Rohit Sharma-led India's No. 1 WTC delight ahead of Dharamsala finale after Australia's emphatic win against New Zealand
Team India became the WTC table-toppers on Sunday after Australia's 172-run win against New Zealand in Wellington.
Rohit Sharma-led Team India soared to the top spot in the World Test Championship points table on Sunday morning, four days before the series final against England in Dharamsala, after Australia beat New Zealand in Wellington in the first Test. Nathan Lyon picked up a six-wicket haul as the visitors continued their sustained dominance over New Zealand, crushing the hosts by 172 runs to take an unassailable 1-0 lead in the two-match contest.
Australia needed seven wickets to win when they took the ground at the Basin Reserve on Day 4, and they wrapped up the proceedings in just a session after Lyon completed his 24th career five-wicket haul en route to picking up a six-fer. There was enough turn and bounce on offer for the offie through the course of the Test match, and Lyon capitalised on it. He picked up a four-wicket haul in the first innings, thus completing a ten-fer in the match as New Zealand failed to negate the threat that he possessed.
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Following the results in Wellington, New Zealand, who were on a three-match winning streak after victories against South Africa and Bangladesh, slipped to the second spot after incurring their second loss in the ongoing WTC cycle. They now have a PCT (points contested) of 60. India, hence, dethroned the Blackcaps to take the top spot in the table once again with their existing PCT of 64.58, gained after a 3-1 series win against England earlier this week in Ranchi. Third-place Australia, meanwhile, consolidated their place in the WTC points table with a PCT of 59.09.
India, however, need to win the final match of the five-match series against England, which begins on March 7, to keep their position at the top of the WTC points table. A win would leave them with a PCT of 68.51, which New Zealand won't be able to topple even if they manage to level their series against Australia with a win in the second Test. However, if England stun India in Dharamsala and New Zealand beat the Aussies, the former WTC champions will once again rise to the top of the table.