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ICC condoles demise of DLS method co-developer Tony Lewis

Lewis, one of the men behind the DLS method used in weather-affected limited-overs cricket matches, passed away on Thursday at the age of 78.

ICC condoles demise of DLS method co-developer Tony Lewis

(Photo: Twitter/@Sportsgriduk)

The International Cricket Council condoled the demise of Tony Lewis, the co-developer of the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) method.

Lewis, one of the men behind the DLS method used in weather-affected limited-overs cricket matches, passed away on Thursday at the age of 78.

“Tony’s contribution to cricket is huge. The present day system of resetting targets in international cricket is based on the one developed by him and Frank more than two decades ago,” said ICC General Manager Geoff Allardice in a statement on ICC’s website.

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“His contribution to the game of cricket will be remembered for years to come and we send our condolences to his family and friends,” he added.

Tony with fellow mathematician Frank Duckworth had developed the Duckworth-Lewis method which was introduced in 1997 and adopted officially by the ICC (International Cricket Council) in 1999. However, the name was later renamed to Duckworth-Lewis-Stern Method after Steven Stern became the custodian of the method in 2014.

The mathematical formula continues to be used in rain-reduced limited overs cricket games across the globe.

The big difference between Duckworth-Lewis and previous methods was that it gave credit to sides defending a target for taking wickets as well as chasing sides for scoring runs. Significantly, this meant the target could be adjusted proportionately in the event of more than one stoppage.

An enduring criticism of the system is that it is difficult to understand without having access to a chart that shows where teams need to be over by over, for however many wickets they have lost. But the sight of a D/L target soon became a familiar feature on cricket scoreboards around the world.

(With agency inputs)

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