The upcoming cycle of the ICC World Test Championship will see a change in point allocation. Unlike the inaugural cycle where points were allotted depending upon the number of matches the teams were playing in a particular series, the International Cricket Council has decided to award 12 standardised points for every win during the second WTC cycle.
A draw will fetch one-third of the total points which is four while a tie will fetch 6 points. The second cycle will begin with the five-match Test series involving England and India starting from August 4. Just like the previous edition where the eventual top two teams were decided on the percentage of points after several series were postponed and cancelled due to the COVID pandemic, this cycle will also be decided on the percentage of points.
“Instead of each series being worth the same number of points, 120, irrespective of whether the series is played over two Tests or five Tests, the next cycle will see each match being worth the same number of points - a maximum of 12 per match," an ICC board member was quoted as saying by the PTI.
"Teams will be ranked on the percentage of available points they won from the matches they have played. The changes in the points system will have to be ratified by the ICC chief executives committee in the coming weeks.
"The aim was to try and simplify the points system and to allow teams to be meaningfully compared on the table at any point, though they may have played differing numbers of matches and series," the board member further added.
The inaugural edition of the competition saw a disparity of matches being played among the 9 contesting teams and that will be no different in the second cycle. Only the big three of modern cricket India, England and Australia will get to play more than three matches in a series while the rest of the teams will only play a maximum of a three-match Test series.
The value for each series last year was 120. While a win in a two-match series gave the winning team 60 points, 40 points were allotted for a win in a three-match Test series. The number came down to 30 and 24 in case of a four-match or a five-match series.
The ICC acting chief executive officer Geoff Allardice pointed out the reason behind the change in the points system. He feels that teams playing a lesser number of matches should also get a chance of being compared to anyone in the competition at any given point of the two-year cycle.
"Instead of each series being worth the same number of points, 120, irrespective of whether the series is played over two Tests or five Tests, the next cycle will see each match being worth the same number of points - a maximum of 12 per match.
Teams will be ranked on the percentage of available points they won from the matches they have played. The aim was to try and simplify the points system and to allow teams to be meaningfully compared on the table at any point, though they may have played differing numbers of matches and series,” Alliance was quoted as saying by ESPN Cricinfo.
England will play the most number of matches in the cycle (21) followed by India (19) and Australia (18). South Africa will play a total of 15 matches while world Test Champions New Zealand, Sri Lanka and West Indies will play a total of 13 matches. Meanwhile, Pakistan will play 14 matches in the cycle.