WTC final hangs in balance after Brisbane Test ends in draw
Dec 18, 2024
Brisbane [Australia], December 18 : After weather forced the Brisbane Test to end in a draw, the race to the World Test Championship final further became a tricky affair, ICC Cricket reported.
On Wednesday, both teams were forced to settle for four points in the race to feature at next year's ICC WTC final at Lord's. The result didn't lead to a change in the WTC standings but offered clarity on what the teams need to do to qualify for the final.
Australia remained in second place on the World Test Championship standings with a 58.89 points percentage, marginally in front of India in third with 55.88 per cent.
South Africa, with a points percentage of 63.33 per cent, remains in front of the standings and in the box seat to feature in the one-off Test in June 2025.
Australia and India remain their closest challengers ahead of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne and the New Year Test in Sydney at the start of 2025.
To qualify for the WTC final, India need to win the remaining two Tests to qualify for the final. Australia's result in the Sri Lanka Tests won't have an effect on India's qualification.
If India wins one and draws one, then they would need Sri Lanka to play out a draw against Australia in one of the Tests.
Despite Australia captain Pat Cummins making a huge bid to push for a result after deciding to declare on 89/7 and invite India to chase down a 275-run target, the match ended at a stalemate.
Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul looked in good touch, effectively negating the pace blitz of Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc. The opening pair found a couple of perfectly timed shots to keep the scoreboard ticking.
As the Test intensified, the weather came in to intervene and halt the play. As both teams waited for some action, it eventually became clear that resuming the game would be unlikely. Both teams shook hands and decided to leave Brisbane with a draw.
