Team India secured a massive 434-run victory during the third Test of the five-match series against England in Rajkot. The Indian cricket team moved up the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) points table following the dominating victory on Sunday, February 18.
The Indian team bowled out the opposition team for just 122 runs at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot. Following the victory, the Rohit Sharma-led team gained a 2-1 lead against the Ben Stokes-led team in the ongoing five-match series at home.
Ravichandra Jadeja picked up a five-wicket haul, claiming five wickets for 41 runs. Spinner Kuldeep Yadav also took wickets, while Ravichandran Ashwin and Jasprit Bumrah each took one wicket. However, Mohammed Siraj remained wicketless in the fourth innings.
Updated ICC World Test Championship Points Table: Team India Jump To Second Place In WTC Standings
The Men in Blue have overtaken Australia to secure the second place in the ICC World Test Championship points table. India now holds 60% of the points from seven matches played in the ongoing WTC 2023-25 cycle. Notably, India suffered a 28-run loss in the series opener.
New Zealand maintained their top spot in the World Test Championship rankings after defeating an inexperienced South African team 2-0 on home soil. Meanwhile, the defending champions, Australia, dropped to third place with a points percentage of 55.
Currently, England occupies the eighth spot following their fourth defeat in the cycle, with 19 points deducted due to slow overrate infractions. The Ben Stokes-led side’s points percentage has dropped from 25% to 21% following the significant loss in the Rajkot Test.
Sri Lanka currently occupies the bottom position in the table. The Sri Lankan team is the only one to have earned any points in the championship. They suffered a 2-0 whitewash against Pakistan at home last year.
| NO. | TEAM | PLAYED | WON | LOST | DRAW | POINT DEDUCTIONS | POINTS | POINT PERCENTAGE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NEW ZEALAND | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 75.00 |
| 2 | INDIA | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 50 | 59.52 |
| 3 | AUSTRALIA | 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 66 | 55.00 |
| 4 | BANGLADESH | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 50.00 |
| 5 | PAKISTAN | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 22 | 36.66 |
| 6 | WEST INDIES | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 33.33 |
| 7 | SOUTH AFRICA | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 25.00 |
| 8 | ENGLAND | 8 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 19 | 21 | 21.88 |
| 9 | SRI LANKA | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 00.00 |
Rohit Sharma Rescued Team India In First Innings
Earlier, the Indian team posted a total of 445 runs after opting to bat first. Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja both notched brilliant centuries, rescuing the team from a challenging start at 33/3. Rohit scored 131 runs, while Jadeja contributed 112 runs to the team’s total.
In response, England got off to a good start as the openers added 89 runs in 13 overs. However, Ravichandran Ashwin broke the partnership to complete his 500th wicket in Test cricket. The visiting team ended the second day’s play with a score of 207/2 after 35 overs.
Ben Duckett scored 153 runs off 151 balls, including 23 fours and two sixes. Mohammed Siraj led the Indian bowling attack with figures of 4/84. Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja took one wicket each, while Jasprit Bumrah and R Ashwin also picked up one wicket each.
Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal secured his second Test double-century as the hosts declared their second innings at 430/4. Jaiswal scored an unbeaten 214 runs off 236 balls, with the help of 14 boundaries and 12 sixes. India set a challenging target of 557 runs for the visitors.
