Cricket, Luck and The International Monetary Fund

Two economists at the International Monetary Fund have just released an interesting paper on the role of luck in cricket and the potential connections to the labor market. They looked at the records of test cricketers who debuted between 1950 and 1985 and found that if a batsman started his career at home, their batting average in the first series was raised 33 percent. (Bowlers had similar amounts of success.)

Read the paper in full. I’m not so sure about the conclusions the authors make about labor markets in general (that is, unconnected to cricket), but I’m fully on board when they talk about luck and cricket. As regular readers know, I’ve long suggested that the value that sets cricket apart is its reliance on fortune and fate.

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4 thoughts on “Cricket, Luck and The International Monetary Fund

  1. Som says:

    I want a proper survey on the impact of the cheerleaders on the batting averages of certain left-handers.

  2. vks says:

    Thank you for ur post

    Best catch i ever seen in the cricket..Best catch in the IPL
    http://mysportscorner.co.cc/

  3. […] here: Cricket, Luck and The International Monetary Fund « Ducking … Share this on FacebookShare this on del.icio.usDigg this!Share this on RedditStumble upon something […]

  4. AllThatShoeShah says:

    Nice article on the labour market and luck. But, what is it that pushes performance, even on debut? Is it the Mongoose, is it the captain’s prodding, is it a shoes? Here is a shoe that is about to make it to IPL — changing those white shoes forever erasing the last vestiges of traditional cricket in IPL — and change performance for bowlers and fielders: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQztJV9Qm6E

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