Cricket Darts Rules: How to Play Cricket | Oche

Cricket is the most popular darts game after X01 — a tactical, cat-and-mouse contest where you race to claim seven targets while denying them to your opponent. It rewards accuracy and strategy far more than raw scoring power, which is why it is a pub and league favourite worldwide.

The targets

Cricket ignores most of the board. Only seven targets are in play:

• The numbers 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20
• The bullseye (outer bull 25, inner bull 50)

Darts that land anywhere else score nothing.

Opening and closing numbers

Each target needs three marks to be “opened”:

• a single = 1 mark
• a double = 2 marks
• a treble = 3 marks (opens a number in a single dart)

The bull is the exception: the outer bull is one mark, the inner bull counts as two marks. Once you have opened a number, it is yours. When your opponent also lands three marks on it, the number is closed and neither player can score on it again.

Scoring points

Here is the heart of the game: after you open a number, any extra hits on it score points equal to its face value — until your opponent closes it.

For example, if you have opened the 20 and then hit a treble 20, you score 60 points. Keep hitting your open numbers and you build a lead, but linger too long and your opponent will simply close those numbers to shut down your scoring.

How to win

The first player to close all seven targets wins — but only if they are level or ahead on points. If you close everything while trailing, you have to keep scoring on a still-open number until you catch up. This points rule is what stops the game becoming a pure race and forces real strategy: do you build points on an open number, or close your opponent’s big scorer first?

Common strategy

• Lead with the 20 and 19 — they score the most, so control them early.
• Close, don’t chase — if your opponent is piling up points on the 20, closing it is often worth more than opening a fresh number.
• Use trebles — three marks in one dart is the fastest way to open or close.

The Cricket scorer tracks every player’s marks and points, highlights who is ahead and shows exactly which targets are still open — so you can focus on strategy, not bookkeeping.