Team India WTC Rankings
Team India jumped to the second spot in the ICC Test Championships 2021-23 Points Table after clean sweeping the Test against Bangladesh.
They didn't just stop at that and ended up registering clinical wins over Australia in the first two Tests. But a loss in the third Test dented their hopes and the fourth Test ended in a draw on a pitch which hardly had anything to offer to the bowlers.
With 10 wins, 5 losses and 3 draws, India finished with 58.8 percentage points at the end of their WTC 2021-23 Cycle. With this, coach Rahul Dravid's side finished second after Australia to qualify for the WTC Final.
Top 3 teams in WTC Standings
Australia:
Number one ranked side in the ICC Test Rankings, Australia are seated at the top in the WTC team standings with 66.67 percentage points. The Pat Cummins-led side has 152 points with 11 wins, 5 draws and 3 defeats in 6 Test series.
With an emphatic 9-wicket victory over India in Indore Test, they booked their spot in the WTC final.
India:
India finished second in the team standings in WTC. They needed to win the four-Test series with a win of 3-0 or higher to qualify for the finals but managed to win it 2-1.
South Africa:
The Proteas arrived on the Australian shores in second place in the WTC standings but expectations got the better of them and consecutive losses in the Aussieland, pushed them to fourth in the points table.
South Africa - who defeated India in the three-Test series 2-1 early last year - were looking favourites for the WTC final. But the series defeat in England and later Australia dented their chance. They are, however, likely to finish the WTC 2021-23 league stage with percentage points (55.56 currently) better than Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka:
The Lankan Lions were from South Africa's consecutive defeats against Australia in the first two games. They ranked third in the standings in the WTC table to keep themselves in the race for the finals. But the narrow two-wicket defeat against New Zealand in the opening Test, dashed their hopes as they slipped to fourth with 48.48 percentage points.
Sri Lanka won 5, lost 5, and drawn 1 Test in the 6 series they've played.
Team India WTC Schedule in 2023
Following are the remaining Test matches of the Indian Cricket Team in the year 2023.
Feb 2023: India Vs Australia 1st Test Feb 09 - Feb 13 - Nagpur - India won by an innings and 132 runs
Feb 2023: India Vs Australia 2nd Test - Feb 17 - Feb 21 - New Delhi - India won by 6 wickets
March 2023: India Vs Australia 3rd Test - March 1 - March 5 - Indore - Australia won by 9 wickets
March 2023: India Vs Australia 4th Test - March 09 - March 13 - Ahmedabad - Match Draw
How India entered WTC Final
- Defeated Bangladesh by 2-0
Coach Rahul Dravid's team has ended the year 2022 on a positive note with a 2-0 win in Bangladesh and will be looking to take the confidence to the Australia series at home.
For Team India to qualify for the World Test Championships 2021-23 Final, they will have to win the series against Australia.
Pakistan's loss at the hands of England at their home has bolstered India's chances of qualification for the WTC final.
Only Australia are higher in the rankings than India. The runners-up of the WTC 2019-21, are hosting Australia for 4 Tests and went 2-0 up.
Defeated Australia 2-1 in BGT 2023
Team India needed to win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy by 3-1, 3-0 against Australia. But they could only win the four-Test series by 2-1.
Wins in the first two games boosted their morale and provided them with the momentum to win the series by a big margin and set up the summit clash with the Aussies on June 7. But a defeat in Indore and the draw in Ahmedabad posed a major threat to their qualification.
However, Sri Lanka losing the first Test against defending champions New Zealand - who are already out of the final contention - by a slender 2-wicket margin, proved to be a major shot in the arm for the Indians as they finished second in the race.
Remaining WTC Fixtures for 2022-23
IND vs AUS
Mar 1-5, 2023: India vs Australia 3rd Test in Dharamsala
Mar 9-13, 2023 India vs Australia 4th Test in Ahmedabad
West Indies tour of South Africa for 2 Tests
1st Test: SA vs WI at Centurion - February 28 to March 4
2nd Test: SA vs WI at Johannesburg - March 8-12
Sri Lanka tour of New Zealand for 2 Tests
1st Test: NZ vs SL at Christchurch - March 9-13
2nd Test: NZ vs SL at Wellington - March 17-21
So, all eyes will be on India-Australia 2023 Test series & NZ vs SL Test series (March 9-13 & March 17-21, 2023).
Only Australia, India and South Africa are in contention for the WTC Final.
India qualified for WTC Final despite losing 4th Test
Team India fails to beat Australia in the must-win fourth Test - held at the Narendra Modi Stadium - and won the 4-Test series 2-1.
But they still qualified for the World Test Championships.
Their fates were in Sri Lankan cricket team's hands. Sri Lanka had to win the two-Test series in New Zealand by a 2-0 margin. Had they won the series in New Zealand, their percentage points will have increased to 61.11 with 88 points from a maximum of 144 points at stake.
How an India vs Pakistan in WTC Final hopes ended
Pakistan were a rung above India in the WTC standings with 64 percentage points before the series against England. The Babar Azam-led side had 44 points from the three bilateral Test series they played. The series against New Zealand ended in a draw.
They had won 3 Tests, lost 2 and drawn 2. But two consecutive series defeats have all but ended their possibility of the WTC Final.
They have 64 points in 14 games (4 wins, 6 losses, 4 draws) while Sri Lanka - who are placed third currently in 10 Tests - have equal points (64) to Pakistan. Sri Lanka (53.33), however, have better percentage points than Pakistan (38.1).