12 Best Cricket Games for Android in 2026 (Offline, IPL & Free)

The best cricket game for Android is Real Cricket if you want realistic 3D matches with licensed IPL teams. Choose World Cricket Championship 3 for a deeper single-player career, Cricket League for quick online duels (4.62 stars from 3.81 million Google Play ratings), or Hitwicket for a strategy game that says it works offline.

Every rating, price range, update date and license below comes from the live US Google Play and App Store listings. We first compared them on October 3, 2026 and re-read the Google Play and App Store figures for every pick on October 26, 2026. Google Play ratings, update dates and versions were checked again on November 9, 2026. All 12 picks are free to download, and every one sells in-app purchases, so the tables show the US price range of those purchases. The guide is for Android phones, and the tables also show which games run on iPhone. It also covers cricket games that look like Android games but are not: Cricket 26 and EA Sports Cricket (no mobile version), Real Cricket 25 and 26 (no such listings), and three games that Google Play no longer lists.

In a hurry? Jump to: which game for which player · comparison tables · Real Cricket or WCC3? · offline play: what developers say · small downloads · games that are not on Android · how we picked and verified this

Which cricket game should you install?

Pick by what you want from the game, not by position in a list.

• Realistic 3D matches with real IPL teams: Real Cricket. Its listing names seven IPL franchises and 250+ licensed players.
• A long single-player career in every format: World Cricket Championship 3, rated 4.31 on Google Play.
• Swipe controls and an AI you can tune: Real Cricket Swipe, rated 4.43.
• The widest list of licensed leagues: Dream Cricket 2025, but it has the lowest Google Play rating here (3.45).
• Quick online matches of 3 to 5 minutes: Cricket League, rated 4.62 from 3.81 million ratings.
• Light arcade cricket for a weak phone: Stick Cricket Premier League (≈34 MB) or World of Cricket (≈31 MB).
• Management instead of batting: Cricket Captain 2026 for a deep simulation, Hitwicket for a lighter mix of management and quick matches.
• Playing a friend: Cricket League (online; the listing says to play friends and family), WCC2 (offline 1v1 through Local Rivals), or real-time 1v1 in Real Cricket and WCC3.
• Play without a connection: Epic Cricket, Hitwicket and World of Cricket. Their listings say they work offline (details). Smaller names such as Smashing Cricket Games 2026 say so too (below).
• Hindi commentary: Dream Cricket and Epic Cricket (English and Hindi), WCC3 (English, Hindi, Tamil and more).
• Sachin Tendulkar's career: Sachin Saga Pro Cricket.
• The same game on iPhone: every pick except World of Cricket, which has no US App Store listing.

The 12 cricket games for Android compared (Google Play data, November 9, 2026)

The first table is the store snapshot. The second shows how each game plays, what it sells and which real teams it has. Ratings are Google's averages and move every day, so the counts matter as much as the stars.

Game	Google Play rating (ratings)	Installs	Last update	Package size	On iPhone? (US App Store)
1. Real Cricket (KRAFTON)	4.21 (1.22M)	50M+	Oct 24, 2026	≈808 MB	Yes, 4.47 (5.3K)
2. World Cricket Championship 3	4.31 (552K)	10M+	Sep 17, 2026	≈707 MB*	Yes, 3.38 (934)
3. Real Cricket Swipe	4.43 (143K)	10M+	Oct 14, 2026	≈783 MB	Yes, 4.52 (588)
4. Dream Cricket 2025	3.45 (195K)	10M+	Nov 3, 2026	≈745 MB	Yes, 4.19 (234)†
5. Epic Cricket	3.97 (200K)	10M+	Nov 6, 2026	≈406 MB	Yes, 4.50 (10)
6. Cricket League	4.62 (3.81M)	100M+	Nov 5, 2026	≈111 MB	Yes, 4.68 (27.3K)
7. Stick Cricket Premier League	4.61 (364K)	10M+	Jul 16, 2026	≈34 MB	Yes, 4.71 (4.2K)
7. Stick Cricket Super League	4.22 (259K)	10M+	Oct 25, 2026	≈48 MB	Yes, 4.71 (3.7K)
8. Sachin Saga Pro Cricket	4.01 (59.6K)	10M+	Nov 1, 2026	≈524 MB	Yes, 4.02 (113)
9. Hitwicket Cricket Game 2026	4.38 (290K)	10M+	Nov 3, 2026	≈476 MB	Yes, 4.64 (3.1K)
10. Cricket Captain 2026	4.33 (297)	50K+	Oct 20, 2026	≈642 MB	Yes, 3.67 (3)
11. World of Cricket: Championship	3.80 (164K)	10M+	Sep 16, 2026	≈31 MB	No listing found
12. World Cricket Championship 2	3.71 (3.36M)	100M+	Nov 3, 2026	≈473 MB*	Yes, 3.84 (4.1K)
Also checked: Real Cricket 20	3.94 (1.67M)	50M+	Sep 7, 2026	≈580 MB	Yes, 3.77 (104)
Also checked: Real Cricket GO	3.62 (379K)	50M+	Aug 27, 2026	≈87 MB*	Yes, 3.47 (58)
Also checked: Wicket Cricket Manager	4.42 (23.4K)	1M+	Oct 23, 2026	≈123 MB	Yes, 4.65 (118)

*Package size is the full Android installation package (all device variants, plus expansion files where a game uses them) as published in September and October 2026. Google Play usually sends a smaller, device-specific download, but some games fetch more data on first launch, so treat it as a guide. Nextwave's own site lists a 900 MB APK for WCC3 and a 60 MB APK for WCC2, and the Real Cricket GO listing says “under 45MB”. The Install button on your phone shows the real number. †Listed as Dream Cricket 2026 on the App Store.

Game	Offline play, per the listing	Ads and purchases (US)	Real teams and licenses
1. Real Cricket	Not stated (online-first)	Ads; $0.19–$595.00	7 IPL franchises; 250+ players
2. World Cricket Championship 3	Not stated	Ads; $0.05–$215.00	Not stated (own NPL leagues)
3. Real Cricket Swipe	Not stated	Ads; $0.25–$304.99	5 IPL teams; 250+ players
4. Dream Cricket 2025	Not stated (online-first)	Ads; $0.19–$399.99	4 named T20 leagues; 400+ players
5. Epic Cricket	Yes (stated)	Ads; $0.47–$12.99	None (listing says independent)
6. Cricket League	No (online only)	Ads; $0.99–$99.99	None stated
7. Stick Cricket Premier League	Not stated	Ads; $1.99–$22.99	None stated
7. Stick Cricket Super League	Not stated	Ads; $0.99–$99.99	None stated
8. Sachin Saga Pro Cricket	Not stated (online-first)	Ads; $0.29–$49.99	Built around Sachin Tendulkar
9. Hitwicket Cricket Game 2026	Yes (stated)	Ads; $0.49–$269.99	None stated
10. Cricket Captain 2026	Not stated	Ads; one-off $10.99 removes them	8,000+ players; 197 domestic teams
11. World of Cricket: Championship	Yes (stated)	Ads; $0.99–$11.99	Not clear
12. World Cricket Championship 2	Local 1v1 only (stated)	Ads; $0.49–$49.99	None stated
Also checked: Real Cricket 20	Not stated	Ads; $0.99–$144.99	None stated
Also checked: Real Cricket GO	Not stated	Ads; $3.49–$6.99	None stated
Also checked: Wicket Cricket Manager	Yes (stated)	No ads flag; $0.99–$99.99	None stated

“Not stated” means the listing does not say. It does not mean the feature is missing; the exact wording is in the offline section below. Price ranges are the lowest and highest in-app purchase on the US listing; prices differ by country. No listing claims a license for the Pakistan Super League, Big Bash League, Caribbean Premier League or Major League Cricket. Google Play ratings, installs and update dates were re-read on November 9, 2026, and purchase ranges on October 26, 2026. Package sizes, licenses and features are from the October 3 comparison.

Realistic 3D cricket games

1. Real Cricket – best for realism and IPL licenses

Real Cricket is the game many guides still call Real Cricket 24. Google Play now lists it simply as Real Cricket™, published by KRAFTON, Inc. (version 5.4, updated October 24, 2026). Its listing names seven IPL franchises (Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders, Rajasthan Royals, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Punjab Kings, Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants) and more than 250 licensed international players. It also lists 700+ batting shots, motion-captured fielding and catching, 40+ stadiums, commentary by Sanjay Manjrekar, Aakash Chopra and Vivek Razdan, and community mods for designing and sharing custom players, kits and gear. A disclaimer says it is not an official ICC product.

Good for: real IPL teams and ranked 1v1 matches against a huge player base (50M+ installs, 1.22 million ratings, 4.21 stars).
Watch out: the listing calls it a “multiplayer online” game and never mentions offline play; the shop goes up to $595.00 for a single item; at about 808 MB it is among the largest downloads here.

2. World Cricket Championship 3 – best for a single-player career

World Cricket Championship 3 (WCC3), by Nextwave Multimedia, rates higher than Real Cricket on Google Play: 4.31 stars from 552,274 ratings (version 3.2.6, updated September 17, 2026). The listing highlights a Career mode and the Road to Glory story mode, World Cup, Ashes and Test tournaments, the NPL 2025 league with an auction room, a five-team Women's NPL, 150 customizable cricketers and real-time multiplayer. Commentary is by Matthew Hayden, Isa Guha and Aakash Chopra, in English, Hindi, Tamil and other languages.

Good for: a long career across formats, women's cricket and regional-language commentary.
Watch out: the listing says nothing about offline play; on iPhone the rating is only 3.38 from 934 ratings; the developer's site lists a 900 MB APK.

3. Real Cricket Swipe – best for playing against an AI you can tune

Real Cricket Swipe (Nautilus Mobile, released February 2025) is the highest-rated Real Cricket game on Google Play: 4.43 stars from 142,996 ratings. You bat with swipe controls, and the listing says you can adjust 20+ AI settings, such as batting aggression, bowling speed and fielding accuracy. It lists five IPL teams (Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals, Punjab Kings, Lucknow Super Giants and Sunrisers Hyderabad), 250+ licensed players, 650+ batting shots, a Mission mode and community mods.

Good for: practicing against a computer opponent that you can set anywhere from relaxed to “legend level.”
Watch out: the listing does not mention offline play (it was last updated October 14, 2026, after a four-month gap); purchases run up to $304.99; the download is about 783 MB.

4. Dream Cricket 2025 – the most licensed leagues, the lowest rating

Dream Cricket (Sporta Technologies; Google Play calls it Dream Cricket 2025, the App Store Dream Cricket 2026) licenses the widest range of leagues of the games here. Its listing names the New Zealand and Afghanistan national teams plus the International T20 League, Super Smash, Legends League Cricket and the Lanka Premier League, with 400+ official players and Hindi and English commentary. It also lists 450+ batting shots and 200+ bowling actions. The game is built around real-time multiplayer, including ranked 1v1 matches and “most runs win” challenges, more than single-player play.

Good for: licensed T20 leagues and Hindi commentary.
Watch out: Google Play shows 3.45 stars from 195,375 ratings, and they split sharply: about half give five stars and about 30% give one. Purchases run up to $399.99 per item, the listing does not mention offline play, and the download is about 745 MB.

5. Epic Cricket – a 3D game that says it works offline

Epic Cricket (Moong Labs, listed as Epic Cricket – Real 3D Game) is one of the games here whose listing says outright that it works offline: “Play Epic Cricket as an offline cricket game anytime,” or you can compete online. It lists ODI, 20-20 and Test formats, 20 international teams, 15+ tournaments, 500+ animations, a live player auction, English and Hindi commentary and an “ultra-high FPS” mode. It is unlicensed: the listing says it is not affiliated with any cricket board, league or player. Its purchases top out at $12.99, far below the $215 to $595 ceilings of Real Cricket, WCC3, Real Cricket Swipe and Dream Cricket.

Good for: offline 3D cricket with a modest shop, and Hindi commentary.
Watch out: no real teams or players; 3.97 stars from 200,219 ratings (16% one-star as of October 26); the download is about 406 MB; last updated November 6, 2026.

Quick online duels and arcade cricket

6. Cricket League – best for quick online matches

Cricket League by Miniclip is the best-rated cricket game in this guide: 4.62 stars from 3,811,638 ratings, 100M+ installs, updated November 5, 2026 (version 1.35.1). Matches are quick 2-over games, which the listing says take 3 to 5 minutes, against friends or players around the world. Controls are simple, you collect 25+ characters, and you can buy new types of balls. The listing promises smooth play even on 2G/3G networks, but this is a real-time multiplayer game, so do not plan on airplane mode.

Good for: short sessions, easy controls and a weak connection.
Watch out: it needs a connection; purchases run up to $99.99 and the listing says they include random items; no real teams or players. The download is about 111 MB. More games for a group are in our multiplayer games for Android list.

7. Stick Cricket Premier League and Super League – best light arcade pick

Stick Sports makes four cricket games on Google Play. Stick Cricket Premier League is the best rated at 4.61 stars from 364,447 ratings (about 34 MB), with five seasons, 16 teams and coaches to hire. Stick Cricket Super League adds a 70-team franchise career where you create a player, sign stars and pick your XI: 4.22 stars from 259,018 ratings (about 48 MB). Stick Cricket Classic (released December 2011) scores 4.40 from 237,521 ratings, and Stick Cricket Clash is a real-time 3D multiplayer game (4.19 from 21,649 ratings, about 107 MB). All four are free, show ads and sell purchases, and on iPhone all four are rated about 4.7.

Good for: a cartoon-style arcade game with a very small download.
Watch out: it is an arcade game, not a realistic simulation; the listings do not say whether the single-player games work offline; no real teams or players.

8. Sachin Saga Pro Cricket – best for a Sachin Tendulkar career

Sachin Saga Pro Cricket (JetSynthesys) starts you as a 16-year-old and walks you through moments from Sachin Tendulkar's career, with batting motion-captured from Tendulkar himself, according to the listing. It also has ranked and unranked 1v1 matches, draft multiplayer, global leaderboards and Impact League events, so it is mostly an online game. Google Play shows 4.01 stars from 59,575 ratings, updated November 1, 2026. Do not mix it up with the older Sachin Saga Cricket Champions, which some guides still recommend: that listing is no longer on Google Play (details below).

Good for: fans of Tendulkar and online head-to-head play.
Watch out: about 21% of ratings are one star; the listing does not mention offline play; the download is about 524 MB.

Strategy and team-manager games

9. Hitwicket Cricket Game 2026 – management plus quick matches, with a stated offline mode

Hitwicket mixes team management with simple, quick batting and bowling. You play as owner, coach and captain, recruit players at auctions, train them, then play 3-minute matches with simple controls and “superpowers” named SMASH, RAGE and BOOMERANG. The Google Play listing states an “Offline Game Mode: Enjoy cricket games without WiFi!” and there are also ranked PvP and alliance modes. It scores 4.38 stars from 290,005 ratings (version 12.41.1, updated November 3, 2026). Earlier guides call it Hitwicket Superstars; the Play developer is Hitwicket Cricket Games and the App Store developer is Metasports Media.

Good for: a strategy-first game that still lets you swing the bat, and play with no signal.
Watch out: the superpowers are not realistic cricket; purchases run up to $269.99; the download is about 476 MB.

10. Cricket Captain 2026 – best deep manager

Cricket Captain is a management simulation: you pick the side, set tactics, decide batting orders and bowling changes, and watch 3D match highlights across Test, one-day and 20-over cricket. The 2026 edition reached Google Play on July 9, 2026 and is free with ads. A one-off $10.99 purchase removes them, according to Google Play and the developer, Childish Things. The listing says it has 8,000+ players and 197 domestic teams, with full domestic structures for India, Pakistan, Australia, England, South Africa, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Ireland, Zimbabwe and the West Indies.

Good for: fans who would rather pick the team and the bowling changes than time a shot.
Watch out: Google Play shows only 297 ratings (4.33 stars on November 9), so the score is thin; you do not play the shots; the download is about 642 MB. On iPhone the same game is a demo that you pay to unlock, according to the developer.

Small downloads and old favorites

Real Cricket GO is the lightweight cousin of Real Cricket. Its listing says “under 45MB” and “also supporting 512 RAM devices,” but Google Play rates it only 3.62 (about 23% of ratings are one star), and the full Android package is about 87 MB. For a small download, World of Cricket below and the two Stick Cricket games above are the better choices.

11. World of Cricket: Championship – the smallest full game here

World of Cricket (AppOn Innovate) is about 31 MB, the smallest full package in this guide. Its listing says it works offline, supports 2G/3G and is optimized for low-end devices, and it covers ODI, T20, Test and World Cup play. It scores 3.80 stars from 164,052 ratings and was updated September 16, 2026.

Good for: a weak phone, tight storage or a bad connection.
Watch out: Google Play flags it for ads; there is no iPhone version on the US App Store. For more small games see our games under 100 MB and games for low-end phones.

12. World Cricket Championship 2 – the old favorite with offline 1v1

World Cricket Championship 2 came out in July 2015 and is still updated (version 5.5, November 3, 2026). It has 100M+ installs and 3.71 stars from 3,361,161 ratings, with 25% one-star as of October 26. The listing mentions “Online and Offline 1v1 Multiplayer via Online Rivals and Local Rivals,” an Ashes Test tournament, 150 batting animations and 28 bowling actions. It does not say that single-player modes work without a signal, although many guides claim it.

Good for: a free, long-running cricket game and local 1v1 with a friend.
Watch out: it dates from 2015; purchases up to $49.99; the download is about 473 MB in the full package, while Nextwave's site lists a 60 MB APK.

Real Cricket or WCC3: which one?

These two are the usual pair. Pick Real Cricket if licensed IPL teams and online ranked matches matter most. Pick WCC3 if you want a single-player career and women's cricket. Both are free to download.

Factor	Real Cricket	World Cricket Championship 3
Google Play rating	4.21 (1.22M ratings)	4.31 (552K ratings)
iPhone rating	4.47 (5.3K)	3.38 (934)
Real teams	7 IPL franchises; 250+ players	Not stated; own NPL and Women's NPL
Modes named in listing	1v1 ranked, Premier League, Dream Team Challenge, Pro Series	Career, Road to Glory, World Cup, Ashes, Tests
Commentary	Manjrekar, Chopra, Razdan	Hayden, Guha, Chopra; several languages
Offline play	Not stated	Not stated
Package size	≈808 MB	≈707 MB*

The order flips on iPhone, where Real Cricket has the far higher App Store rating.

Which cricket games work offline? What the developers say

Google Play has no “works offline” label, so the only evidence you can check without playing each game is what its developer writes. This is what the US listings say. We first read them on October 3, 2026, and re-checked the offline wording for Epic Cricket, Hitwicket, World of Cricket and Wicket Cricket Manager on October 26, 2026:

• Say offline play works: Epic Cricket (“offline cricket game anytime”), Hitwicket (“Offline Game Mode”), World of Cricket (offline and 2G/3G) and Wicket Cricket Manager (“Play your career offline”). Three smaller games checked on October 10 say the same: Smashing Cricket Games 2026, Cricket World Domination: 3D and Cricket Championship Game 2026 (details below).
• Say some offline play works: World Cricket Championship 2 lists offline 1v1 through “Local Rivals.” It does not say whether its single-player modes work without a signal.
• Online by design: Cricket League and Stick Cricket Clash (real-time multiplayer), Dream Cricket, Sachin Saga Pro Cricket and Real Cricket, whose listing calls it a “multiplayer online” game.
• Do not say: World Cricket Championship 3, Real Cricket Swipe, Stick Cricket Premier League and Super League, and Cricket Captain 2026. Some guides claim these work offline. The developers do not promise it.

Before a flight, install the game on Wi-Fi, open it once and let it finish downloading its data. Then switch on airplane mode and start the exact mode you want. If it demands a sign-in or hangs on loading, pick another game. More options are in our list of best offline Android games.

Cricket games that are not on Android (or no longer on Google Play)

These names keep turning up in search results and older guides. Here is what the stores show.

• Cricket 26, Cricket 24 and Ashes Cricket (Big Ant Studios): PC and console games only. Cricket 26 came out on November 19, 2025 for Windows, PlayStation 4 and 5 and Xbox, and costs $59.99 on Steam (October 3, 2026). There is no Android or iPhone version.
• EA Sports Cricket: EA's own cricket page lists only Cricket 2007 and Cricket 2005, described as console and PC games. EA has no cricket game on Android, so an “EA Cricket APK” is not an official EA release.
• Real Cricket 25 and Real Cricket 26: there are no listings under those names on Google Play or the US App Store. The main game is Real Cricket™ (version 5.4 on November 9, 2026). A file called “Real Cricket 25 APK” or “26 APK” is not an official release.
• World Cricket Championship 4 (WCC4): it is installable from the US Google Play listing, but it still has no star rating. On November 9, 2026 it showed 1M+ installs (up from 500K+ on October 26 and 100K+ on October 3) and a last update on October 27, 2026. Nextwave’s homepage has dropped its Pre-register button: it now calls WCC4 its 2026 flagship and links a “Get WCC4” button to Google Play, but it gives no full-launch date and no iPhone link. With no public rating yet, WCC3 is still the safer single-player pick; try WCC4 alongside it if you want the newer engine.
• Cricket All Stars, ICC Cricket Mobile and Sachin Saga Cricket Champions: Google Play returns “not found” for all three in ten country stores (US, India, UK, Canada, Australia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Singapore, South Africa and the UAE), although some guides and APK sites still mention them. The App Store still lists Sachin Saga Cricket Champions.
• World Cricket Championship Lt (Lite): not gone. Nextwave's original free listing is still on Google Play, now titled World Cricket Championship 1 (3.61 stars, updated May 26, 2026; see old cricket games below). Older guides that list “WCC Lt” mean this game, and Nextwave's homepage still advertises a “Lite” edition.
• A Major League Cricket game: none turned up. A US Google Play search for “Major League Cricket” on October 10, 2026 returned the league's ticketing app (MLC Tickets) and general cricket apps, not a licensed game, and no listing in this guide claims an MLC license. For T20 cricket with franchise teams, Real Cricket (IPL) and WCC3 (own NPL league) are the closest matches.
• Smash Cricket (Moonfrog): still listed, with 4.30 stars from 68,633 ratings, but its last update was August 5, 2016. Skip it.
• New Star Cricket: still listed, but last updated May 7, 2024.
• ICC SuperTeam Cricket: filed under cricket games, but it is a collectible-card app where you open packs and trade cards. It is not a match game.

Install cricket games only from Google Play. APK sites carry names that do not exist on the store, and modified files that promise “unlimited money” can carry malware.

Old cricket games that still get updates

Four games here are more than ten years old and were still updated in 2026: Stick Cricket Classic (December 2011), the original World Cricket Championship (June 2011; listed as World Cricket Championship 1, 3.61 stars, 50M+ installs, updated May 26, 2026; older guides call it World Cricket Championship Lt or Lite), Stick Cricket Premier League (April 2013) and World Cricket Championship 2 (July 2015). Real Cricket 20 (April 2018, 3.94 stars from 1.67M ratings, about 580 MB) is also still updated: version 6.3 arrived on September 7, 2026. The one that is not maintained is Smash Cricket.

Other cricket games we checked

• Wicket Cricket Manager: a pure manager game (finances, contracts, sponsors, training and ball-by-ball simulation). 4.42 stars from 23,397 ratings, no “contains ads” flag, about 123 MB, and a listing that says you can play your career offline.
• T20 Cricket Champions 3D: 3.63 stars (24% one-star), an arcade game with power-ups that says it is not affiliated with any governing body.
• God of Cricket: new in April 2026, 4.30 stars from 21,938 ratings, real-time online multiplayer.
• Cricket Team Coach 26: a team-coaching manager game, 4.05 stars from 13,898 ratings.

Four more names turn up in current searches. They were read on US Google Play on October 10, 2026, and none was compared on size or iPhone availability:

• Smashing Cricket Games 2026 (Athang Cricket Games): 3.66 stars from 21,640 ratings, 5M+ installs, updated October 7, 2026. The listing says you can play the entire game without an internet connection. Purchases run from $0.99 to $99.99.
• Cricket World Domination: 3D (Athang Cricket Games): a national-team tournament game with 4.21 stars from 4,775 ratings, 1M+ installs, updated October 6, 2026. The listing says the entire game works without a connection. Purchases go up to $249.99.
• Cricket Championship Game 2026 (Rockit Game Studio): 4.05 stars from 14,165 ratings, 5M+ installs, updated August 12, 2026. The “2026” is only in the name: the listing dates from December 2019. It says you can play without internet or challenge others in multiplayer. The only purchase is $2.99.
• Indian Cricket Game 26 (Action Arena Games): 4.38 stars, but from only 1,640 ratings, 500K+ installs and version 0.2.9 (updated September 16, 2026; first released May 2026). It is an early build, and the listing does not mention offline play.

Where our data comes from

This guide compares official listings. It does not rest on playing or timing each game, so it has no frame-rate, battery or loading-time figures. On October 3, 2026 we compared the following, and on October 26, 2026 we re-read the ratings, installs, update dates, versions and purchase ranges:

• US Google Play listings: rating and number of ratings, install band, last update, version, ads and in-app purchase flags, the price range of purchases, and the developer's own description. That description is the source of every license, feature and offline statement above.
• US App Store listings: whether each game exists on iPhone, and its rating there.
• October 10 re-check: Hitwicket's update, the four extra games above, World Cricket Championship 1 (the old “Lt” listing), WCC4's Google Play status and a search for a Major League Cricket game, all on US Google Play.
• Developer pages: Nextwave Multimedia (WCC2, WCC3, WCC4), Childish Things (Cricket Captain), KRAFTON's Real Cricket site, Nautilus Mobile, EA's cricket page and the Steam store pages for PC titles.
• Package sizes: the size of each game's full Android installation package as published in September and October 2026. The developers' own figures are noted where they differ.
• Availability: every pick's US Google Play page loaded on October 3, 2026. For the three games that seemed to have vanished, the page was requested in ten country stores; “not found” in all ten, while live games loaded normally, is what we mean by “no longer on Google Play.”

To make the list, a game had to be on US Google Play, free to download, updated in 2026 and different enough from the other picks to earn its place (realistic simulation, online duel, arcade, manager or small download). Smash Cricket and New Star Cricket fail the update test. When a listing does not answer a question, such as offline play or licenses, the tables say “Not stated” instead of guessing. Star ratings move daily and the install bands are Google's own rounded figures. Prices are US prices; Google Play shows different local prices in other countries.

Our pick, in one line

For most people: Real Cricket if you want real IPL teams and ranked online matches, WCC3 if you want a long single-player career, Cricket League if you want a four-minute match on a weak connection, Epic Cricket or Hitwicket if you need to play offline, and Cricket Captain 2026 if you would rather manage than bat. All of them are free to download, so install two, play a few matches in each and keep the one that suits you. Looking for other types of games? See the best mobile games on Android and iPhone.