What is the Power Play and Power Surge in Cricket?

The power play is a period of a limited overs game, usually at the start of the game, where the bowling side is allowed fewer fielders outside the 30 yard “circle” than normal. It’s designed to encourage aggressive play by the batting side, making the game more exciting to watch.

In many limited overs games, the bowling side is only allowed a certain number of players outside a line that runs round the field 30 yards from the nearest stumps. The number of players varies by competition, but is commonly four in women’s matches and five in men’s matches. (In womens’ matches, the circle is usually reduced to 25 yards from the wicket.)

Many competitions have a “Power Play” period at the start of the game where only two fielders are allowed outside the circle. For example, the “Power Play” is usually the first 10 overs of a one-day international game, six overs in a T-20 game and 25 balls in The Hundred.

The idea of the Power Play is to reduce the likelihood that batters start the game slowly, trying to assess the conditions (such as the bounce on the pitch) and “play themselves in” as normally happens in a first class multi-day match. This could reduce the appeal of a limited overs game to spectators. Having fewer fielders makes it safer to attempt to hit the ball to the boundary. It can tempt some teams to open their batting with players who are “big hitters” and try to score as many boundaries as possible, with little or no effort to avoid risk and worry about losing their wicket quickly.

Some competitions have an additional period of fielding restrictions later in the game, with the batting team able to decide when to take them. For example, Australia’s Big Bash League only has a four-over “Power Play” at the start of the game, but the batters can designate a two-over “Power Surge” at any point from the 11^th over.

The PowerPlay doesn’t always have the expected results. For example, the bowling team may choose to use slower bowlers such as spinners during a Power Play, giving less momentum for a batter to hit the ball to the boundary.  The results of the Powersurge can also depend on who is batting at the time. If only lower order (less skilled) batters remain, they may feel the need to play riskier shots to take advantage of the opportunity and wind up scoring at a lower rate or losing several wickets.