The layman's guide to NatWest T20 Blast

    THE ABSOLUTE ESSENTIALS

• Most group games are on Friday nights (70% to be precise)
• There are 11 Gameweeks in the group stages beginning every Friday from May 16
• 18 teams are split into 2 groups: SOUTH & NORTH
  • Each team will play 14 group matches - playing:
    • 6 teams in its group home and away
• 2 teams in its group home or away
• Points: 2 for a win, 1 for a tie or no-result, 0 for a loss
• The top four teams from each group (North & South) will qualify for the Quarter-finals
• Semi-Finals & the Final are played on Sat 23 Aug at Edgbaston (unless it rains, in which case it’ll be on the Sunday)

  A BIT MORE DETAIL SHOULD WE NEED IT

  Quarter-final draw:

  • The top four teams from each group will qualify for the Quarter-finals.
    • The team finishing top in each group will receive a home draw in the quarters and play against the team finishing fourth in the opposite group.
    • The team finishing second in each group will receive a home draw and play against the team finishing third in the opposite group.
    • It gets a little complicated should teams be tied on points – have a look below if this happens!
    • The draw for the semi-finals is out of a hat

   STUFF YOU NEED TO KNOW SHOULD IT GET COMPLICATED

  • Tie-breakers for teams finishing on equal points (for places in the Quarters) are:

  -           a) The team with the higher net run-rate* in the Group Matches will be placed in the higher position

  -           b) In the event that teams cannot be separated by (a), this will be done by drawing lots.

  -           * A team’s net run-rate is calculated by deducting from the average runs per over scored by that team, the average runs per over scored against that team.

  -           In the event of a team being all out in less than its full quota of overs (e.g. bowled out in 16.4 overs), the calculation of the net run-rate of both teams shall be based on the full quota of overs to which the batting team would have been entitled and not on the number of overs in which the team was dismissed.

  -          Only those matches where results are achieved will count for the purpose of net run-rate calculations. Where a match is abandoned, but a result is achieved under Duckworth/Lewis, for net run-rate purposes Team 1 will be accredited with Team 2’s Par Score on abandonment off the same number of overs faced by Team 2. Where a match is concluded but with Duckworth/Lewis having been applied at an earlier point in the match, Team 1 will be accredited with 1 run less than the final Target Score for Team 2 off the total number of overs allocated to Team 2 to reach the target.