MVP Points in Cricket: How Man of the Match and Player of the Tournament Are Decided
How MVP points work in cricket, with a worked example: how the Player of the Match is picked, the tournament MVP table and the Player of the Tournament.
"Man of the match kaun?" In local cricket, that question can start a bigger fight than the match itself. The fifty or the three wickets? The captain's friend, or whoever argues loudest?
MVP points settle it with numbers. This guide explains how MVP points work in cricket, with a worked example, and how Criconic uses them to pick the Player of the Match, rank every player in a tournament's MVP table and name the Player of the Tournament, with a story card to share.
How is man of the match decided?
In professional cricket, a person or a panel usually picks the player of the match. In local cricket it's often the organizer, on the spot, from memory. That's where the arguments come from: a 40 off 20 balls feels bigger than three wickets, until you look at the scorecard.
An MVP (most valuable player) points system turns each player's batting, bowling and fielding into one number. The highest number wins. Everyone can see the maths, so nobody can say it was favouritism.
How MVP points work
Criconic gives every player points for each match, from the scorecard:
| For | Points |
|---|---|
| Each run | 1 |
| Fifty in an innings | +20 |
| Hundred in an innings | +50 more (on top of the fifty) |
| Scoring rate | +½ for every run above the match's scoring rate for the balls faced, −½ for every run below |
| Each wicket | 25 |
| 3 wickets in an innings | +15 |
| 5 wickets in an innings | +25 more |
| Economy | +½ for every run given away below the match's rate for the balls bowled, −½ for every run above |
| Catch | 10 (a caught and bowled is the bowler's catch) |
| Stumping | 15 |
| Run out | 15, or 8 each when two fielders share it |
The "match's rate" is what makes this fair. It's the runs per ball scored in that match, by everyone. So a quick 30 in a low-scoring box cricket game is worth more than the same 30 in a run-fest, and a tight spell counts for more when everyone else is getting hit. Points work per ball, so the system is the same for 5-over box cricket, a T20 or a Test. Super overs count too: they decide the match.
New to strike rate and economy? Our guide to strike rate, economy and average explains them.
A worked example
Take a 10-over local match where the batters scored 1.5 runs a ball between them (9 an over), and the bowlers gave away the same. At that rate, 32 balls are "worth" 48 runs, 24 balls are worth 36, and a 2-over spell (12 balls) is worth 18.
| Player | In the match | Working | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Imran | 2 overs, 3 for 14 | 3 × 25 + 15 (three wickets) + ½ × (18 − 14) | 92 |
| Rohan | 52 off 32 balls, 1 catch | 52 + 20 (fifty) + ½ × (52 − 48) = 74, + 10 for the catch | 84 |
| Sahil | 28 off 16 balls; 2 overs, 1 for 12 | Batting 28 + ½ × (28 − 24) = 30; bowling 25 + ½ × (18 − 12) = 28 | 58 |
| Karan | 20 off 24 balls | 20 + ½ × (20 − 36) | 12 |
| Dev | 2 overs, 0 for 30 | ½ × (18 − 30) | −6 |
Imran is the Player of the Match with 92 points, even though Rohan made the only fifty. Three wickets start at 90 points and a fifty at 70, so the bowler wins unless the fifty came much faster than the rest of the match. Karan's slow 20 earns only 12 points, and Dev's expensive spell takes points away.
Player of the Match on Criconic
When you score a match on Criconic, in the app or on the website, nobody has to pick the Player of the Match. When the match ends, the player with the most MVP points gets it, straight from the scorecard.
- In the app: the match's Summary shows Player of the Match with the team and the kind of performance: Batting, Bowling, All-Rounder (at least 15 batting and 15 bowling points) or Fielding.
- On the website: the scorecard shows Player of the match with their runs, wickets or catches and their MVP points.
- To share it: tap Share Player Card (WhatsApp / Instagram) under the Player of the Match in the app.
The tournament MVP table
In a tournament, every player's MVP points add up across its matches into an MVP leaderboard. Open the tournament and go to the Leaderboard tab. MVP comes first, before the batting and bowling lists.
- The top player gets a card of their own: MVP leader while the tournament is on, with their batting, bowling and fielding points side by side.
- Below come the rest of the top 50, each with their team, matches, runs, wickets and catches, and how many times they were Player of the Match.
- Players level on points are split by more Player of the Match awards, then by fewer matches.
- Every match counts, live ones included, so the table moves as matches are scored. How MVP points work at the bottom lists the points.
- On the website, the team menu above the table shows one team's players.
Matches are checked for fair play, and a match confirmed as fake is taken out of the stats and the MVP table.
MVP of the final, the knockouts or one day
Want the MVP of the final alone, or of the first weekend? Above the table, pick a Stage (like League Match, Semi Final or Final, or Knockouts for all of them) or a Day. You can pick more than one, and Clear (Clear filters on the website) goes back to the whole tournament. The stages come from the round each match was given when it was made.
The top card then shows that filter's top player, titled like MVP · Semi Final + Final. Under it, Stage MVPs and Day MVPs show the top player of each stage and each day. Tap one to see its table. The filters appear once a tournament has played more than one stage or on more than one day.
Player of the Tournament
While the tournament is on, the top of the MVP table is the MVP leader. Once it's over, it's the Player of the Tournament. As the organizer, you decide when it's over:
- In the app: the tournament's Overview tab, under Status, has End tournament.
- On the website: End Tournament at the top of the tournament page.
Ending it fixes the Player of the Tournament, even if a scorecard is corrected later. You can't end it while a match is still being played, and Reopen tournament (Reopen on the website) undoes it. If you never end it, the tournament counts as over once its last date has passed and no match is left to play. The top of the table then shows as Player of the Tournament.
The Player of the Tournament also shows on the tournament's Overview tab in the app, under Top Performers, and at the top of the Matches tab on the website.
Share the MVP story card
The top player's card has a Share card button. Anyone can tap it, so the winner can post their own. It makes a tall 9:16 image for a WhatsApp status or an Instagram story: the tournament, Player of the Tournament (or MVP leader), the player's photo, name and team, their MVP points, the batting, bowling and fielding split, and their Player of the Match awards.
How a player shares it
- In the app: open the tournament, go to Leaderboard, then MVP, and tap Share card. Tap WhatsApp Status, or the share button to save it or send it anywhere.
- Top of a stage or a day? Filter the table to it first. In the app, the card then reads like "Final MVP".
- On the website: Share card (for the whole tournament's MVP) opens your phone's share menu with the image. On a laptop it saves the image, ready to post.
Questions
How is man of the match decided?
On Criconic it's worked out from the scorecard when the match ends: every player gets MVP points for batting, bowling and fielding, and the player with the most is the Player of the Match. If two players are level, the one from the winning side gets it.
How are MVP points calculated in cricket?
On Criconic: 1 point a run, +20 for a fifty and +50 more for a hundred; 25 a wicket, +15 for three and +25 more for five; 10 a catch, 15 a stumping and 15 a run out (8 each when shared). Batters and bowlers also gain or lose half a point for each run they score or give away above or below the match's own scoring rate.
What is the difference between Player of the Match and Player of the Tournament?
Player of the Match is the top MVP points scorer in one match. Player of the Tournament is the top of the tournament's MVP table, which adds up every player's points from all its matches, once the tournament is over.
Can I see the MVP of just the final or the knockouts?
Yes. On the tournament's MVP table, pick a stage such as Final, or Knockouts for all knockout rounds, or pick a day. The table and its top player then count only those matches.
How do I share the MVP card on WhatsApp status?
Open the tournament's Leaderboard tab, choose MVP and tap Share card. In the app, tap WhatsApp Status; on the website, the card opens in your phone's share menu.