The win at Melbourne helped Australia inched closer to a berth in the World Test Championship final. India, meanwhile, moved further away.
Australia beat India by 184 runs at Melbourne to boost their PCT to 61.46. They are still at second place, but considerably ahead of India, who dropped to 52.78. The two teams, along with Sri Lanka (45.45), are now completing for one spot in the 2023-25 World Test Championship final: South Africa (66.67) have already qualified.
Relevant matches left in WTC 2023-25:
Australia v India: Sydney
Sri Lanka v Australia: Two Tests at Galle
Qualification scenarios:
One win (in any of their three Tests) will take Australia to 57.02. That should be enough for them, as India can only reach 55.26 and Sri Lanka 53.85. Three draws will also do the same. However, if they lose to India, they will need to beat Sri Lanka at least once: two draws will not be enough.
As is evident from the previous sentence, India need to win their last match, reach 55.26 – and back Sri Lanka to deny Australia a win. Two draws will keep Australia to 55.26. If Australia fare worse than that, India will go through. If the teams are tied on points, the teams will be ranked by series wins. If they are still tied, there are other conditions. Anything less than a win at Sydney will eliminate India.
Sri Lanka are in this as well. To qualify, they need to win both Tests and hope the Sydney Test match to end in a draw. If that happens, Sri Lanka will finish on 53.85, Australia on 53.75, and India on 51.75.
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