Quantifying individual performance in Cricket - A network analysis of Batsmen and Bowlers

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Quantifying individual performance in the game of Cricket is critical for team selection in International matches. The number runs scored by batsmen and wickets taken by bowlers serves as a natural way of quantifying the performance of a cricketer. Traditionally the batsmen and bowlers are rated on their batting or bowling average respectively. However in a game like Cricket it is always important the manner in which one scores the runs or claims a wicket. Scoring runs against a strong bowling line-up or delivering a brilliant performance against a team with strong batting line-up deserves more credit. A player's average is not able to capture this aspect of the game. In this paper we present a refined method to quantify the `quality' of runs scored by a batsman or wickets taken by a bowler. We explore the application of Social Network Analysis (SNA) to rate the players in a team performance. We generate directed and weighted network of batsmen-bowlers using the player-vs-player information available for Test cricket and ODI cricket. Additionally we generate network of batsmen and bowlers based on the dismissal record of batsmen in the history of cricket - Test (1877-2011) and ODI (1971-2011). Our results show that M Muralitharan is the most successful bowler in history of Cricket. Our approach could potentially be applied in domestic matches to judge a player's performance which in turn pave the way for a balanced team selection for International matches.