Cricket betting rain rules work in two layers: the playing conditions decide whether a rain-hit match has a result, and each market's own betting rule decides whether your bet stands or is refunded. In men's internationals, the ICC's conditions effective from October 2026 give a rain-hit one-day international (ODI) a result only if each side could bat 20 overs. A T20 international needs 5 a side, and short of either minimum the match is a no result.
Online bookmakers write their own rain clauses, so check the rule types below against your own terms. The clause numbers quoted are from the NSW Bookmaker Declared Betting Events Betting Rules, the rule book for NSW-licensed bookmakers with authority to take sports bets. Every bet described is placed before the first ball, and every score and price is illustrative.
Abandoned, no result or reduced overs: which one you have
Three questions, asked in order, sort any rain-hit match:
- Was a ball bowled? If not, the match was abandoned before it began, and under the NSW rules every bet on it is void, even if the toss had taken place (clause 5.2.2.1(a)).
- Did both sides have the chance to bat the minimum overs? If not, a one-day or T20 match is a no result (ICC clause 16.1.3), and bets not already decided are refunded (NSW clause 5.2.2.3(a)).
- Were overs cut along the way? Then the match was reduced but still has a result, often on a revised target, and each market's clause decides your bet.
| Outcome | What happened | Match bets | Bets already decided |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abandoned without a ball | Play never started | Refunded | Refunded as well |
| No result | Started, but short of the minimum overs | Refunded | Stand |
| Reduced overs | Overs cut, result reached | Settle on the official result | Stand |
A bet is decided once nothing later can change it: an innings over that has already passed its line, or a first-wicket bet once the wicket has fallen.
A reserve day changes the timing, not the rule. Where the countries have agreed one (ICC ODI and T20I clause 13.6.1) and the match moves to it, play resumes as if the last ball had just been bowled (13.6.3). The NSW rules carry undecided bets over (clause 5.2.2.3(f)). Abandoned and postponed matches covers postponements across sports.
Minimum overs: when a rain-hit match still counts
The minimum belongs to the competition. Cricket betting compares the formats.
| Format | Overs each side must be able to bat | If rain stops it sooner |
|---|---|---|
| Men's ODI | 20, under ICC clause 16.1.2 | The match is a no result |
| Men's T20 international | 5, under ICC clause 16.1.2 | The match is a no result |
| Men's Test | None | It is drawn unless won or tied (ICC Test clause 16.3.2) |
| BBL | 5, under clause 16.1.2 of Cricket Australia's 2024-25 BBL playing conditions | The match is a no result |
| Other leagues, women's internationals | Whatever their own conditions say | Check that season's document |
A side bowled out, or a chase won, inside the minimum still makes a result. BBL betting dates each Big Bash rule to its season.
Your bet can have a minimum of its own. The NSW rules want 20 overs completed in a one-day match and 5 in a Twenty20, or bets not decided when the match ends are refunded (clause 5.2.2.3(a)). That rule type pays on the official result only once its own minimum is met; the other common type follows whatever result the competition declares. For a league with a format of its own, read both.
DLS betting rules: how a revised target settles match bets
Once rain takes overs after the start, the chasing side's target is reset by the DLS method. It is always a whole number, so falling exactly one run short ties the match (ICC ODI clause 16.4.1.1). If that innings stops for good after the minimum overs, the DLS par score at that moment decides the match (16.4.2.1). Either way the DLS result is the official result, and match bets follow it.
Example: an ODI. Team A makes 8/263 in 50 overs, and rain at the break cuts Team B's innings to 40 overs. On the Standard Edition table the ICC publishes as its fallback, Team A had 100% of its resources and Team B has 89.3%. So the target is 263 x 89.3 / 100 = 234.86, rounded down to 234, plus 1 = 235. Illustrative scores and prices: in a real match the ICC's DLS software sets the target, and it would differ.
| How the match ends | Official result | $50 on Team A at $1.60 | $50 on Team B at $2.45 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Team B reaches 6/236 in 38.2 overs | Team B by 4 wickets (DLS) | $0 | $122.50 |
| Team B finishes on 9/234 | Tie, then a super over | Follows the super over | Follows the super over |
| Rain ends play at 3/118 after 20 overs | Team B by 13 runs (DLS par 105) | $0 | $122.50 |
| Rain ends play at 1/97 after 17 overs | No result | $50 back | $50 back |
The par in the third row: 20 overs left with 3 wickets down is 49.1% on the table, so Team B had used 89.3 - 49.1 = 40.2%. Par = 263 x 40.2 / 100 = 105.7, rounded down to 105. Team B won while 145 runs behind on the scoreboard, and the ICC's methodology states a par result in runs whichever side wins, which matters for a line bet.
The tie row depends on your rule. Under the NSW rules a one-day match bet follows the super over unless the market offered a tie price, in which case bets on either side lose (clauses 5.1.2 and 5.1.7). In a Twenty20 they leave the super over out (clause 5.2.2.3(h)).
Player and innings markets in a shortened match
Runs markets react most to rain, because a line set for a full innings is suddenly measured over fewer overs. Two rule types are common:
- Settled on what happened: the bet stands on the runs actually scored. The NSW rules work this way for a team's innings runs, even when the innings is shortened, and void the bet only if the match ends with no official result (clause 5.2.2.3(g)).
- Void if overs are reduced: the bet is refunded when the innings it covers is cut after you placed it, in some terms only once the cut passes a set number of overs.
Four pre-match bets settle like this in the first ending:
| Bet | Settled on what happened | Void if overs are reduced |
|---|---|---|
| $20 on Team A over 249.5 innings runs at $1.90 (263 made before the rain) | Returns $38 | Returns $38: that innings was never cut |
| $20 on Team B over 254.5 innings runs at $1.90 | Loses $20, with 236 scored | $20 back |
| $20 on Team B under 254.5 innings runs at $1.90 | Returns $38 | $20 back |
| $20 on Team B's opener over 33.5 runs at $1.85, who makes 41 | Returns $37 | $20 back |
Under the first type rain is not neutral: a cut after you bet tilts the line towards the under, though a shortened innings was never a fair test of it.
Risk: Betting involves risk. An under that a rain cut would help can still lose if the overs are played. See responsible gambling for limits and support.
Top batter and top bowler bets run on the revised overs under the NSW rules. The most runs or wickets across the overs bowled wins if an official result is declared, and the bets are void without one (clauses 5.2.2.3(b) to (e)). Top bowler is also void unless a bowler takes a wicket. In the example Team A's bowlers could bowl 8 overs each instead of 10, one-fifth of 40 (ICC ODI clause 13.9.2).
Test matches: a washout is a draw, not a no result
A Test has no minimum overs and no revised target: rain just shrinks the time left. When it runs out with no win or tie the result is a draw (ICC Test clause 16.3.2), even after only a session of play. Under the NSW rules, rain voids a Test match bet only if not one ball is bowled (clause 5.2.2.1(a)).
Once a ball is bowled, the same washout settles differently by format:
| Bet placed before the first ball | ODI: no result | Test: drawn |
|---|---|---|
| $30 on Team A to win at $1.70 | $30 back | Loses $30 |
| $30 on the draw at $3.60 | No draw market | Returns $108 |
| Team A innings runs, over or under | Void if the washout cut that innings with no official result (NSW 5.2.2.3(g)); stands if that innings was already complete | Settles on the runs made, finished or not; void only if no ball was bowled in that innings (5.2.2.4(e)) |
| Top batter | Void with no official result (5.2.2.3(b) and (c)) | Stands, unless no run is scored off the bat (5.2.2.4(a) and (b)) |
Test cricket betting covers pricing the draw before the match.
Mistakes that cost money when rain hits
| Mistake | What it cost in the examples | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| Taking an innings over at the full-length line when rain is forecast | $20 lost on Team B over 254.5, with 236 made from 38.2 overs | Read the reduced-overs rule first, or leave runs bets alone |
| Treating a Test washout as a refund | $30 on Team A lost when the Test was drawn | Price the draw, or take a draw no bet market, which refunds on a draw at a shorter price |
| Backing the side batting first because of a big total | $50 on Team A lost to a side 145 runs behind | Price in a DLS finish when rain is forecast |
| Backing a chasing side to win a wet ODI on DLS | Team B's 1/97 after 17 overs earned only a refund | Short of 20 overs a side, rain can only refund the bet |
Risk: Betting involves risk. Reading the rules first does not stop a bet losing. See responsible gambling for limits and support.
Three rain clauses to check before comparing prices
Before comparing bookmakers on a rain-threatened match, read three clauses in each one's terms: the minimum overs for match bets, what a cut innings does to runs bets, and how a tie on a revised target settles.
When a match is on B337's Terminal, its sports board shows head to head, line and total markets with each bookmaker in its own column. The best available price is picked out, and matching each bookmaker's rain clause stays your job. Coverage varies by bookmaker and by match. Prices are read on a repeating cycle, so confirm a price in your own account before acting on it. A free account opens a limited view of the Terminal with live odds.
Risk: Betting involves risk. Rain can refund a bet that was winning, settle another on a few overs of cricket, or turn a strong position into a loss on a revised target, and there is no guarantee of profit. See responsible gambling for limits and support.