ICC ODI Championship table - VB Series preview (Australia, England and Sri Lanka)
The VB series opener between Australia and England on Friday 13th December is the first One Day International for both sides since the introduction of the ICC ODI Championship Table in October 2002
ICC Media Release
12-May-2005
The VB series opener between Australia and England on Friday 13th December is the first One Day International for both sides since the introduction of the ICC ODI Championship Table in October 2002.
With South Africa closing the gap at the top with recent victories over Sri Lanka and Pakistan, current leaders Australia need to get off to a winning start to the series to ensure that they remain in first place.
ICC ODI Championship Table
Ranking Team Pld Points Rating 1 Australia 27 3465 128 2 South Africa 44 5465 124 3 Pakistan 38 4375 115 4 Sri Lanka 40 4549 114 5 India 38 3929 103 6 West Indies 31 3073 99 7 England 21 2014 96 8 New Zealand 31 2832 91 9 Zimbabwe 33 2169 66 10 Kenya 12 263 22 11 Bangladesh 15 146 10Developed by David Kendix
The series begins with two matches between Australia and England in Sydney and Melbourne. If England, currently seventh in the ICC ODI rankings, can upset the formbook and win both games they will climb above West Indies into sixth place. Indeed if England can win three of their first four matches they will also overtake India who currently lie fifth in the ICC ODI Championship table.
Since the launch of the ICC ODI rankings, Sri Lanka have been locked in a battle for third place with Pakistan. The VB Series offers Sri Lanka an opportunity to make third position their own and a good series will see them pull away from their rival.
"This is the first opportunity for Australia and England to improve their ODI rankings," said ICC General Manager - Cricket, David Richardson.
"With South Africa recently winning a number of games against two of the stronger sides - Sri Lanka and Pakistan - it means that if Australia don't get off to a good start in the VB Series they could slip back into second place."
The ICC ODI Championship table is updated on the ICC website - www.icc.cricket.org - after every ODI match. There is also an interactive Predictor on the website which allows cricket fans to forecast the impact of future results.
The first five matches of the VB series will be refereed by Wasim Raja and umpired by Steve Bucknor and Rudi Koertzen of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires. There is then a break before the final matches which will be refereed by Clive Lloyd and umpired by Russell Tiffin and David Orchard from the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires.
Fixtures:
Australia v England, Sydney 13th December
Australia v England, Melbourne 15th December
England v Sri Lanka, Brisbane 17th December
England v Sri Lanka, Perth 20th December
Australia v Sri Lanka, Perth 22nd December
Australia v Sri Lanka, Sydney 9th January
Australia v England, Hobart 11th January
England v Sri Lanka, Sydney 13th January
Australia v Sri Lanka, Brisbane 15th January
England v Sri Lanka, Adelaide 17th January
Australia v England, Adelaide 19th January
Australia v Sri Lanka, Melbourne 21st January
1st final, Sydney 23rd January
2nd final, Melbourne 25th January
3rd final, Adelaide 27th January
How the ICC ODI rankings work:
The formula used by the ICC to determine ranking positions takes into account the following factors:
- results from all ODI matches played over the previous two to three years
- strength of opposition, with greater reward for beating higher ranked opponents
- greater importance is placed on more recent results, with older matches dropped every 12 months
- all matches have equal status, with no account taken of venue or margin of victory