What is the Death Over in Cricket?
Death Overs in One Day and T20 cricket are the final few overs of an innings. The Death Overs are characterised by aggressive batting. Find out more about Death Overs here!
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The “Death Over” in limited-overs cricket refers to the final over of an innings. “Death Overs” refer to the final stages of an innings in the shorter formats of cricket. Limited-overs cricket are matches that can be completed in one day. The longer forms of the game take place over several days, anywhere from two days to five days.
SportsBoom explains how the “Death Overs” work in different forms of limited-overs cricket. We rank the top ten “Death Overs” batsmen and bowlers in Indian Premier League (IPL) history.
Death Overs in Limited-Overs Cricket
| Format | Number of Overs Per Match | Death Overs |
| T20 Cricket | 20 Overs (120 balls) Per Innings | Last 5 Overs |
| One Day Cricket | 40/50 Overs (240/300 balls) Per Innings | Last 10 Overs |
| Multiday Cricket | 100/90/80 Overs Per Innings | N/A |
What are the Death Overs in Limited-Overs Cricket?
The “Death Overs” in limited overs cricket are the final few overs in an innings. The “Death Overs” are the last ten overs in One-Day International (ODI) cricket (50 overs) and the final four overs in T20 cricket (20 overs). These last overs are when the batting team accelerates their run rate to set a high target.
These “Death Overs” occur at the end of the chasing team’s innings as they attempt to reach the target the opposition set. Batsmen increase the tempo and risk of their shots as they look for boundaries (fours and sixes). The “Death Bowlers” will try to restrict the batsmen from scoring quickly by varying their bowling.
Top 10 Most Death Overs Wickets in Indian Premier League (IPL) History
| Rank | Bowler | Wickets | Economy | Strike-Rate | Average | Dots |
| 1 | Dwayne Bravo | 102 | 9.74 | 10.93 | 17.75 | 345 |
| 2 | Lasith Malinga | 90 | 7.83 | 10.19 | 13.29 | 323 |
| 3 | Bhuvneshwar Kumar | 85 | 9.45 | 13.73 | 21.62 | 350 |
| 4 | Jasprit Bumrah | 80 | 8.39 | 13.94 | 19.50 | 379 |
| 5 | Harshal Patel | 63 | 10.25 | 9.71 | 16.59 | 207 |
| 6 | Mohit Sharma | 61 | 10.18 | 10.90 | 18.52 | 188 |
| 7 | Sunil Narine | 60 | 7.99 | 12.32 | 16.42 | 277 |
| 8 | Mohammed Shami | 58 | 10.70 | 9.76 | 17.41 | 166 |
| 9 | Chris Morris | 55 | 8.56 | 10.65 | 15.20 | 187 |
| 10 | Kagiso Rabada | 52 | 9.77 | 9.35 | 15.21 | 181 |
Stats Correct as of 15/10/2024
Wickets and dot balls are gold in T20 cricket. A bowler’s economy rate is important, but their average is not as important as ODI and Test match cricket. Dwayne Bravo is one of the best and most prolific bowlers ever between 17 and 20 overs in the Indian Premier League. The West Indies bowler is the only player to reach one hundred wickets. Bravo has also bowled the second-most dot balls (345). Bhuvneshwar Kumar has taken the third-most “Death Over” wickets and bowled the most dot balls in IPL history.
Image Credits: Rashid Khan (X Account)
What is a Death Bowler?
“Death Bowlers” bowl the final few overs of an innings. These bowlers are often the team’s best bowlers, or bowlers best suited to the match situation and conditions. The pressure is always intense at the end of an innings. If the pitch is quick, fast bowlers bowl the “Death Overs”. If the wicket is slow and turning, slow and spin bowlers will bowl at the death.
It does not matter the type of surface the game is being played on or the situation; “Death bowlers” bowl slower balls, slower-ball bouncers, bouncers, and yorkers. Spin bowlers mix their variations. They bowl googlies, doosras, leg-breaks, off-breaks, top-spinners, and arm balls to make it harder for the batsmen to score freely.
Top 10 Most Death Overs Runs in Indian Premier League (IPL) History
| Rank | Batsman | Death Runs | Innings | Strike-Rate | Fours | Sixes |
| 1 | MS Dhoni | 2,786 | 172 | 189.01 | 211 | 175 |
| 2 | Kieron Pollard | 1,708 | 117 | 181.50 | 110 | 127 |
| 3 | Dinesh Karthik | 1,565 | 117 | 186.98 | 142 | 91 |
| 4 | AB de Villers | 1,421 | 75 | 232.56 | 106 | 112 |
| 5 | Ravindra Jadeja | 1,420 | 130 | 159.73 | 104 | 69 |
| 6 | Rohit Sharma | 1,176 | 75 | 196.66 | 94 | 79 |
| 7 | Hardik Pandya | 1,126 | 78 | 183.99 | 76 | 82 |
| 8 | Virat Kohli | 1,099 | 69 | 200.91 | 78 | 71 |
| 9 | Andre Russell | 1,065 | 63 | 203.63 | 78 | 93 |
| 10 | David Miller | 985 | 75 | 177.16 | 70 | 60 |
Stats Correct as of 15/10/2024
Who are the Best Death Overs Batsmen in the IPL?
There have always been destructive batsmen, but some players made “Death Batting” an art form. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, AB De Villiers, and Kieron Pollard were known as the “Kings of the Death Overs” in the Indian Premier League and changed the way batsmen played in the “Death Overs” of limited overs cricket, not only T20.
The “Death Overs” in the IPL are the final four overs of an innings. MS Dhoni is the master finisher in T20 cricket for his “Death Overs” batting. He has scored the most runs and the most fours and sixes during this period of cricket in the IPL. AB de Villiers, one of the best batsmen in all formats of all time, has the fourth-most runs, the highest strike rate, and third-most sixes in IPL history. Dhoni and De Villiers are unrivalled batting at the death.
Kaylan Geekie is a sports fanatic. He attended Durban High School before moving to Scotland, where he lived for 15 years. During his time in the United Kingdom, Kaylan graduated with a first-class BA Honours Degree in Sports Journalism at the University of the West of Scotland. Kaylan worked for nine years as the Match-Day Editor of SuperXV.com, reporting on Super Rugby, The Rugby Championship, the 2015 Men's Rugby World Cup and the 2017 British & Irish Lions series for the website.