Frank Duckworth, one of the creators of the Duckworth-Lewis method used in limited-overs cricket to adjust target scores in the event of interruptions due to weather, has passed away at 84.
In partnership with fellow statistician Tony Lewis, Duckworth formulated the system, which was officially sanctioned by the International Cricket Council in 1999.
The Royal Statistical Society in London acknowledged Duckworth’s significant contributions, both to the society as the editor of RSS NEWS, and to the world of cricket as the co-creator of the Duckworth-Lewis method.
Duckworth presented a brief paper titled “A fair result in foul weather” at an RSS conference in 1992, inspired by the chaotic conclusion of the 1992 World Cup semi-final between England and South Africa in Australia. During that match, a brief rain shower led to perplexing calculations that resulted in South Africa facing an impossible target of 22 runs off one ball.
Duckworth’s presentation sparked a collaboration with Lewis, and they collaborated on an equation that was initially implemented during the second game of England’s one-day series versus Zimbabwe in 1999.
After being adjusted slightly by Australian statistician Steven Stern, the method was rebranded as the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method in honor of the contributions of all three individuals following the retirements of Duckworth and Lewis.
