New Zealand have taken a massive hit in their chances of making it to the WTC final for the 2023-25 cycle, a massive boost for both India and Australia.
England went on to win the first Test against New Zealand on Sunday after chasing down a 104-run target in just 12.4 overs in the second innings. The Kiwis who were coming on the back of an away series victory against India, their chances of making it to the World Test Championship (WTC) final for the 2023-25 cycle took a massive hit while England increased their point percentage.
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Following the victory, England took their tally up to 10 wins in the 20 matches played in the ongoing cycle with a point percentage of 43.75. New Zealand, they have a point percentage of 50 after winning and losing six games each in the 12 Tests played for the 2023-25 cycle.
The Tom Latham-led New Zealand unit will not be able to make it to the WTC final even if they bounced back in the three-match series against England to win it 2-1 as their point percentage would only go up to 57.14.
For Ben Stokes’ side, they can only hope to improve on their point percentage in comparison to their previous cycle where they could go past the 47-point percentage mark should they take a 3-0 clean sweep of the ongoing Test series.
| Team | Matches | Won | Lost | Draw | Deduction | Points | PCT |
| Australia | 15 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 110 | 61.11 |
| India | 9 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 64 | 59.26 |
| Sri Lanka | 13 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 10 | 90 | 57.69 |
| New Zealand | 12 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 72 | 50 |
| South Africa | 10 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 60 | 50 |
| England | 20 | 10 | 9 | 1 | 19 | 105 | 43.75 |
| Pakistan | 10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 40 | 33.33 |
| West Indies | 10 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 32 | 26.67 |
| Bangladesh | 11 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 33 | 25 |
The likes of India and Australia are currently in the middle of a five-match Test series. India went on to win the opening Test by a mammoth 295-run margin in Perth to boost their chances. The two sides are set to meet in Adelaide for a pink ball Test match which begins on December 6. This will be followed by the remaining three Tests at Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney starting on December 14, December 26 and January 3 respectively.
Both India and Australia will hope that the likes of South Africa will drop points to boost their chances of confirming a spot in the WTC final for a third consecutive cycle.
South Africa will also play one more Test against Sri Lanka at St George’s Park in Gqeberha starting on December 5. India and Australia would need the Proteas to suffer a loss as a win for the home side could see their points percentage go up to 63.3, boosting them higher up in the WTC standings which would not be ideal for India and Australia.
