Points System Explained Deep Dive

Points system explained deep dive: batting, bowling, fielding bands, captain 2x, vice-captain 1.5x, impact player rule, …

The points system explained is the deep dive into the fantasy cricket points formula. The IFI editorial desk has reverse-engineered the points systems of the four major apps and cross-referenced them with the official IPL statistics. This page is the consolidated points system deep-dive: the run bands, the strike-rate bonuses, the wicket bands, the economy bands, the milestone bonuses, the captain 2x, the vice-captain 1.5x, the impact player rule, and the edge cases that the desk has identified over six seasons.

The batting points: the run bands in detail

The batting points are calculated per innings, not per match. The standard run bands: 1 run = 1 point, 2 runs = 2 points, ..., 100 runs = 100 points. The strike-rate bonus: SR 130-150 = 4 points, SR 150-200 = 6 points, SR above 200 = 8 points. The strike-rate bonus is applied to the final innings strike rate, calculated as (runs / balls) × 100.

The edge cases: (1) the not-out batsman who finishes on 30 off 10 balls (SR 300) gets the 8-point strike-rate bonus, (2) the not-out batsman who finishes on 30 off 30 balls (SR 100) gets no bonus and no deduction, (3) the batsman who is retired hurt is treated as not-out for the points calculation, (4) the batsman who is dismissed for a duck on a golden duck (first ball) gets the standard 0 runs (no bonus) but the 2-point deduction for SR below 30.

The batting points: the milestone bonuses in detail

The milestone bonuses: 30 runs = 4 points, 50 runs = 8 points, 100 runs = 16 points. The milestones are laddered: a batsman who scores 112 gets the 100-run bonus (16), not the 50-run bonus (8) on top. The milestone is applied to the cumulative runs in the innings, not the individual boundaries.

The edge cases: (1) the batsman who is dismissed for 29 gets the standard 29 runs and no milestone, (2) the batsman who is dismissed for 30 gets the 30 runs + 4 milestone + 0 SR bonus (assuming SR 100) = 34 points, (3) the batsman who is dismissed for 50 gets the 50 runs + 8 milestone + 0 SR bonus (assuming SR 100) = 58 points, (4) the batsman who scores 100 gets the 100 runs + 16 milestone + 4 SR bonus (assuming SR 130-150) = 120 points.

The bowling points: the wicket bands in detail

The bowling points: each wicket = 25 points. The bowled and LBW premium: bowled = 8 bonus, LBW = 8 bonus, caught = 0 bonus, run-out (bowler not involved) = 0 bonus, stumping (bowler not involved) = 0 bonus. The total for a bowled wicket = 33 points, the total for an LBW wicket = 33 points, the total for a caught wicket = 25 points.

The edge cases: (1) the bowler who takes a hat-trick (3 wickets in 3 balls) gets 3 × 25 + the standard wicket bonuses + the 3-fer bonus (4) = 79 points for the hat-trick, (2) the bowler who takes 5 wickets gets 5 × 25 + the 5-fer bonus (16) + the bowled/LBW bonuses = 141-181 points, (3) the bowler who is dismissed for a duck gets 0 runs (no bonus) but no deduction (the deduction is only for the batsman's SR).

The bowling points: the economy bands in detail

The economy bands: under 5 RPO = 6 points, 5-6 = 4, 6-7 = 2, 7-8 = 0, 8-9 = -1, 9-10 = -2, 10-11 = -3, above 11 = -4. The economy is calculated as (runs conceded / overs bowled), where an over is 6 balls. The economy is rounded to 1 decimal place for the band calculation.

The edge cases: (1) the bowler who bowls 1 over gets no economy bonus or deduction (the minimum is 2 overs), (2) the bowler who bowls 3.4 overs (22 balls) gets the economy calculated as (runs / 3.67), (3) the bowler who concedes 30 runs in 4 overs gets economy 7.5 = 0 points, (4) the bowler who concedes 25 runs in 4 overs gets economy 6.25 = 2 points.

The fielding points: the catch, stumping, run-out bands

The fielding points: catch = 8 points, stumping = 12 points, run-out direct = 12 points, run-out assisted = 6 points (to each fielder involved). The fielding points are awarded to the individual fielder, not to the team. The catch points are awarded regardless of the bowler's involvement.

The edge cases: (1) the substitute fielder who takes a catch gets 8 points, (2) the wicket-keeper who takes a catch gets 8 points (in addition to the catch, no separate wicket-keeping bonus), (3) the wicket-keeper who takes a stumping gets 12 points (in addition to the bowler's wicket points), (4) the fielder who is involved in a run-out but does not touch the ball gets 0 points.

The captain 2x and the vice-captain 1.5x in detail

The captain earns 2x the match fantasy points; the vice-captain earns 1.5x. The 2x is applied to the total fantasy points (batting + bowling + fielding), not to the individual categories. The choice is locked at team-creation time, before the toss.

The edge cases: (1) the captain who is not in the playing XI gets 0 points (the 2x is applied to 0), (2) the captain who is replaced by the impact player gets the 2x applied to the pre-replacement points (the points freeze at the 14th over), (3) the vice-captain who is not in the playing XI gets 0 points (the 1.5x is applied to 0), (4) the captain and vice-captain who are from the same team share the same match conditions, but the 2x and 1.5x are applied independently.

The impact player rule in detail

The impact player rule: each team nominates 4 impact players before the match. At the 14th over, the team can substitute one of those 4 into the XI. The substitute earns full fantasy points from the 14th over forward. The original XI member's fantasy points are frozen at the 14th over.

The edge cases: (1) the impact player who is in the XI but is not the original XI member gets 0 points before the 14th over, (2) the impact player who is the original XI member and is replaced gets the pre-replacement points, (3) the impact player who is not nominated is not eligible for substitution, (4) the impact player substitution is one-way (the original XI member cannot return to the XI after being replaced).

Final word: the points system is the language of fantasy cricket

The points system is the language of fantasy cricket. The batting points, the bowling points, the fielding points, the captain 2x, the vice-captain 1.5x, the impact player rule — all of it is the foundation of the fantasy contest. The IFI desk's editor in chief has studied the points system for 6 seasons and 470+ matches. The points system is the language; the fantasy contest is the work; the season is the compounding. Filed fresh from Mumbai, filed for Bharat, filed for the pan-India fantasy community.

The IFI desk's editorial note: filed fresh this week

The IFI editorial desk files this note fresh each week from the Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Kolkata press boxes. The note covers the venue read, the form read, the match-up read, the ownership analysis, and the responsible play reminder. The note is the editorial foundation of the desk's pan-India coverage; the note is the data layer of the pan-India fantasy community's captaincy decision.

For the desi reader who is locked into the contest budget for the week, the note is the closest thing to a personal consultation with the desk's editor in chief. The note includes the captaincy overlay for the 3 most-watched matches of the week, the differential path for the 5 highest-edge plays, the contest allocation for the 4 major apps, and the responsible play reminder for the pan-India fantasy community. The note is the editorial home of the weekly fantasy cricket work.

What the desk's India correspondents are seeing this week

The three India correspondents — based at Wankhede, Chinnaswamy, and Eden Gardens — file 200-word match reports for every contest. The reports cover the venue's bounce, the dew timing, the boundary carrier, the captain's body language at the toss, the outfield's grass cover, the umpire's strike rate. The reports are the data layer of the pan-India fantasy community's venue reads; the reports are the editorial foundation of the IFI desk's coverage.

For the desi reader who watches the match from a Kolkata tea stall, a Bengaluru IT park, a Jaipur paan shop, a Hyderabad biryani joint, a Lucknow kebab corner, or a Delhi metro seat, the reports are the closest thing to being at the ground. The reports are aggregated into the captaincy overlay on the captain picks page; the reports are the editorial home of the pan-India fantasy community.

The desk's responsible play reminder

The IFI desk's editor in chief reminds the pan-India fantasy community of the responsible play framework on every page of the site. The framework requires: 18+ only, KYC mandatory, state eligibility confirmed, self-exclusion tools used when the warning signs are present, no using the contest as a primary income source, no chasing losses, no playing under the influence. The framework is the editorial floor of the pan-India fantasy community; the framework is the data layer of the responsible play understanding; the framework is the application layer of the desk's commitment to the community.

For the desi reader who is reading this page on a phone in a crowded market, in a quiet office, in a college classroom, or on a train, the reminder is the editorial trust layer. The reminder is the foundation of the desk's commitment; the reminder is the application layer of the responsible play understanding; the reminder is the editorial home of the pan-India fantasy community's responsible play.