Bangladesh Cricket. (Source – Bangladesh Cricket)
Test cricket is up and running, especially after the advent of the World Test Championship (WTC), which the International Cricket Council (ICC) introduced to add more context to the longest format of the game.
The ongoing 2023-2025 cycle is the third edition of the WTC, with New Zealand and Australia winning the previous couple of editions in 2021 and 2023, respectively. After an intense line-up of T20 cricket, especially with the T20 World Cup in June, Test cricket had taken a temporary backseat. However, the red-ball format of the game is back again, much to the delight of purists who love the even contest it generally brings about between bat and ball.
As things stand, last edition finalists — India and Australia are bossing the World Test Champions (2023–25) points table, being placed at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively. While the Asian giants have the highest points percentage of 68.52%, the defending champions are closely behind with 62.50%. Both teams haven’t played Test cricket for a while but have maintained their positions on the table.
New Zealand is placed at No. 3 with a points percentage of 50%. They have not returned to the Test format since their 0-2 defeat at home to trans-Tasman rivals Australia in February-March.
ENG enter the top four with four consecutive wins, PAK drop to 8th after first-ever defeat to BAN
England were placed at the bottom of the points table at No. 9 before they took up back-to-back Test assignments at home. The Three Lions managed to whitewash the West Indies by a 3-0 margin before winning the first Test against Sri Lanka earlier this week. By virtue of their four consecutive wins, England have moved up to No. 4 with a points percentage of 41.07%.
Sri Lanka’s five-wicket defeat to England in Manchester sees them dropping down to No. 5 with a points percentage of 40%.
Bangladesh were languishing at No. 8 ahead of their first Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi. Najmul Hossain Shanto and Co. managed to register a 10-wicket win, their first in the format against Pakistan to climb up to No. 6 with points percentage of 40%. Meanwhile, Shan Masood-led Pakistan dropped to No. 8 with a points percentage of 30.56.
South Africa and the West Indies are placed at No. 7 and No. 9, respectively on the points table. The two teams recently played a two-match Test series in the Caribbean and the Proteas won by a 1-0 margin. South Africa have a points percentage of 38.89%, while the West Indies are struggling with a meager tally of 18.52%.
Latest World Test Championship (WTC) Points Table 2023-2025 cycle:
| Pos | Team | Matches | Won | Lost | Drawn | Points | PCT (%) |
| 1 | INDIA | 9 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 74 | 68.52 |
| 2 | AUSTRALIA | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 90 | 62.50 |
| 3 | NEW ZEALAND | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 36 | 50.00 |
| 4 | ENGLAND | 14 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 69 | 41.07 |
| 5 | SRI LANKA | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 24 | 40.00 |
| 6 | BANGLADESH | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 24 | 40.00 |
| 7 | SOUTH AFRICA | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 28 | 38.89 |
| 8 | PAKISTAN | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 22 | 30.56 |
| 9 | WEST INDIES | 9 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 20 | 18.52 |