, wickets_lost) = Z0[w] × (1 − e^(−b[w]×overs)). Resources reflect overs AND wickets, so a fair target is set even when the chasing team loses both.
Formula
How this is calculated
The Duckworth-Lewis method, first published in 1998 and revised in 2002 by Frank Duckworth and Tony Lewis, addresses a fundamental problem in limited-overs cricket: a team chasing a target that has been interrupted by rain faces a different challenge depending on how many overs and wickets remain. Simply scaling the target by the overs ratio ignores that wickets in hand are also a resource.
Each team starts with a "resource percentage" — the fraction of the theoretical maximum runs they could score given their overs and wickets. For the starting team with 50 overs and 10 wickets, this is taken as 100% (actually 97.82% in the formula, but the ratio is what matters). The formula Z(u, w) = Z0[w] × (1 − e^(−b[w]×u)) gives the resource for u overs remaining and w wickets already fallen, using published coefficients calibrated on historical ODI data.
The revised target is T2 = ceil(T1 × R2/R1) + 1, where R1 is team 1's resource and R2 is the resource available to team 2. If team 2 has MORE resources than team 1 (rare — usually when team 1's innings was also interrupted), an additional G50 term applies; that case is not implemented here. For official matches the ICC uses the updated D/L-S (Stern) method with revised coefficients — this calculator uses the original 2002 DL table as an educational reference.
Frequently asked questions
A team with 40 overs left and 10 wickets in hand can score far more than a team with 40 overs left and 8 wickets gone — even though the overs are the same. Wickets are a resource: losing them early forces caution. The D/L method captures both dimensions simultaneously by treating (overs, wickets) as a two-dimensional resource that both teams must compare fairly.
The D/L-S (Duckworth-Lewis-Stern) method, adopted by the ICC around 2014, uses updated resource coefficients recalibrated on a larger and more modern dataset. The core formula and philosophy are identical; only the Z0 and b coefficients differ slightly. This calculator uses the original 2002 DL coefficients as a publicly-documented educational reference.
No. Official ICC-sanctioned matches require the certified D/L-S spreadsheet, which is licensed and uses proprietary updated coefficients. This calculator is for understanding and estimating — always defer to the official on-field scorers and the licensed software for any real match.
Also known as
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. (2026). Duckworth-Lewis Calculator — Cricket Rain Rule Target [Online calculator]. TG we-Calculate. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/duckworth-lewis-calculator
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. "Duckworth-Lewis Calculator — Cricket Rain Rule Target." TG we-Calculate. 2026. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/duckworth-lewis-calculator.
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team, "Duckworth-Lewis Calculator — Cricket Rain Rule Target," TG we-Calculate, 2026. [Online]. Available: https://we-calculate.com/calculator/duckworth-lewis-calculator
@misc{wecalculate_duckworth_lewis_calculator, title = {Duckworth-Lewis Calculator — Cricket Rain Rule Target}, author = {{TG we-Calculate Editorial Team}}, howpublished = {\url{https://we-calculate.com/calculator/duckworth-lewis-calculator}}, year = {2026}, note = {TG we-Calculate} }
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