Cricket formats explained: Tests, ODIs, T20s and the IPL

Cricket is really three sports that share a rulebook. A Test match can last five days and still end in a draw. A one-day international takes a single day. A T20 game is over in about three hours. On top of that sit franchise leagues like the IPL. Here is how each one works and how they fit together.

The short version

• Test cricket is the longest format: scheduled for up to five days, with each team batting twice. If time runs out before a result, the match is a draw.
• One-day internationals (ODIs) give each team one innings of up to 50 overs, played in a single day.
• T20 gives each team one innings of up to 20 overs, and a match lasts about three hours.
• Franchise leagues such as the IPL in India are domestic competitions, mostly T20, with city-based teams and players from around the world. They are not international cricket.
• Each international format has its own world event: the World Test Championship final, the ODI World Cup and the T20 World Cup.

A few terms you need first

• Over: six legal deliveries bowled by one bowler. No bowler can bowl two overs in a row.
• Innings: a team's turn to bat.
• Wicket: a dismissal. A team is "all out" when 10 of its 11 batters have been dismissed.
• Declaration: in Test cricket, the batting captain can end the innings early to leave more time to bowl the other side out.

Scores are written as runs for wickets, so 287/6 means 287 runs for the loss of six wickets. In Australia the order is usually flipped, so the same score appears as 6/287.

Test cricket

In a Test, each team bats twice, and a match is scheduled for up to five days, with at least 90 overs planned for each day. Teams play in white clothing with a red ball, although some Tests are played day-night with a pink ball.

To win, a team has to dismiss the opposition twice and score more runs in total. If time runs out first, the match is a draw no matter who is ahead. That is why a team that is well behind will sometimes bat very slowly: survival is a result. A team that leads by 200 runs or more once both sides have batted once in a five-day Test can enforce the follow-on, making the other side bat again straight away.

Results are written in a few ways. "Won by an innings and 50 runs" means the winner only needed to bat once. "Won by six wickets" means the team batting last reached its target with six wickets left. "Won by 120 runs" means the team batting first won.

Test status is limited to the 12 full members of the International Cricket Council (ICC). Nine of them take part in the World Test Championship, a two-year cycle in which every Test in a series counts for points: 12 for a win, 6 for a tie and 4 for a draw. The table ranks teams by the percentage of available points won, since they play different numbers of matches. The top two meet in a final, and the current cycle's final is due in June 2027.

Since 2025, Tests have also used a stop clock: the fielding side has 60 seconds between overs to be ready, and after two warnings each breach costs five runs.

The best-known Test series include the Ashes, between England and Australia.

One-day internationals (ODIs)

In an ODI, each team bats once for up to 50 overs, and each bowler can bowl up to 10 of them. A match takes most of a day and is often played day-night, with colored clothing and a white ball.

Fielding restrictions shape the batting. In the first 10 overs, only two fielders are allowed outside a 30-yard circle. From overs 11 to 40, up to four can be outside, and in the last 10 overs up to five.

Since July 2025, each innings starts with two new balls, one from each end. After 34 overs, the fielding side picks one of them to use for the rest of the innings. An older ball helps spin and reverse swing late in the innings.

When rain shortens a limited-overs game, the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) method resets the target for the team batting second.

The ODI World Cup is held every four years. The next men's tournament is in late 2027, hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.

Twenty20 (T20)

T20 cuts the game down to 20 overs per side, with each bowler limited to four. A match takes about three hours, which makes it the easiest format to start with. The first six overs are a powerplay, with only two fielders allowed outside the circle.

If a T20 match ends in a tie, most competitions decide it with a Super Over, a one-over shootout for each team.

Every ICC member country can play official T20 internationals. The men's T20 World Cup in early 2026 was co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka, and India won it, beating New Zealand in the final in March. T20 is also the format cricket will use at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics, with six-team men's and women's tournaments.

Franchise leagues: the IPL and the rest

Franchise leagues are domestic competitions, mostly T20, with privately owned teams that sign players from around the world. Their matches don't count as international cricket, but they shape the calendar and players' careers.

• Indian Premier League (IPL): the biggest of them. Ten teams play each spring. The 2026 season ran from March 28 to May 31. Teams build their squads through player auctions, can field no more than four overseas players at a time, and can use an "Impact Player" substitute during a match.
• Big Bash League: Australia's T20 league, played over the December and January holidays.
• The Hundred: England's competition, in which each side faces 100 balls instead of 20 overs. Men's and women's matches are played side by side in the summer.
• Others: the SA20 in South Africa, the Caribbean Premier League, the Pakistan Super League, the ILT20 in the United Arab Emirates and Major League Cricket in the United States.

Women's cricket has its own leagues too, including the Women's Premier League in India and the Women's Big Bash League in Australia. Women's Tests are usually scheduled for four days.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a Test match last?

A Test is scheduled for up to five days, with around six hours of play a day. Many finish early.

What is the difference between an ODI and a T20?

Both give each team one innings. An ODI innings lasts up to 50 overs and the match takes most of a day. A T20 innings lasts up to 20 overs and the match takes about three hours.

Is the IPL international cricket?

No. The IPL is a domestic league in India. Its players come from many countries, but its matches don't count as international games.

Why can a Test end in a draw when one team is far ahead?

A team has to dismiss the opposition twice to win. If time runs out before that happens, the match is drawn regardless of the score.

With three formats and several franchise leagues, there is usually cricket on somewhere. Get Your Sports Here can send a short daily email on just the teams, leagues or players you choose, with every fact linked to its source, and you can start a briefing here. If cricket is one of several sports you follow, this guide to following multiple sports has some practical habits.