One innings per side means each team has one scheduled batting innings. It does not mean the entire match contains only one innings. The whole-match count is found by adding the scheduled innings for both sides.
What “per side” counts
The phrase “per side” uses the team as the denominator. In a one-innings-per-side arrangement, Side A receives one innings and Side B receives one innings. Therefore, the match has two scheduled team innings in total. Neither side has two; the match as a whole has two.
The MCC Laws allow a match to be arranged with one or two innings per side, with that arrangement agreed before play. Innings normally alternate, although the Laws also recognise situations such as a follow-on or forfeiture. See the MCC Law on innings for that rule boundary.
Hypothetical schedule and calculation
Hypothetical example: the agreed arrangement gives each side one innings. The schedule is:
| Stage | Team | Scheduled innings |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Side A | 1 |
| 2 | Side B | 1 |
Output: Side A has one scheduled innings, Side B has one scheduled innings, and the whole match has 1 + 1 = 2 scheduled team innings.
Now compare an ordinary two-innings-per-side arrangement: A, B, A, B. The calculation is 2 innings for Side A + 2 innings for Side B = 4 scheduled team innings. That means four in the match, not four for each side.
Scheduled count versus actual completion
These are scheduled opportunities, not a guarantee of completed play. If an archive lists only Side A’s innings, that absence alone does not establish whether Side B never started or whether the archive is incomplete. Compare the agreed schedule with the actual innings records; leave the completion count unknown when the records do not support it.
Thus, always state the denominator: “one innings per side” describes each team; “two innings in the match” describes the combined schedule. Competition playing conditions may modify how a particular match operates.