नवीनतम
India to play Tests against WI, SA in Oct
NEW DELHI [Maha Media]: India secured third place in the World Test Championship (WTC) points table after drawing the 5-Test series 2-2 in England. The team has 28 points. India will now play Test series against West Indies and South Africa on home ground this year. By winning both, the team can secure a place in the top 2 teams.
Australia and Sri Lanka are top 2 teams
The new WTC cycle began with the Test series between India and England. During this time, West Indies played series against Australia and Sri Lanka played against Bangladesh on home grounds. New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa teams haven't played any series yet.
Australia are at number 1 with 100% points from 3 Test wins. While Sri Lanka are at second position with 67% points from 1 win and 1 draw. India are third, England fourth, Bangladesh fifth and West Indies sixth. The remaining 3 teams haven't opened their account yet.
In the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, both India and England won 2-2 Tests. And 1 match between them ended in a draw. 12 points are awarded for a win and 4 points for a draw. Therefore, both teams got 28-28 points but ICC also imposed a penalty on England. England was penalised 2 points for slow over rate in the third Test, which reduced their points to 26 and the team slipped to fourth position.
India will now play series in October
In a WTC cycle, teams play 6 Test series, 3 on their home ground and 3 on foreign teams' home grounds. India has played the series in England. Now the team will play a 2-Test series against West Indies on home soil in October this year. The very next month, the team will play another 2-Test series at home against South Africa.
By winning all four Tests at home, Team India will have 76 points. With 70% points, India will reach number 2 in the points table. Currently, Sri Lanka has about 67% points.
During this period, if India draws even one match, the team will remain at third position. With worse results, the team could drop below number. If India wants to maintain hopes of reaching the final, it will have to win all matches on home ground.
In 2026, Team India will have to play 2-2 Test series against New Zealand and Sri Lanka away from home. Their results will determine how many wins the team will need in the final series to reach the final.
India's last series will be against Australia on home ground in February 2027. The Kangaroo team has already defeated India in 1-1 Test in the last 2 tours. Therefore, Team India will have to secure their place in the final before the Australia series.
