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If the team batting second in cricket scores significantly fewer runs than the team batting first, the second-batting team may be required to "follow-on," or begin their second innings immediately after the end of the first. The first team to bat has the option of enforcing the follow-on in an effort to hasten the end of the second team's innings and thus decrease the likelihood of a tie.

Conventional Order Subsequent Events 1. The batting order is: 1. The batting team. 2. Runner-up batting team 2. Crew batting second in a double-header 3. The batting team. 3. The second-batting team 4. Batting second team 4. The batting team.

Only in cricket formats where each team bats twice per game (most notably domestic first class cricket and international Test cricket) does the follow-on occur. A match cannot be decided in these variants of cricket until all three innings have been played. In baseball, a tie is the only possible outcome if fewer than three innings have been played by the time the game is called.

The captain of the team that bats first has the final say on whether or not the follow-on is enforced, taking into account the score, the relative strengths of the two teams, the weather and the pitch, and the amount of time left in the innings.

Law 14 of Cricket's Laws outlines the conditions under which the follow-on can be used.

Example [ edit ]

India won the toss and elected to bat first in the second test during their 2017 tour of Sri Lanka. After batting second, Sri Lanka was forced to follow-on when they scored less than 200 runs short of India's first innings total. India triumphed over Pakistan by an innings and 53 runs.

1. India's score of 622/9 was not enough to defeat
2. The final score for Sri Lanka was 183.
3. For the record, Sri Lanka finished with a score of 386 runs.

In the first match of the same series, Indian captain Virat Kohli had the opportunity to enforce the follow-on but chose not to. India triumphed by 304 runs.

1. The Indian Team's Score was 600.
2. With 291 runs scored and all out, Sri Lanka was defeated.
3. India's score of 240/3 was not enough to prevent a dec
4. With a total of 245 runs, Sri Lanka was eventually eliminated.

Very little head start [ edit ]

When determining the required margin of victory for the defending team to enforce the follow-on, Law 14 of the Laws of Cricket[1] factors in the remaining time in the match.

• Whenever the duration of a match is five days or more, the team batting first has the option of forcing the other team to follow-on if they have a lead of at least 200 runs. [a]
• A lead of at least 150 runs is needed to win a three- or four-day match.
• A hundred-run cushion in a two-day game.
• At least 75 runs ahead in a one-day match

If a match is postponed by more than one day, e g , the necessary point margin for the follow-on to be enforced is lowered due to the weather. However, the necessary score lead to enforce the follow-on does not change if the match's duration is reduced after it has already begun.

Enforcement [ edit ]

The captain of the team in the lead decides whether or not to implement the continuation. As standard theory would have it, the logical conclusion is always enforced Mike Brearley addresses this issue briefly in his seminal book The Art of Captaincy, concluding that the benefits are "overwhelming." [2]

1. Mainly, the follow-on is enforced to avoid a tie. If the chasing team is batting last, they can afford to bat cautiously and waste time in an effort to avoid losing the game, but the follow-on gives them extra time, making this strategy more challenging.
2. Since the chasing team has posted a lower score and the pitch condition usually worsens as the game progresses, the follow-on can add to the pressure they are already under.

However, there are a few obstacles to enforcing the subsequent clause:

1. Simply put, bowlers get tired after two consecutive innings, and it's not always easy to get rid of a team in their second inning. On January 17–23, 1958, Pakistan and the West Indies played the first test of their series. Pakistan batted second and was eventually dismissed for 106 runs after the West Indies declared at 579. On the third day of the six-day match, Pakistan was asked to follow-on, and Mohammed Hanif batted for 970 minutes, scoring 337 runs, and ultimately securing a draw. [3]
2. The defensive team's chances of winning are improved if the follow-on is not enforced. When the defending team has a large lead after the first inning, they can effectively end the game by scoring enough runs and/or extending the game so that the chasing team cannot catch up. While this may increase the odds of a tie, it may also discourage the chasing team from continuing to play.
3. When the pitch has deteriorated and spin bowling is more effective, batting last is usually a disadvantage.

There may have been a shift away from mandatory follow-ons in Test cricket in recent years. For example, former England captain Andrew Strauss batted first in his second innings on multiple occasions. However, it has achieved some noteworthy victories, such as at Lord's in the 2009 Ashes series. In this match, England batted again after Australia had already declared after falling behind by 210 runs in their first innings. They then set Australia an improbable victory target of 522 runs, which Australia promptly failed to achieve, and won the game by a large margin Even though it may have had more to do with wanting to give Shane Warne a chance to bowl on a deteriorating pitch later in the game, Australian captains Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting were also noticeably hesitant to enforce the follow-on. With the risk of tiring his fast bowlers, Michael Clarke only once in his career as captain (in his final match in the 2015 Ashes) enforced the follow-on, despite holding a substantial first innings lead.

Not all victories are meant to be followed up on. [ edit ]

Competitions for the purpose of testing [ edit ]

Kingsmead, South Africa, 1950; Australia vs. South Africa

Over the course of a four-day Test (with one day off in the middle), South Africa won the toss, elected to bat, and scored 311. Hugh Tayfield, an off-spinner, took 7-23 as South Africa took a 236-run lead after the first innings. This was thanks to the fact that Australia was bowled out for just 75 runs. Dudley Nourse, South Africa's captain, decided not to call a follow-on due to the possibility of rain, and his team struggled in their second innings, ultimately losing by 99 runs. Australia scored 336 runs in 123 overs largely due to Neil Harvey's unbeaten 151. To win by 5 wickets in 6 overs.

Top-tier competitions [ edit ]

Afghanistan vs. Canada, 2010 ICC Intercontinental Cup, Sharjah

When Canada won the toss and elected to bat, they put up 566 runs before being bowled out for 264 in response, giving them a 302 run lead after the first innings. Canadian wicketkeeper/captain Ashish Bagai declared when his team was on 191-4 after 40 overs, giving Afghanistan a target of 494 runs. Bagai had to retire hurt earlier in the innings. Mohammad Shahzad, Afghanistan's wicketkeeper, scored 214 not out as his team triumphed by six wickets with a final score of 494.4. [4]

Consecutive victories for both sides [ edit ]

Practice Games [ edit ]

Only three times in the history of Test cricket has a team that was given a follow-on innings and went on to win. Australia, by the way, was swept in their three matches.

1894-95 Ashes [ edit ]

Australia scored 586 runs in the first innings of the First Test at Sydney, with Syd Gregory and George Giffen each scoring 201 runs. They then bowled out England for 325 runs in their second innings. The English response was 437, giving them a lead of 176. At the end of play on the fourth day, Australia was 113 for 2, and they appeared to be the winners. In contrast, England's slow left-arm bowlers, Bobby Peel and Johnny Briggs, were nearly unplayable the following morning after heavy rain fell overnight (in those days, pitches were not covered between days of play). England bowled out Australia for 166, a victory by 10 runs[5]; they went on to take the series, 3 games to 2.

A Test by Botham: England vs. Australia, Headingley, 1981 [ edit ]

England's Ian Botham struggled as captain against Australia's 1981 tour. Dennis Lillee, Terry Alderman, and Geoff Lawson made up a formidable pace attack for the Australian team, which was ranked second only to the great West Indies team of the time. Botham stepped down as captain following a loss and a draw in the first two games of the six-game Ashes series this summer.

For the third Test, played at Headingley, Botham's replacement, Mike Brearley, took over as captain. After a disastrous start in which Australia scored 401 (John Dyson 102, Kim Hughes 89, but Botham 6-95), they bowled England out for 174 (Lillee 4-49, Lawson 3-32), and then asked England to follow on. Botham's 50 (his first as captain since 13 games ago) was the lone bright spot in an otherwise disappointing innings. Botham came to bat for England in their second innings when the team was 105 for 5. The situation did not improve, as Geoffrey Boycott and Bob Taylor soon followed; England were 135/7 and still trailing by 92 runs; a loss by an innings appeared likely.

Both teams, it seemed, had given up hope at that point in the game. The odds against England winning the Headingley Test at Ladbrokes were infamously 500-1. Botham reportedly said, "Right then, let's have a bit of fun" when Graham Dilley joined him at the crease. With the help of the lower order, Botham made 149 not out to give England a slim lead of 129. Australia's total collapsed to 111 after an inspired Bob Willis took 8 for 43 the following day. [6]

Eden Gardens, 2001, India vs. Australia [ edit ]

Australia scored 445 in the first innings of the second Test and limited India to 171; only V. V. S. Laxman (59) and Rahul Dravid reached 25 runs. Australia had won their previous 16 Test matches, including the first of the three Test series between the two teams[7]. Harbhajan Singh's bowling was India's only ray of hope; he finished with 7 wickets for 123 runs, including three wickets in one over (Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist, and Shane Warne). The subsequent measure was subsequently enacted in Australia.

Soon after the third day's play ended, Laxman came to the crease and set a new record for runs scored by an Indian batsman in a Test match with 281. He did the bulk of his damage while batting with Dravid (180 runs), with whom he spent the entire fourth day at the crease. India's second innings ended with a score of 657/7 (a lead of 383), and they declared just before lunch on the fourth and final day of play. This left Australia with insufficient time to reach the total and avoid defeat. Australia had 161/3 by tea, and a draw looked like the most likely outcome. Then, in a matter of minutes, Australia lost five wickets for a total of eight runs in just 31 balls. Two of the first three wickets fell to Harbhajan in the same over, and then Sachin Tendulkar struck for three in quick succession. In the end, India prevailed after Australia was bowled out for 212 in the second innings. Even though Harbhajan took 7 wickets in the first innings and 6 for 73 in the second, Laxman was deemed the game's best player. India's 171-run win was the largest of the three following-on Test victories (both of England's victories were by less than 20 runs). And no team has ever declared their second innings and gone on to win before. With Laxman scoring half-centuries in both innings and Harbhajan being named man of the series for taking 32 wickets, India led by Sourav Ganguly won the third test and the series. [9]

Premier League contests [ edit ]

The match between MCC and Surrey took place on the 22nd to the 24th of July, 1847. [ edit ]

At The Oval in 1847, the MCC lost to Surrey by 197 runs in a three-day match after being bowled out for 91 runs. By scoring 216 and then bowling Surrey out for 101, the MCC secured a nine-run victory thanks to the prevailing Laws of the Game. This was the very first time a team had ever won after being given a following-on in first-class cricket. [11]

Championship match between Warwickshire and Hampshire in 1922 [ edit ]

Hampshire's total of 15 in reply to Warwickshire's 223 in a three-day match in 1922 at Edgbaston is the seventh-lowest score for a completed first-class innings. This match lasted for a total of three days. Warwickshire imposed the follow-on, and Hampshire responded by scoring a record 521 runs and then bowling out their opponents for 158, resulting in a 155-run victory for Hampshire. In 2022, Hampshire's first innings total of 15 will still stand as the lowest in county history and the lowest for a completed innings by a team that won the match.

History [ edit ]

• In 1744, there was not a single provision in place.
• The first documented instance of this occurred in 1787, when a team was required to bat again in the first inning if it was trailing after the first half of play (known as following on if the team batting second was behind).
• Adopted as law in 1835; mandatory after falling behind by 100 runs
• Forcible in 1854 after an 80-run deficit
• In 1894, a deficit of 120 runs made it mandatory.
• 1900: Made optional after a three-day match falls behind by 150 runs, a two-day match falls behind by 100 runs, and a one-day match falls behind by 75 runs.
• In 1946, the batting side was able to declare after scoring 300 runs on the first day thanks to the provisions of the Experimental Law.
• 1951: Any time a side wanted to, they could declare.
• Articles of the Supreme Court of the United States, 1957 As per the agreement with the opposing captain, no declarations were to be made.
• Suspended from the County Championship in 1961, but reinstated the following year in 1963. [13]
• When the score is down by 200 runs in a five-day match, 150 runs in a three- or four-day match, 100 runs in a two-day match, or 75 runs in a one-day match, the batsmen have the option of declaring a draw.

Different Games [ edit ]

Follow-ups are used in a variety of ways in casual baseball games. [14]

Bibliography [ edit ]

References [ edit ]