The final Test match ended in the 2nd edition of the ICC World Test Championship cycle as New Zealand defeated Sri Lanka by innings and 58 runs played at Basin Reserve, Wellington on 20 March 2023.
This cycle saw a win get 12 points, a draw 4 and the placings were based on the percentage points. India and Australia qualified as the finalist for the 2nd edition of the Test Championship to be played on 7 June to 11th in Kennington Oval, London with 12 being reserve day.
Each team would feature in six Test series including 3 away and 3 home matches in this cycle.
Here we look at the final standings of the ICC Test Championship cycle for 2021/23:
- Australia
Australia finished first in the World Test Championship cycle for 2021-23. They finished with 66.7 percent points during this cycle. They played a total of 19 matches with 11 wins, 3 losses, and 5 drawn matches.
Australia began their cycle with a 4-0 win over England in Ashes played on Australian soil with one Test match drawn from December 2021- January 2022. They defeated Pakistan in the away series as the first two Test matches ended in a draw. Australia defeated them by 115 runs at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore to gain 12 valuable points.
They drew the series against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka during June-July 2022. Australia won the first Test match by 10 wickets before losing the 2nd one by innings and 39 runs.
Australia hammered West Indies by 2-0 to gain 24 points in the World Test Championship cycle. They then displayed dominating display to win the Test series at home against South Africa by 2-0 with the 3rd Test match ending in a draw.
They ended this cycle losing the Test series to India away by 1-2. Australia lost the first two Test matches badly before making a strong comeback winning the third Test in Indore. The fourth Test match in Ahmedabad ended in a draw. Australia did not play against New Zealand and Bangladesh during this cycle.
- India
The Indian Cricket Team finished the 2021/23 WTC cycle in the 2nd place. They played 18 matches with 10 wins, 5 losses, and 3 draws, including 5 penalty points with percentage point of 58.8.
India began the Test Championship cycle with a 2-2 draw against England in England. They were leading the series by 2-1 during August- September 2021 before the fifth Test match was postponed due to the COVID outbreak. They won the Test series against New Zealand by 1-0 at home after the first match ended in a draw.
The Indian team lost their first series in this cycle with a 1-2 loss to South Africa in South Africa during December 2021-January 2022. They showed their domination by winning the series against Sri Lanka by 2-0 at home in March 2022.
They kept their hopes alive with a 2-0 series win over Bangladesh on Bangladesh soil in December 2022. Indian team won the Test series against Australia at home by 2-1. They won the first two Test matches before losing the third one badly in Indore. The fourth Test match ended in a tame draw.
India did not play Pakistan and West Indies in this Test Championship cycle.
- South Africa
South Africa finished at the number 3 spot in the ICC Test Championship cycle. They played 15 Test matches with 8 wins, 6 losses, and 1 draw with a percentage point of 55.6.
They began their cycle with a famous 2-1 series win over India at home from December 2021-January 2022. South Africa showed great promise with a 1-1 draw over New Zealand in New Zealand during February- March 2022.
South Africa continued their winning streak with a 2-0 series win over Bangladesh at home during March-April 2022. They lost their first Test series loss in this cycle losing to England away in August- September 2022.
They were completely outplayed by Australia away with a 0-2 series loss from December 2022- January 2023. South Africa ended the cycle with a 2-0 series win over West Indies at home during February- March 2023. They did not play Pakistan and Sri Lanka in this World Test Championship cycle.
- England
England played the most number of Test matches in this cycle. They played a total of 22 Test matches with 10 wins, 8 losses, and 4 draws.
They struggled under the captaincy of Joe Root with a 0-4 loss to Australia in the Ashes from December 2021- January 2022. England lost to West Indies by 0-1 away from home in March 2022. They drew the Test series against India 2-2 at home after the fifth Test was postponed to Jul 2022.
Under the captaincy of Ben Stokes, they looked different outfit whitewashing New Zealand by 3-0 at home. They then registered a 2-1 series win over South Africa at home during August- September 2022.
They registered a historic whitewash over Pakistan in Pakistan by 3-0 played in December 2022. England did not play Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in this WTC cycle.
- Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka finished at the number 5 spot during this cycle. They played a total of 12 matches with 5 wins, 6 losses, and 1 draw with 44.44 percentage points.
The Lankan Lions began the cycle with a 2-0 series win over West Indies at home during November- December 2021. They lost the Test series against India away by 0-2 in March 2022. Sri Lanka then register a 1-0 series win over Bangladesh away with the first Test match ending in a draw in May 2022.
Sri Lanka drew the series against Australia 1-1 at home in June-July 2022. They again drew the series against Pakistan 1-1 at home in July 2022.
They ended the WTC cycle with a 0-2 loss to New Zealand away from home in March 2023. Sri Lanka did not play England and South Africa in this cycle.
- New Zealand
The Champions of 2019/21 edition finished 6th in the points table. They played a total of 13 matches with 4 wins, 6 losses, and 3 draws with 38.46
They begin this cycle with a 0-1 loss to India away in November- December 2021. Kiwis drew the first Test match in Kanpur before losing the second Test match by 372 runs in Mumbai.
New Zealand drew the 2-match Test series 1-1 against Bangladesh at home in January 2022 and drew again South Africa 1-1 at home in Feb-March 2022.
They were completely outplayed with a 0-3 series loss against England away played in June 2022. The next Test series against Pakistan was a 0-0 draw away played from December 2022-Janaury 2023.
The final Test series in this cycle saw New Zealand whitewash Sri Lanka by 2-0 in March 2023. New Zealand did not play Australia and West Indies in this cycle.
- Pakistan
Pakistan ended the 2021/23 cycle at the number 7 spot. They played 14 Test matches with 4 wins, 6 losses and 4 draws with 38.1 percentage points. Pakistan drew the first series against West Indies by 1-1 away in August 2021.
They registered a 2-0 series win over Bangladesh away in November- December 2021. Pakistan lost the Test series against Australia 0-1 at home in March 2022. Pakistan drew the series against Sri Lanka 1-1 away from home played in July 2022.
They were whitewashed by England 0-3 played at home in December 2022. Their WTC cycle ended with a 0-0 draw against New Zealand at home from December 2022-January 2023. They did not play India and South Africa in this cycle.
- West Indies
West Indies also had a disappointing outing in the 2021/23 World Test Championship cycle. They played 13 matches with 4 wins, 7 losses, and 2 draws including 2 penalty points.
West Indies drew the Test series against Pakistan at 1-1 in the first home series. They won the first match by just 1 wicket before losing the 2nd match by 109 runs. They were hammered by Sri Lanka by 0-2 in Sri Lanka during November- December 2021.
West Indies won the Test series against England by 1-0 after the first two matches ended in a draw. They registered a 2-0 series win over Bangladesh played in West Indies in June-July 2022.
They were hammered by Australia 0-2 in their away tour played during November- December 2022. Their last Test series in the WTC cycle went with a 0-2 loss to South Africa in February- March 2023.
- Bangladesh
Bangladesh finished last in the points table with just 11.1 percent points. They played a total of 12 Test matches in this cycle with just 1 win, 10 losses, and 1 draw. The Bangla Tiger began their cycle with a 0-2 loss to Pakistan in Bangladesh during November- December 2021.
They registered their first-ever win over New Zealand in the first Test match at Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui by 8 wickets. After that, Bangladesh lost the 2nd encounter by innings and 117 runs.
Bangladesh lost the Test series to Sri Lanka 0-1 after the first match was drawn in May 2022. They were hammered by West Indies in the away series against West Indies. After that, they lost the away Test series against South Africa by 0-2.
They ended the Test Championship cycle with a 0-2 series loss to India in Bangladesh last year. Bangladesh did not play Australia and England during this period.
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