Cricket World Ratings 28th March 2018

It's been a hard winter for England.  Already well beaten by Australia in their quest to retain the Ashes, the team are now in New Zealand, where they've just lost the first test after being bowled out for a mere 58 runs in their first innings.  A great result for the hosts, and an embarassing one for their visitors, who might need to ask some tough questions of themselves when they return to home soil.

As for Australia, a win in their first test in South Africa put them on course to potentially displace India at the top of my world rankings.  Two succesive defeats have put paid to that, and the second of these was particularly controversial, as they were caught in an act of pre-meditated cheating, using sandpaper to damage the condition of the ball.  Some old professionals believe this to be a storm in a teacup - all teams quietly manipulate the ball when they can, but to smuggle material onto the field for this express purpose crosses a line that has left many shocked.  It's hard to defend, and three players, including both captain (the brilliant Steve Smith) and vice-captain have been sent home.  With the side in disarray, it's hard to bet against the South Africans completing a series win in the final test.

So the world rankings currently look like this:

India         174
South Africa  150 +17 
Australia     120 -17
New Zealand    87 +14
Sri Lanka      29
England        10 -14
Pakistan      -27    
West Indies   -86
Bangladesh   -135
Zimbabwe     -322 

And it's worth noting the South Africans have already beaten India this winter; a victory over Australia as well (albeit that both series are at home) will have made it a very succesful winter from their point of view.

Cricket World Ratings 18th March 2018

There's a really interesting series going on at the moment between South Africa and Australia; the winner will have a good claim to contest with India, who lost in South Africa in a recent series, the title of the best team in the world (especially if that winner is Australia, the visiting team).  And Australia won the first test; but they've now lost the second. The effect on my rankings is to restore the two sides to near-equality.  There are two tests left to settle the issue; the first of these starts on Thursday.

India         174
Australia     137 -20
South Africa  133 +20
New Zealand    73 
Sri Lanka      29
England        24
Pakistan      -27    
West Indies   -86
Bangladesh   -135
Zimbabwe     -322

Cricket World Ratings 6th March 2018

This winter, Australia have seen off England; while South Africa (with home advantage) have beaten an Indian side that had accumulated a remarkable run of (mostly home) success. Now Australia are taaking their turn to visit South Africa; if they can do better than India did, they could challenge India for the position of top team in the world.  And they've made a good start, winning the first test.  They need to keep winning to take the number one spot; retaining the number two position is still more likely. The current ratings are below; the second test starts on Friday.

India         174
Australia     157 +16
South Africa  113 -16
New Zealand    73 
Sri Lanka      29
England        24
Pakistan      -27    
West Indies   -86
Bangladesh   -135
Zimbabwe     -322

Cricket World Ratings 11th February 2018

Bangladesh managed a draw in the first game of their two match series at home to Sri Lanka, although they got the poorer end of a high-scoring contest.  In their second, lower scoring match, the visitors asserted themselves and took the series 1-0.  This has had a small effect on my world ratings, in fact, almost exactly cancelling out the impact of the previous draw (in other words, the 1-0 result was almost exactly as predicted, based on the teams' prior rankings):

India         174
Australia     141
South Africa  129
New Zealand    73 
Sri Lanka      29 +9
England        24
Pakistan      -27    
West Indies   -86
Bangladesh   -135 -9
Zimbabwe     -322

The series has had a small net effect on the official rankings:

India        121
South Africa 115 
Australia    104
New Zealand  100    
England       99
Sri Lanka     95 +1
Pakistan      88  
West Indies   72   
Bangladesh    71 -1  
Zimbabwe       1  
 
Next up: in March, South Africa go to Australia.  If they can win there, having recently beaten India at home, they can surely make a credible case for being considered the world's best team; but Australia, following on from their 4-0 Ashes victor, will be confident at home. It should be a good series to watch.

Cricket World Ratings 4th February 2018

There have been some encouraging signs for Bangladeshi cricket over the past year-and-a -half: home wins against England and Australia, and an away win against Sri Lanka.  Now, playing the Sri Lankans at home in a two-test series, Bangladesh have started with a draw, albeit in a very high-scoring game that was many wickets short of a result.  Still, it's yet another reminder that the team are no pushovers any more, and much closer to the elite sides than they are to fellow minnows Zimbabwe. The second test starts on Thursday.

India         174
Australia     141
South Africa  129
New Zealand    73 
England        24
Sri Lanka      20 -9
Pakistan      -27    
West Indies   -86
Bangladesh   -126 +9
Zimbabwe     -322

Cricket World Ratings 30th January 2018

India have been formidable at home over the past year and a half, but a tour of South Africa was always going to be tough: the team duly lost their first two matches, before restoring some pride (though with the series already lost) in a match played on a terrible pitch.  Adding in the result of the last game, India recover some of their previous rating (which had peaked at 212 in the autumn, but had fallen to 157 after their two defeats here) while South Africa fail to sustain the position above Australia they briefly took after their two victories.

India         174 +17
Australia     141
South Africa  129 -17
New Zealand    73
Sri Lanka      29
England        24
Pakistan      -27    
West Indies   -86
Bangladesh   -135
Zimbabwe     -322

The offical ratings are much less favourable to Australia (for reasons I'm not clear about, and already had South Africa ahead even before this series; the update (for the series as a whole) merely reduces the gap between whay were already considered the two best teams:

India        121 -3
South Africa 115 +4
Australia    104
New Zealand  100    
England       99
Sri Lanka     94
Pakistan      88  
West Indies   72   
Bangladesh    72  
Zimbabwe       1   

Tomorrow, Bangladesh begin a two test series against Sri Lanka (and remember, they won when they played in Sri Lanka last year).

Cricket World Ratings 18th January 2018

Recently, India's world rating has soared to its all-time high, but exclusely on the back of a brilliant set of results at home.  That's not nothing, but given the increasing role that home advantage seems to play in test matches, for the current Indian side to truly be considered among the all-time great teams, it needs to add some away success.  And its current tour of South Africa has, perhaps, exposed its limitations - the first two matches of the series have both been reasonably close games, but they've also both been lost by the visting side.  India have one game remaining to save some pride, and if they avoid defeat, will remain top of the rankings for now. But the winners of the series later this winter between South Africa and Australia will surely have a legitmate claim to be the best team in the world.

So with that one match left, here's how the ratings currently stand:

India         157 -20
South Africa  146 +20
Australia     141
New Zealand    73
Sri Lanka      29
England        24
Pakistan      -27    
West Indies   -86
Bangladesh   -135
Zimbabwe     -322