Former ICC World Twenty20 champion India missed a chance to wrest back the top position on the MRF Tyres ICC T20I Team Rankings despite defeating Zimbabwe by 2-1 in the three-match series in Harare on Wednesday.

India had started the series fraction of a point behind New Zealand and needed to win the series 3-0 to perch itself at the top of the table.

However, after Zimbabwe pulled off a thrilling two-run victory in the opening match of the series on Saturday, India kissed good-bye to its chances of reclaiming the number-one position which it had surrendered to New Zealand following the annual update on 4 May.

The 2-1 series win means India has finished on 128 points – four behind number-one ranked New Zealand and six ahead of reigning ICC World Twenty20 champion West Indies.

In contrast, Zimbabwe has lifted from 58 points to 62 after gaining four points despite losing the series. This is because India had entered the series leading 12th ranked Zimbabwe by 66 points. And because the rankings are weighted to reflect this difference, India’s failure to comfortably win the matches have resulted in it dropping points and Zimbabwe earning points.

MRF Tyres ICC T20I Team Rankings (as of June 23, after the India-Zimbabwe series)

Rank   Team              Points

1          New Zealand   132

2          India                128

3          West Indies     122

4          South Africa   119

5          England           114

6          Australia         110

7          Pakistan          104

8          Sri Lanka        98

9          Afghanistan    78

10        Bangladesh     74

11        Netherlands     67

12        Zimbabwe       62

13        Scotland          57

14        UAE                54

15        Ireland             48

16        Oman              37

17        Hong Kong     29