Pakistan beat SL in 1st Test: Decoding WTC 2023-25 table
Pakistan have registered their first points in the 2023-25 ICC World Test Championship cycle. Babar Azam's men defeated Sri Lanka by four wickets in the recently-concluded first Test. Pakistan have now joined arch-rivals India at the top with 12 points and a PCT of 100%. Australia and England are next in the standings. Here we decode the WTC table.
How did the game pan out?
Dhananjaya De Silva (122) and Angelo Mathews (64) rescued the hosts from a top-order collapse as SL finished at 312 while batting first in Galle. Pakistan posted 461 in response as Saud Shakeel (208*) and Agha Salman (83) starred for them. De Silva (82) batted well again as SL managed 279 in their second outing. Imam-ul-Haq (50*) helped Pakistan chase down the 131-run target.
India are 1-0 up against West Indies
India are the only team to reach the finals of the first two WTC cycles. They, however, suffered defeats on both occasions. Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma's team kick-started the 2023-25 cycle by beating West Indies by an innings and 141 runs in the opener of the two-Test series. They now share the pole position with Pakistan. SL and WI jointly hold the last spot.
Australia are 2-1 up in Ashes 2023
The ongoing Ashes 2023 is the only other Test series to have been played in the new cycle. Australia are 2-1 up after three matches and hence are placed at the second position with 22 points and a PCT of 61.11%. England meanwhile are placed third with 10 points and a PCT of 27.78%. Meanwhile, the fourth Ashes Test is currently underway.
England and Australia were docked points by ICC
Notably, both England and Australia were docked two points each for the slow over-rate issue in the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston. Players from both teams were fined 40 percent of their match fees. Therefore, both teams have two fewer points in their kitty.
