WTC 2023-25 Points Table: India Make Huge Gain After Australia Beat New Zealand In Wellington Test

Australia rode on Nathan Lyon’s match haul of 10 wickets to beat New Zealand by 172 runs in the first Test.

New Delhi: India were benefited after Australia’s 1st Test win over New Zealand as Rohit Sharma’s men moved to the top of World Test Championship (WTC) on Sunday. Earlier on the day, a Nathan Lyon masterclass helped Australia clinch a 172-run win over BlackCaps in Wellington. Australia’s win helped India’s win percentage reach 64.58 which was enough to take them at No.1 position. Notably, India are leading England 3-1 in a five-match Test series currently.

The second spot is taken by New Zealand, with a point percentage of 60.00. Australia occupy the third spot and they are having a points percentage of 59.09. India can further solidify their position at the top if they win the fifth and final Test against England in Dharamsala starting on March 7.

India have so far played eight Tests in the ongoing WTC cycle and won five. Rohit Sharma’s men lost twice while drawing once. It is to be noted that the rankings are based on percentage of points. In WTC, 12 points are awarded for a win, six points for a tie and four points for a draw. The top two teams will play the final. India are two-time finalists, but lost on both occasions.

Meanwhile, Nathan Lyon took ten wickets for the match and brought New Zealand’s attempted fight back in the first Test to a shuddering halt as Australia completed a 172-run win on Sunday. New Zealand resumed at 111-3 on the fourth day in its second innings and collapsed in the face of superb spin bowling from Lyon (6-64) to be all out for 196 a few minutes after the scheduled lunch break.

Lyon completed match figures of 10-108, his fifth 10 wicket bag, which went along with his 41 as nightwatchman in Australia’s second innings. The Black Caps were unable to sustain the stubborn fight back they had begun to produce on day three when Australia was bowled out for 164 in its second innings for an overall lead of 368.

Glenn Phillips took 5-43 to limit Australia as it tried to build on its first innings lead of 204. Rachin Ravindra’s unbeaten 56 before stumps on day three fanned New Zealand’s faint hope that it might be able to head off defeat. But Ravindra was out for 59 in only the seventh over of the morning and with his departure New Zealand’s resistance appeared to falter, then break.