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Historic team rankings favor India and Pakistan at World Cup

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(Last Updated On: September 27, 2023)

India’s recent run of form in 50-over cricket means Rohit Sharma’s side will start this year’s ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup as the No.1 ranked side on the MRF Tyres ODI Team Rankings.

India have lost just four of the 20 ODI matches they have contested in 2023 and as a result cannot be overtaken as the top-ranked side on the team rankings before the World Cup begins on October 5.

While Pakistan’s rating of 115 is just two rating points behind India’s, these two places are set in stone up until the start of the World Cup regardless of the outcome of any remaining fixtures between now and the commencement of the six-week tournament.

The warm-up fixtures that are scheduled to take place prior to the World Cup are not counted as official ODI matches and do not alter the team rankings.

An historical look at past World Cups shows this could be a good sign for both India and Pakistan, with every edition of the tournament since 1999 having been won by sides that have occupied the top two places on the ODI rankings at the start of the event.

Australia were ranked second when winning a second title in England in 1999 and then occupied top spot on the rankings when claiming the coveted World Cup trophy in South Africa in 2003 and in the West Indies in 2007.

Adam Gilchrist’s monstrous hundred helped Australia to victory over Sri Lanka in the 2007 World Cup Final.

Similarly, India held the No.2 ranking when victorious on home soil in 2011 and Australia (2015) and England (2019) were the No.1 ranked sides when they proved too strong in the two most recent editions of the 50-over showcase.

While the ICC applied their ratings system to results that dated back to 1981, there was not enough data available to apply these ratings to results prior to this year due to infrequency of matches and the small number of competing teams.

As a result, there are no rankings available for the first two editions of the World Cup in 1975 and 1979.

Another good sign for India is the recent domination of host countries at the World Cup.

The three most recent World Cups have been won by countries that hosted the World Cup Final and India will get their chance to keep that trend going when the 2023 decider is held at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on November 19.

And while all the pressure will be on India as the sole host of the World Cup this year and current holder of the premier ODI ranking, Rohit’s side can take further confidence in the performance of No.1 ranked sides at previous editions of the tournament.

Only once has the top-ranked team failed to make it through to the knockout stages of the event – Australia narrowly missed on qualifying for the semi-finals in 1992 – and the side with the No.1 ranking has made it through to the tournament decider on seven of the most recent 10 occasions.

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Pandya’s Mumbai Indians first to exit IPL play-off race

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(Last Updated On: May 9, 2024)

IPL heavyweights Mumbai Indians became the first team to be knocked out of the play-off race after Sunrisers Hyderabad hammered Lucknow Super Giants by 10 wickets.

Five-time winners Mumbai are ninth in the 10-team table on eight points after only four wins in 12 matches, AFP reported.

Hyderabad, led by Pat Cummins, moved third on 14 points after they chased down 166 in 9.4 overs on Wednesday night, courtesy Travis Head’s 89 and 75 by Abhishek Sharma.

Lucknow and Delhi Capitals are both on 12 points and face each other on 14 May meaning Mumbai cannot qualify for the top four to contest the playoffs, even if Hardik Pandya’s side win their two remaining matches.

Mumbai lost their first three games with Pandya booed after he replaced the popular Rohit Sharma as skipper this season.

Table-toppers Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals both have 16 points each.

The final will be on 26 May in Chennai.

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Abu Muslim and Adalat Farah draw 0-0 while Maiwand beat Jawanan Wahedi 2-0 in ACL

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(Last Updated On: May 9, 2024)

The 37th match of Afghanistan Champions League (ACL) between Abu Muslim Farah and Adalat Farah FC on Wednesday ended in a draw.

Much to their disappointment, neither team scored a goal.

In the second match of the day, the 38th game, Maiwand FC defeated Jawanan Wahedi FC 2-0.

Thursday’s ACL matches will see Mawj Sahil take on Khadim at 1 PM and Attack Energy face Istiqlal Kabul at 3:30 PM.

The matches are being broadcast live on Ariana Television.

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Delhi down Rajasthan to stay in IPL play-off race

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(Last Updated On: May 8, 2024)

Skipper Sanju Samson’s 86 went in vain as Delhi Capitals beat Rajasthan Royals by 20 runs on Tuesday to stay in the hunt for an IPL play-off berth.

Delhi posted 221-8 courtesy of Jake Fraser-McGurk’s 20-ball 50 and an attacking 65 by Abishek Porel at their home Feroz Shah Kotla ground, AFP reported.

Rajasthan looked good in their chase after Samson’s fifth half-century of this season but his dismissal, a catch in the deep which was ruled clean by the third umpire, turned the match in Delhi’s favor.

Rajasthan, who are yet to confirm their play-off spot, lost three more wickets in the next two overs and Delhi restricted the opposition to 201-8 for their sixth win in 12 matches.

“We had it in our hands, it was 10-11 runs per over which was achievable but these things happen in the IPL,” Samson said after the loss.

Inaugural champions Rajasthan, placed second behind toppers Kolkata Knight Riders, have eight wins in 11 matches and are still favorites to make the top two in the play-offs, reported AFP.

Top four teams will make the play-offs but number one and two will have the advantage of getting an extra match to enter the final on May 26 in Chennai.

Spinner Kuldeep Yadav returned impressive figures of 2-25. Fast bowlers Khaleel Ahmed and Mukesh Kumar also took two wickets.

But the batters set up victory after Fraser-McGurk, who raised his 50 in 19 balls, and Porel attacked in an opening stand of 60.

Rajasthan lost wickets after the openers departed but Tristan Stubbs hammered 41 off 20 balls in a late charge to take the total to 221-8.

Stubbs was helped by Gulbadin Naib, who hit 19, and Rasikh Salam, who hit two sixes in his nine runs, as Delhi got 53 runs from the last three overs.

The in-form Samson, a wicketkeeper-batsman who has amassed 459 runs, attempted to set up the chase only to depart in the 16th over when Shai Hope caught the batsman off Kumar.

Hope’s foot was parallel to the boundary rope but the third umpire ruled it out and a disappointed Samson walked back after a chat with the on-field officials.

Veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin led the Rajasthan bowling with figures of 3-24.

Yuzvendra Chahal took his 350th T20 wicket — first Indian to achieve the feat — when he got skipper Rishabh Pant, a left-hand batsman, caught out at fine leg for 15.

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