Batting order

The batting order is the sequence in which a team's eleven players bat, from the two openers to the number eleven.

The order is usually described in three parts. The top order, positions one to three, faces the new ball and sets the platform. The middle order, four to seven, builds on it or rebuilds after early wickets, and in limited-overs cricket includes the finisher who attacks at the death. The lower order, eight to eleven, is the bowlers, the tail, whose runs are a bonus. A wicketkeeper who bats and an all-rounder or two are what lengthen the order, and a long batting line-up is the insurance policy that lets a side attack without fear.

The order is a plan, not a law. Captains promote a hitter when quick runs are needed, hold back a batter who plays spin well until the spinners come on, or send a nightwatchman in late in a day's play. In T20 cricket, where one batter might face 40 balls and another four, deciding who faces which bowler is much of the game.

In Masterstroke: you set the order on the team sheet and can change it mid-innings, and each batter's ratings for pace, spin and the big shot tell you where he belongs.