How to Create a Cricket Run Rate Graph in Excel

Cricket played at village level in summer.

The game of cricket lends itself to statistics and graphs. Often these images can help us understand the flow and pace of the game, so creating your own run rate graph, or Worm, as commentators sometimes call it because of the shape of the graph, can be rewarding whether you follow cricket on television or you play at a local level. On top of that, it is a great way to familiarize yourself with Microsoft Excel, which is such a useful program in other walks of life.

Things You'll Need

• Cricket scorecard

Instructions

1. Enter your data from a cricket scorecard into Excel. Use two columns. Call your first column "Overs", and enter the overs 1,2,3 until the end of the innings in the boxes below it. "Runs" will be the name for your second column, next to the first. Enter how many runs were scored in the corresponding over.

2. Create a third column, which you can call "Average runs per over." Adjacent to the first over, you will want the graph to display average runs per over at the end of each over. Here you need to enter a formula, but Excel will help you with this. Go to Insert, and insert a function. Choose "Average." Select the data in "Runs per over" up to the end of that over, and then click "OK" when you have selected it.

3. Repeat this step with each over. It's vital that as you work your way down the columns that you include all the data from every over played up to that point. For example, suppose your runs scored are in column B and your first over is in row 2. If you want the average runs per over for the first over, you will select only the runs scored in the first over--that is to say box B2. For your second over, to get the average you will need to select boxes B2 for the first over and B3 for the second in your formula square. This continues on every line so that the final entry in the "Average runs per over" column contains the data from every over until this point.

4. Create a chart. You have all your data together, so click and select all the figures and titles of your "Runs" and "Average runs per over" chart. On the top row of options, click on "Insert," and select "Insert Chart."

5. Follow the Chart wizard in Excel. A line chart is the clearest for run rates, so choose this option. Under the data range tab, make sure your series is in columns at the next step of the wizard, and under the series tab, you have the chance to rename the two lines of your graph, known as Series 1 and 2. To keep it clear call Series 1 "Runs" and call Series 2 "Average runs per over."

6. Add more details to complete your graph. You can choose to name your axes; call the x axis (the horizontal line) "Overs" and the y axis (the vertical line) "Runs" for clarity.

Tips & Warnings

• You also have the option at the final stage to give your graph a name, athough what you call it is entirely up to you.

References

• dangermouse.net: Cricket Statistics