---
title: "Time to play a 90 mph delivery: 500 ms"
description: "Time to play a 90 mph delivery: typically 500 ms, really 450 ms to 550 ms. What is measured, and why it counts as a physical limit."
url: https://atoneplace.net/reaction-time/cricket-fast-bowler/
site: "At One Place"
---

# Time to play a 90 mph delivery

**Time to play a 90 mph delivery: 450 ms–550 ms**

Physical limit — the time available, not a human figure

Half a second, of which the shot itself consumes a large share, and the ball bounces partway — so the batter is also predicting how it will come off the pitch from information gathered before it lands. Elite batters have been shown to move their eyes to where the ball will bounce rather than tracking it, which is a prediction strategy and not a faster reaction. Their simple reaction times are unremarkable.

## The numbers

- **Typical:** 500 ms
- **Range:** 450 ms to 550 ms
- **What it is:** Physical limit — the time available, not a human figure
- **What is measured:** Ball flight from release to the batter over roughly 18 metres of effective distance.

## Why this is a physical limit

This is how long the event gives you, not how long a person takes. It is here because comparing the two is the only way to see whether reacting is possible at all.

## Where it sits against everything else

*Reflexes at the top, reactions in the middle, design values off the end of the scale.*

- Vestibulo-ocular reflex — Reflex: 10 ms
- Knee-jerk (patellar) reflex — Reflex: 22 ms
- Latency added by your screen and mouse — Physical limit: 35 ms
- Blink reflex — Reflex: 40 ms
- Withdrawal reflex — Reflex: 90 ms
- Time a jab takes to land — Physical limit: 110 ms
- Sprint start reaction — Reaction: 140 ms
- Simple tactile reaction time — Reaction: 155 ms
- Simple auditory reaction time — Reaction: 170 ms
- Professional gamer reaction time — Reaction: 190 ms
- Formula One start reaction — Reaction: 200 ms
- Simple visual reaction time — Reaction: 250 ms
- How reaction time changes with age — Reaction: 250 ms
- What sleep loss does to reaction time — Reaction: 300 ms
- What alcohol does to reaction time — Reaction: 320 ms
- Recognition reaction time — Reaction: 340 ms
- Choice reaction time — Reaction: 380 ms
- Time to hit a 95 mph fastball — Physical limit: 400 ms
- Time a goalkeeper has on a penalty — Physical limit: 450 ms
- Time to play a 90 mph delivery — Physical limit: 500 ms
- Driver reaction to an expected event — Reaction: 850 ms

## Sport

| What | Typical | Range | Kind |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Time a jab takes to land | 110 ms | 80 ms–150 ms | Physical limit |
| Sprint start reaction | 140 ms | 120 ms–180 ms | Reaction |
| Formula One start reaction | 200 ms | 150 ms–300 ms | Reaction |
| Time to hit a 95 mph fastball | 400 ms | 375 ms–425 ms | Physical limit |
| Time a goalkeeper has on a penalty | 450 ms | 400 ms–600 ms | Physical limit |

## Common questions

### How long is time to play a 90 mph delivery?

Typically 500 ms, with a real range of 450 ms to 550 ms. Ball flight from release to the batter over roughly 18 metres of effective distance.

### Is that a reflex or a reaction?

Physical limit — the time available, not a human figure. This is how long the event gives you, not how long a person takes. It is here because comparing the two is the only way to see whether reacting is possible at all.

## Related pages

- [Time a jab takes to land](https://atoneplace.net/reaction-time/boxing-jab/)
- [Sprint start reaction](https://atoneplace.net/reaction-time/sprint-start-reaction/)
- [Formula One start reaction](https://atoneplace.net/reaction-time/f1-start-reaction/)
- [Time to hit a 95 mph fastball](https://atoneplace.net/reaction-time/baseball-fastball/)
- [Time a goalkeeper has on a penalty](https://atoneplace.net/reaction-time/penalty-kick/)
- [A reflex is not a reaction](https://atoneplace.net/reaction-time/reflex-vs-reaction/)
- [Stopping distance at every speed](https://atoneplace.net/reaction-time/stopping-distance/)
- [Measure your own reaction time](https://atoneplace.net/tools/reaction-time-test/)

## Sources

- Typical range compiled from manufacturer specifications — At One Place (/about/)