Dubai: After their two consecutive battering, including the one by Sri Lanka on Tuesday, India slipped to join South Africa on 116 ratings points on the Reliance ICC ODI Championship table. However, India is still ranked above South Africa in second place when the ratings are calculated beyond the decimal point.

Meanwhile, England took a sweet revenge of its 3-0 defeat in the Test series by outplaying Pakistan by 4-0 in the four-match ODI series which ended in Dubai on Tuesday. While doing so, England has moved ahead of Pakistan in fifth place on the Reliance ICC ODI Championship table.

Alastair Cook’s side wrapped up the ODI series by beating Misbah-ul-Haq’s men by five wickets in the last ODI in Dubai after having won the earlier matches by 130 runs, 20 runs (both in Abu Dhabi) and nine wickets (in the third in Dubai).

For this superb achievement, England has earned five ratings points which has put it on 111 ratings points while Pakistan has dropped to 104 ratings points after conceding five ratings points.

It is also the first time since 1987-88 when England has won all the matches of an ODI series against Pakistan.

Nearly 25 years ago in Pakistan, Mike Gatting’s side had defeated Abdul Qadir’s men 3-0 in a three-match series. England, in the series which was played immediately after the ICC Cricket World Cup 1987, won matches in Lahore (by two wickets), Karachi (by 23 runs) and Peshawar (by 98 runs).

England, after blanking out Pakistan, now has fourth-ranked Sri Lanka firmly within its sights. Sri Lanka is two ratings points ahead of England with a minimum of three matches remaining in the three-nation tournament Down Under where the other participating sides are host Australia and India.

Sri Lanka, also on Tuesday, moved to 113 ratings points after defeating India by 51 runs in Brisbane while India slipped to join South Africa on 116 ratings points. However, India is still ranked above South Africa in second place when the ratings are calculated beyond the decimal point.

Meanwhile, Michael Clarke’s side is now clear favourite to finish at the top of the tree on the 1 April cut-off date. And if it achieves this, then it will receive a cheque of US$175,000 which is presented annually to the side which tops the Reliance ICC ODI Championship table at the cut-off date.

It will be the third successive year that Australia will finish as the number-one ranked ODI side at the cut-off date. It also won top honours from 2002 to 2007 before its winning streak was halted by South Africa which topped the table in 2008 and 2009.

The battle for the number-two position, however, remains tight as only three ratings points separate second-ranked India and third placed South Africa from fourth-ranked Sri Lanka. The side which finishes second on the 1 April cut-off date receives US$75,000.

Besides the series in Australia and New Zealand (between New Zealand and South Africa), the other series which will finish before the cut-off date is the Asia Cup in Dhaka in March which will feature Sri Lanka and India, besides Pakistan and host Bangladesh.

South Africa, which is in contention to finish as the number-one ranked Test side at the cut-off date if it defeats New Zealand in all the three Tests in March, has an opportunity to strengthen its chances to finish as the number-two ranked side on the ODI table at the cut-off date when it goes head to head with New Zealand in a three-match series which starts on Saturday in Wellington.

If the Proteas win all the three ODIs, they will rise to 118 ratings points but if the series result is reversed, then South Africa will plunge to 109 ratings points while New Zealand will rise to 95 ratings points after earning seven ratings points.

A 2-1 series win will mean South Africa will slip to 115 ratings points while New Zealand will move to 89 ratings points.


Remaining matches in three-nation tournament:

24 Feb – Australia v Sri Lanka, Hobart
26 Feb – Australia v India, Sri Lanka
28 Feb – India v Sri Lanka, Hobart
2 Mar – Australia v Sri Lanka, Melbourne
4 Mar – First final, Brisbane
6 Mar – Second final, Adelaide
8 Mar – Third final (if required), Adelaide

New Zealand v South Africa

25 Feb – first ODI, Wellington
29 Feb – Second ODI, Napier
3 Mar – Third ODI, Auckland

Reliance ICC ODI Championship (as of 21 February, after Pakistan-England ODI series and India-Sri Lanka ODI in Brisbane).

Rank    Team                           Ratings

1. Australia                      129

2. India                            116

3. South Africa               116

4. Sri Lanka                     113

5. England                       111

6. Pakistan                       104

7. New Zealand              88

8. West Indies                 79

9. Bangladesh                 62

10. Zimbabwe                   46

11. Ireland                         36

12. Netherlands                 15

13. Kenya                          08