In a T20 cricket match, what is the maximum number of overs a bowler can bowl?

In a Twenty20 (T20) match, each innings has 20 overs, and a bowler can bowl no more than one-fifth of them, that is, a maximum of 4 overs (24 legal balls).

Why the limit exists: it ensures that at least five bowlers are used in each innings, so that no single bowler can dominate the match.

Bowling limits in other formats:

• One-Day Internationals (50 overs): 10 overs per bowler.
• The Hundred (100 balls): 20 balls per bowler.
• Test matches: no limit.

Other key T20 rules:

Powerplay: during the first 6 overs, only 2 fielders are allowed outside the 30-yard circle. After that, up to 5 fielders may be outside.

Each innings must be completed within a fixed time. From 2022, the ICC introduced an in-match penalty for slow over rates: if a team is behind schedule, one fewer fielder is allowed outside the circle for the rest of the innings.

A free hit is awarded after every no-ball.

If a match is tied, a Super Over decides the winner.

A minimum of 5 overs per side is needed for a result in a rain-affected match.

History of T20 cricket:

• T20 cricket began as a professional format in England in 2003, in the domestic Twenty20 Cup.
• The first men's T20 International was played on 17 February 2005 between Australia and New Zealand at Auckland.
• India played its first T20I in December 2006 against South Africa in Johannesburg, and won it.

The first ICC World Twenty20 was held in South Africa in 2007, and India won it under M. S. Dhoni. India won its second T20 World Cup title in 2024 under Rohit Sharma.

The Indian Premier League (IPL), the most popular T20 league in the world, began in 2008.

Why not the other options?

• ✗5 overs is the minimum per side needed for a result in a shortened T20 match.
• ✗6 overs is the length of the powerplay.
• ✗10 overs is the maximum per bowler in an ODI.