Pune: ICC World Twenty20 2016 host India and defending champion Sri Lanka go head to head in a three-match T20 International series in Pune on Wednesday with the number-one ranking on the MRF Tyres ICC T20I Championship table up for grabs.
India, which vaulted seven places to first after sweeping aside Australia last week, needs to win the series against Sri Lanka to retain the coveted position. In contrast, Sri Lanka will also aim to win the series, which will help it leapfrog India and the West Indies into the top spot.
With the ICC World Twenty20 2016 starting in less than four weeks, this series is extremely crucial for both sides. India and Sri Lanka will not only aim to find the winning combination and momentum, but also target entering the tournament as the number-one ranked side, which will serve as an additional confidence-booster.
Following this series, India and Sri Lanka will feature in the Asia Cup Twenty20 tournament in Bangladesh before launching their ICC World Twenty20 campaigns on 15 and 17 March respectively. Sri Lanka will defend the title it won in Bangladesh in 2014 in the tournament to be staged from 8 March to 3 April, while India will try to repeat its ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 glory when it lifted the most prestigious trophy in the sport in front of its fans in Mumbai.
The following are the series permutations:
If India wins 3-0 – India (1st) 127; Sri Lanka (7th) 112
If India wins 2-1 – India (1st) 122; Sri Lanka (4th) 116
If Sri Lanka wins 2-1 – India (3rd) 117; Sri Lanka (1st) 121
If Sri Lanka wins 3-0 – India (7th) 112; Sri Lanka (1st) 125
India v Sri Lanka
9 Feb – 1st T20I, Pune
12 Feb – 2nd T20I, Ranchi
14 Feb – 3rd T20I, Visakhapatnam
MRF Tyres ICC T20I Championship (as of 7 February, before the start of India-Sri Lanka series)
RANK TEAM POINTS
1 India 120
2 West Indies 118
3 Sri Lanka 118
4 England 117
5 New Zealand 116
6 South Africa 115
7 Pakistan 113
8 Australia 110
9 Afghanistan 80
10 Scotland 69
