India had all the reason to cheer after the Men in Blue qualified for the prestigious World Test Championship (WTC) final on Monday as New Zealand defeated Sri Lanka by two wickets in a last-ball thriller. India will, therefore, take on familiar foes Australia in the WTC final at The Oval from June 7. Interestingly, this is the second time India gained an entry into the WTC final, with the previous one coming in the inaugural cycle in 2021, which they ultimately lost to the Kiwis.
Sri Lanka lost its first Test against a power-packed New Zealand by two wickets, which in turn propelled India through with its points percentage (PCT) advantage. The Aussies became the first team to secure their WTC final berth after defeating India by nine wickets in the third Test of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar series held in Indore.
Also Read: Historic! India qualify for WTC final after New Zealand beat Sri Lanka in Christchurch
The Christchurch result eliminated the fourth Test from equation as earlier India had to win the contest to secure their final spot. The Aussies, by virtue of their comprehensive win in Indore, are now sitting atop the WTC table with 68.52 percentage points (PCT). Had the Islanders won the contest on Monday and strived for victory in the second Test at Wellington, their percentage would have seen a major leap from 53.33 to 61.11, even higher than India`s 60.29 before the start of the fourth Test in Ahmedabad. However, abrupt spells of rain in Christchurch abandoned an entire session as Sri Lanka were left to defend a mammoth 284 runs against New Zealand.
A look at India’s results in World Test Championship 2021-23 cycle
- England v India in England, 5 Tests (2021/22): 2-2
- India v New Zealand in India, 2 Tests (2021): 1-0
- India v South Africa in South Africa, 3 Tests (2021-22): 1-2
- India v Bangladesh in India, 2 Tests (2022): 2-0
- India v Sri Lanka in India, 2 Tests (2022): 2-0
- India v Australia in Australia, 4 Tests (2023): 2-1* (ongoing)
World Test Championship (2021-23) Points Table
| Teams | Matches | Won | Lost | Drawn | Points Contested | Total Points | Penalty | PCT |
| Australia | 18 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 216 | 148 | 0 | 68.51 |
| India | 17 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 204 | 123 | -5 | 60.29 |
| South Africa | 15 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 180 | 100 | 0 | 55.55 |
| Sri Lanka | 11 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 132 | 64 | 0 | 48.48 |
| England | 22 | 10 | 8 | 4 | 252 | 124 | -12 | 46.97 |
| Pakistan | 14 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 168 | 64 | -2 | 38.10 |
| West Indies | 13 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 156 | 54 | -2 | 34.60 |
| New Zealand | 12 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 144 | 48 | 0 | 33.33 |
| Bangladesh | 12 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 144 | 16 | 0 | 11.11 |
