New Zealand close to the final of the World Test Cricket Championship
New Zealand’s recent victory over the West Indies has boosted their chances of reaching the final of the World Test Cricket Championship (WTC), which will be held in June 2021 at Lord’s. New Zealand was on the verge of reaching the top spot in the Test rankings, being only 0.086 points behind Australia, after their victory in Wellington.However, the situation generated some confusion. For several hours after the match, the ICC’s predictor tool placed New Zealand at the top of the table. Subsequently, the ICC clarified that Australia occupies first place with 116.461 rating points, while New Zealand has 116.375.
Australia could consolidate its advantage if it wins the home series against India. For its part, the two victories over the West Indies gave New Zealand 300 WTC points in four series of the current cycle, which ends on March 31, 2021. If they repeat the 2-0 result against Pakistan, they would add 420 points in five series. This would leave India needing five wins, or four wins and three draws, in their last eight Test matches (away against Australia and at home against England) to deny New Zealand a place in the WTC final, which will be played at Lord’s. In a world without a pandemic, New Zealand would also have had to obtain points in a series in Bangladesh, but because some series could not be played, the ICC had to change the classification criteria from absolute points to a percentage of points played. In other words, points per series played. Australia currently leads the WTC table, with 82.2% of the points won. If they manage a 2-2 draw against India, they will still lead the table with a percentage of 74.17%, but if they lose 1-2, their percentage will fall to 70%. Australia also has a three-match Test series scheduled in South Africa. If New Zealand wins its two Test matches against Pakistan, it will finish with 84 points per series played or 70% of the points played. When India completes its series against Australia and England, it will have played six series or 720 points. It will need to surpass 504 points to exceed New Zealand’s score of 84 points per series or 70% of the points played. Each of their remaining Test victories will now be worth 30 points, and draws will give them 10 points. Five victories or four victories and three draws will take them ahead of New Zealand. As for the rankings, depending on how the India vs Australia series and the New Zealand vs Pakistan series go, Australia could extend their lead at number 1 or concede ground to New Zealand.