The race to reach the final of the Lord’s World Test Championship next summer is hot, with five sides left in the running.
England aren’t one of them after too many defeats and a mismatch of rankings, but Australia, India, South Africa, Sri Lanka and New Zealand are still standing, with the top three leading the way.
The final will be held at Lord’s from June 11.
Who can reach the World Test Championship final?
- India
- Australia
- South Africa
- New Zealand
- Sri Lanka
And who can’t?
- England
- Pakistan
- West Indies
- Bangladesh
Ben Stokes’ England are through to reach the final of the World Test Championship
What does each side need?
India
Remaining matches = four in Australia
India need to win three of the last four Tests in Australia (Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney) to guarantee their place at Lord’s.
They returned to the top of the table after thrashing Australia by 295 runs in the Perth Test.
India have won the first two WTC finals, going down to New Zealand in Southampton at the end of the 2019-21 cycle, before losing to Australia at The Kia Oval in the 2023 showpiece.
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Sky Sports’ Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain discuss whether Indian fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah is the best player in the world across all formats of the game.
Australia
Remaining matches = four at home with India; two in Sri Lanka
Defending champions Australia will reach their second consecutive World Test Cup final if they win five of their last six Tests on the schedule.
South Africa
Remaining matches = one at home with Sri Lanka, two at home with Pakistan
Three wins out of three will give the Proteas a chance to fancy themselves at home in Sri Lanka and Pakistan.A draw or a loss might be enough, but they will need favors from others.
South Africa will qualify for the World Test Cup final if they win their next three matches, one against Sri Lanka and two against Pakistan.
New Zealand
Remaining fixtures = two at home to England
New Zealand lost by eight wickets to England in Christchurch It was a major blow to the Black Caps’ hopes and even wins over Ben Stokes’ side in Wellington and Hamilton may not be enough.
Sri Lanka
Remaining matches = one in South Africa, two at home to Australia
After the defeat against South Africa in Durban. a game in which they achieved their lowest Test score of 42Down in less than 14 overs – Sri Lanka need to win their remaining three matches to have any chance of reaching the final.
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Sri Lanka were bowled out for 42 for 14 overs in their loss to South Africa in the first Test in Durban.
How does the points system work?
Each of the nine sides – Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and the West Indies – play six series (three at home and three away).
In the event that teams do not play an equal number of matches, the standings are determined by percentage of points won, with 12 points awarded for a win receiving 100 per cent, six for a draw 50 per cent and four for a draw 33.3. percent.
If you lose the game, you walk away with nothing.
A team can lose points for overscoring offences, as England and Australia did in the 2023 Ashes.
In the first, second, fourth and fifth Tests, England were deducted a whopping 19 points in total.
Watch the second Test between South Africa and Sri Lanka live on Sky Sports Cricket and Sky Sports Highlights from 7.30am on Thursday.
