Michael Holding blasts ICC for 'ridiculous' World Test Championship points system

Former West Indies fast bowler Michael Holding recently slammed the points system of the ongoing inaugural ICC World Test Championship. As per the current points system, every team is rewarded with 60 points for a Test win in a two-match series. However, a team gets 40 points for claiming a Test in a three-match series, 30 points in a four-match series and it gets further reduced to 24 points per win in a five-match series. Overall, the value of an entire Test series in the championship is 120 points.

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Michael Holding slams ICC World Test Championship

During a recent Wisden Cricket Monthly round table, Michael Holding slammed the ICC World Test Championship points table by describing it “ridiculous”. He was of the opinion that teams playing five matches and two matches in a separate series cannot be rewarded with an equal number of points. Michael Holding further stated that there comes a stage in the ICC World Test Championship where certain teams get eliminated from qualifying for the final (scheduled for June 2021) but would still continue to play Test matches. Michael Holding termed those matches as not entertaining for fans who will look at them as “just another game”.

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ICC World Test Championship: Story so far

The inaugural edition of the ICC World Test Championship kicked off in August last year with the 2019 Ashes series. India are currently leading the championship points table with 360 points after winning three out of their four contested series so far. Meanwhile, Australia are a close second with 296 points.

The championship was set to continue in March this year with a two-match series between Sri Lanka and England. However, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic forced the English team to return home before the series could commence on March 19. Among immediate upcoming championship matches, a three-match series between England and West Indies in England and a two-match series between hosts Bangladesh and Australia were also recently postponed by their respective boards.

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ICC rankings: Australia leapfrog India

After a three-and-a-half-year stay at the top of the ICC Test rankings, Team India were recently toppled by the Australian team. India, under the leadership of Virat Kohli, dropped to the third spot after their stupendous 2016-17 record was eliminated from the annual update as per ICC rules. India's recent 2-0 defeat in New Zealand before the coronavirus-induced halt, let them slip by two positions in the rankings, while the Black Caps rose to the second position.

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Image credits: AP