Frank Duckworth passes away at the age of 84

Frank Duckworth, co-creator of the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) method, passed away at the age of 84 on June 21. His collaborator, Tony Lewis, had previously passed away in 2020 at the age of 78.

The Duckworth-Lewis method, developed by Duckworth and Lewis, revolutionised cricket by providing a fair way to determine outcomes in rain-affected matches. Initially used in international cricket in 1997, it became the ICC's standard for setting revised targets in shortened games from 2001 onwards.

Most recently, the method was applied in the ongoing T20 World Cup, ensuring fair play as Afghanistan secured their first-ever semifinal spot after defeating Bangladesh in a match affected by rain.

Before its inception, cricket faced challenges in adjusting run chases during weather-interrupted limited-overs matches, highlighted by the infamous 1992 World Cup semi-final where South Africa was set an impossible target of 22 runs off one ball due to rain.

"I realised that it was a mathematical problem requiring a mathematical solution," Duckworth recalled in a 2007 interview, prompted by criticism from cricket commentators like Christopher Martin-Jenkins.

Following Duckworth and Lewis's retirement, the method was refined and renamed the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method, incorporating adjustments by Australian statistician Steven Stern.

Both Duckworth and Lewis were honoured with MBEs (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in June 2010 for their contributions to cricket.

The DLS method relies on intricate statistical analysis, considering factors such as remaining wickets and lost overs, to establish a revised target for the team batting second, ensuring fairness in rain-affected matches.