Plenty of scope for change with England going head-to-head with New Zealand

Pakistan’s success against arch-rivals India in Bangladesh on Saturday has seen it close the gap on the teams above it the Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Championship table.

That success, by 25 runs in Mirpur, has not been enough to lift Shoaib Malik’s side from fifth spot in the table but it has brought it to within two rating points of the two sides directly above it, New Zealand and India.

Pakistan’s win also means it is now six points clear of Sri Lanka and England with each of those sides sitting on 105 rating points.

In contrast, India’s defeat means Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s side remains in fourth position, behind third-placed New Zealand when the ratings are recalculated beyond the decimal point.

Had India won the final, it would have moved up to that third spot, two points ahead of Daniel Vettori’s side.

With front-runners South Africa and Australia 14 points clear at the top of the table, there is no danger of them being caught any time soon. However, the ladder is a lot more congested further down with just eight points separating New Zealand and seventh-placed England.

All this can change if England sweeps its ODI series against New Zealand starting in Chester-le-Street on Sunday.

A 5-0 win will see England join Pakistan on 111 points but ahead of Shoaib Malik’s side by decimal places while New Zealand would slip to sixth position. However, if the clean-sweep result is reversed then Paul Collingwood’s side will drop from 105 to 101 ratings points while New Zealand will extend its lead over fourth-placed India to five points.

In case England claims the series 4-1, it will drag New Zealand down to fifth place and trail the Black Caps by decimal places with both teams on 109 rating points. That scenario would also allow Pakistan to rise to fourth position.

If England wins the series 3-2 it will leapfrog Sri Lanka into sixth place while New Zealand will drop to fourth behind India.

However, if New Zealand wins 3-2, Daniel Vettori’s side will move one rating point clear of India while England will climb above Sri Lanka and into sixth position by a fraction of a rating point.

Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Championship (as of 15 June 2008)

Rank Team Rating

1 South Africa 127
2 Australia 127
3 New Zealand 113
4 India 113
5 Pakistan 111
6 Sri Lanka 105
7 England 105
8 West Indies 99
9 Bangladesh 46
10 Ireland 20
11 Zimbabwe 18
12 Kenya 0