New Zealand

New Zealand can overtake South Africa in Test rankings in upcoming series

New Zealand

New Zealand can overtake South Africa in the MRF Tyres ICC Test Team Rankings if it beats the opposition by 2-0 or better in an upcoming three-match home series starting in Dunedin on Wednesday.

A 2-0 win for fifth-placed New Zealand will take it level with South Africa at 102 points but ahead on decimal points while New Zealand could go up from 98 points to 103 points and third place with a 3-0 win. South Africa will be on 101 points in such a scenario, equal with England but behind on decimal points, at fifth position.

On the other hand, South Africa can go up to 111 points on the points table with a 3-0 win in the series. India and Australia, who are currently engaged in a four-Test series, hold the top two positions with 121 and 109 points, respectively.

In the MRF Tyres ICC Rankings for Test Batsmen, the South Africa squad boasts of Hashim Amla and Quinton de Kock in sixth and ninth positions, respectively, while Kagiso Rabada (fifth) and Vernon Philander (ninth) are its bowlers from the squad in the top-10.

New Zealand batsman Kane Williamson, who is in fourth position, will be the highest-ranked batsman from either side, while pace bowlers Neil Wagner, Trent Boult and Tim Southee are the leading bowlers for New Zealand at 11th, 12th and 13th positions, respectively.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh will have a chance to overtake the West Indies in the points table if it is able to pull off a victory in a two-Test series against Sri Lanka that starts in Galle on Tuesday.

A 1-0 win will take Bangladesh one point clear of the West Indies with 70 points to eighth position while a 2-0 series win could take it to 72 points. On the other hand, Sri Lanka could go up to 93 points with a 2-0 win but will remain in seventh position.

In the absence of Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal will be Sri Lanka’s leading batsman at 31st rank while captain Rangana Herath will be the leading bowler in the series at fourth position. For Bangladesh, Maminul Haque is the leading batsman at 19th position while Shakib Al Hasan (15th) is the top-ranked bowler.

The following are some permutations for South Africa v New Zealand series.

· South Africa beats New Zealand 3-0 – South Africa 111; New Zealand 94
· South Africa beats New Zealand 2-0 – South Africa 110; New Zealand 95
· South Africa beats New Zealand 2-1 or 1-0 – South Africa 109; New Zealand 96
· Drawn series – South Africa 106; New Zealand 99
· New Zealand beats South Africa 2-1 or 1-0 – South Africa 103, New Zealand 101
· New Zealand beats South Africa 2-0 – South Africa 102; New Zealand 102
· New Zealand beats South Arica 3-0; New Zealand 103, South Africa 101

The following are some permutations for Sri Lanka v Bangladesh series.

· Sri Lanka beats Bangladesh 2-0 – Sri Lanka 93, Bangladesh 59
· Sri Lanka beats Bangladesh 1-0 – Sri Lanka 92, Bangladesh 61
· Drawn series: Sri Lanka 90, Bangladesh 66
· Bangladesh beats Sri Lanka 1-0 – Sri Lanka 87; Bangladesh 70
· Bangladesh beats Sri Lanka 2-0 – Sri Lanka 86; Bangladesh 72

The Test team rankings, unlike the ODI and T20I rankings, are updated after the end of a series. The ICC Test predictor function is available here.

Sri Lanka v Bangladesh
7-11 Mar – 1st Test, Galle
15-19 Mar – 2nd Test, Colombo

New Zealand v South Africa
8-12 Mar – 1st Test, Dunedin
16-20 Mar – 2nd Test, Wellington
25-29 Mar – 3rd Test, Hamilton

MRF Tyres ICC Test Team Rankings (as on 6 March, before the South Africa-New Zealand and Sri Lanka-Bangladesh series)

Rank Team Points

  1. India                 121

  1. Australia           109

  1. South Africa      107

  1. England            101

  1. New Zealand     98

  1. Pakistan           97

  1. Sri Lanka          92

  1. West Indies       69

  1. Bangladesh       61
  1. Zimbabwe 05