Cricket World Ratings 25/10/2016

Bangladesh have been playing test cricket since 1999.  In that time, they've found it hard to schedule test matches, especially against the big teams; and even harder to beat them.  Their only victories have come against Zimbabwe and the West Indies, the two other weakest teams in cricket's pecking order.  But they've just come within a whisker of beating England in an exceptionally well-balanced test match.  Of course, they've had home advantage, and it was the first test of England's tour, but still, the side has had a number of notable results in one-day cricket, and have sufficient talent that eventually a win will come.  But not quite yet.  The narrowness of the result, however, does point to the fact that although England came within a whisker of becomong the number one ranked team at the end of the English summer, the side really has a number of weaknesses which could be exposed badly when they visit India after their matches in Bangladesh.  When England were last number one in the world in 2011, they had a strong seam bowling roster and a run-laden lower middle order, both of which the current side has as well.  But back then, they also had an in-form top order, class spin bowling options and a well-respected wicket-keeper, all of which are absent from their current line up (though the oft-derided Bairstow actually had a good game behind the stumps in their latest match.  Still, it would be a bold person who at this stage bet on an away win when England go to India.

Meanwhile, the West Indies have (yet again) lost a match (to Pakistan, for the second time in their series) in spite of a valliant rearguard; but give away too many first innings runs and you're always going to be against the wall.  Neither of these results have much effect on my my form of world ratings, which measure performances against expectations; and so the current ratings look as follows:

India         144    
Pakistan      109 +8  
England        94 +5 
Australia      93    
South Africa   90    
Sri Lanka      52    
New Zealand     0    
West Indies   -85 -8  
Bangladesh   -177 -5  
Zimbabwe     -320