The ICC World Test Championship (WTC) is the world event for the longest format of cricket, and decides the world’s best Test team over the two-year tournament. It is the premier tournament for Test matches.
Test cricket is very exciting to watch and is most fiercely-fought among all formats. It is the traditional and most classic format of cricket which tests the players in all facets of their skill, physically as well as mentally. It tests their patience as well as diligence, along with acute awareness of margins in a game.
There is nothing more intriguing to watch than a seamer bowling upfront with the new ball, or spinners operating on a wearing wicket. So the WTC adds context to the long and arduous series played by teams and makes teams contest harder for each match.
The top-nine teams of the ICC Test rankings participate in the World Test Championship, which runs over a period of two years.
Understanding the WTC
The World Test Championship is the pinnacle event of ICC for the Test format of cricket, introduced to fulfil the ICC’s intention of having one pinnacle event for each format of cricket. The ODI format and T20I format have their own World Cups, happening once in every four years and two years, respectively. It was also designed to help promote Tests and make fans want to watch the traditional format of cricket, which has otherwise seen a decline in popularity owing to the advent and rise of T20 cricket.
The WTC differs very much from the limited-overs formats, whose bilaterals don’t add context to the mega events and the tournaments are held once every few years to decide the champions. The WTC includes the bilateral series between teams to create a points table. Teams are awarded points based on their results in every match, and matches over the two-year period are added to the team’s total. The rankings are thus decided through every series and the top two teams, based on percentage points won.
How the WTC Works
Before the beginning of every cycle, the ICC Test Rankings are updated and the top-nine teams gain qualification to participate in the two-year cycle of WTC. Each team gets to play three home series and three away series, so equal weightage is given to victory at home as well as away, which is an important trait of a good Test team.
WTC Point System:
- 12 points for win
- 0 points for loss
- 4 points for draw
- 6 points for tie
In addition to these, the teams may be docked points by ICC in a match where they fail to meet the over-rate for a game. One point is reduced for every over short of the stipulated target. Also, margins of victory or loss have no effect on the number of points allotted for that match.
Road to The Final
This format is followed over a two-year period as teams contest bilaterally and the teams are ranked on the basis of the percentage of their points that they have gained. The top two teams of the rankings at the end of the cycle, face-off in a final match and the winner of that final becomes the holder of the ICC Test Mace, for being the champion of Test cricket.
Currently, only nine teams participate in the WTC which are decided by the ICC Rankings before the start of every cycle. No associate member of the ICC has yet qualified for the two editions of WTC that have happened so far. Among full members, only Zimbabwe, Ireland, and Afghanistan have not featured in either of the two WTC cycles so far.
Team Profiles
New Zealand : The Kiwis have a formidable home record and possess decent adaptability away from home to keep a consistency. They have a potent pace-attack which dominates visiting teams at home, as well as the spinners which can be successful in the slow Asian conditions. Their batters are very rounded with a fine technique and capable of competing at Test level.
India : The Indian team has been the most successful side in the WTCs, having qualified in both finals of the two cycles. IND possesses an invincible record at home with quality spinners to help rule the roost in turning home conditions and spin the oppositions into a frenzy. But the rise and rise of their pace battery has led to some incredible overseas conquests that have left no doubt as to how strong their team is. Their batting has often led them down but the bowlers have covered up for the lack of runs when needed.
Australia : AUS have a relentless bowling attack consisting of Starc, Cummins, Hazlewood, Lyon, who all have buried many batting line-ups on the bouncy pitches of Australia. They also have excellent spinners who have helped them win even away from home in the heat of Asia’s spinning conditions. Their long batting has rarely collapsed and the all-roundedness of this side makes them a tough competitor anywhere.
England : Having suffered miserably in the first two cycles of WTC with fractured batting, ENG under the Stokes-McCullum duo have begun an exciting brand of fearless cricket to turn it around. Even though they have not featured in any final yet, ENG rose from the bottom to No.4 with their ultra-aggressive approach to all facets of Test cricket, which has brought them impressive success. Their explosive batters, attacking bowlers and excellence on field to make them a dangerous side in the next edition.
South Africa : The very talented SA have not come good on their promising outings. They did not have a single series in Asia, allowing them to bank on their fiery pace-attack and positive batting to earn a place in the final. Having beaten IND, NZ, and BAN in three successive series and starting off well in ENG, they looked prime for the top position. But since then, they switched off, crashing to four consecutive Test defeats, losing two to ENG and two in AUS before holding on to draw in Sydney to end their campaign and finish at No.3.
Pakistan : PAK have let themselves down in what was a golden opportunity to feature in the final. Their spinners were not incisive and the batting was incompetent. They need to fix things big time.
Sri Lanka : SL, although having a tough equation ahead of them, were impressive, almost succeeding to book their place in the final, having narrowly missed in the last two Tests in New Zealand. SL’s fringe players stepped up as their spinners were brilliant everywhere and their batters stepped up on crucial occasions. The lack of penetration in the pace department was a flaw in the team, and the injuries didn’t help them.
West Indies : The WI lacked power in all three departments, failing everywhere in some of them. While there were patches of good performances from some players, they will need to stand up as a unit if they are to challenge the other teams.
Bangladesh : BAN were easily the most disappointing team of WTC, having failed to win even a single match at home. Their spinners were modest and batters were not responsible. There are promising players in their squad but they will need to be more disciplined to become a force in Test cricket.
Highlights and Memorable Moments
- India’s conquest of Australia despite battling injuries of sorts to many players and their redemption from a 36-all out in Adelaide to winning the series in Brisbane was another highlight of the WTC. The series was iconic in itself during the pandemic period, Siraj’s spell of 19.5-5-73-5 will be long remembered, for he gave IND an outside chance of winning outright, which the batters took and capitalised on.
- West Indies scripted a historic 2-0 victory in Bangladesh, but the one that stands out is in the first Test where a debutant Kyle Mayers scored an unbeaten double hundred in Asia, in the fourth innings, as WI chased down 395 runs to manufacture a famous win.
- New Zealand’s moment finally came when they beat IND at Southampton to become the first team to lift the ICC Test Mace as champions. Kyle Jamieson’s of 22-12-31-5 and 24-10-30-2 in both innings were the key spells which tore apart the heart of India’s batting, and he fittingly got the Player of the Match award in WTC Final 2021.
- The rise of England’s hyped “BazBall” approach was crucial for teams like SL, IND, and even AUS to have good chances to set foot in the final as ENG helped crush NZ, SA, and PAK with their aggressive cricket, knocking these out of the final or denting their percentages. Their new style was a highlight in the WTC which is changing the way Test cricket will be played in the coming years.
- The clash between ENG and NZ in early 2023 was one of the greatest of all time, as ENG won the 1st Test ruthlessly with their ultra-positive brand of fast cricket, while NZ came back from the dead in the 2nd Test with their old-school approach of patience and persistence to hand ENG a rare-defeat by one run, only the second time in Test history. Also, NZ became the third team (IND, ENG being the others) to win a Test match after having been asked to follow-on. Neil Wagner’s redemption of 15.2-0-62-4 was the reward of perseverance, relentlessness, and intent.
Impact On Test Cricket
The World Test Championship stuttered a little bit after the first edition, where the changing rules and the shuffled points system midway led to criticism of the ICC, and the pandemic caused rescheduling of many bilaterals which further affected the tournament. A flawed points system didn’t help as several teams unfairly missed out on getting a place in the final. Nevertheless, the first edition was some success as tests began to be fought more closely and teams started to evolve their game, changing the way the game is played now in the current times. New Zealand emerged victorious in the first one in 2021, and the second one will be decided once the final of 2023 between India and Australia is played.
Having made amends in the second edition, the cycle was contested even more fiercely as many teams looked to consolidate themselves in a series and first as well as last tests were given importance. Away victories have been happening more quickly as teams adapt more and fight harder in each match. Test cricket is beginning to get hype, now more than ever, as fans want to see the arm-wrestle between quality players toughing it out, and all the action over 5 days.
Future Prospects
In the future editions, as the pace of the game continues increasing, the WTC could be played in a more structured way with more teams and less league games, by division into groups. There could be a case for semi-finals to precede the finals, and thus allowing increased participation, and the rankings could serve to decide who plays in the top-tier. Test series between different teams could be held simultaneously to allow players to get rest, as well as ensure maximising the calendar.
Conclusion
Test cricket is a very fascinating and brilliant format of the game of cricket, which brings out all the good qualities of the game, and teaches us more than we can imagine. The relation between a captain and his bowlers while defending on the last day is like none other.
As the associate nations continue their growth in the international circuit, and Test cricket continues its evolution, the WTC will keep getting fiercer and the fan base of cricket will increase. The only roadblock is scheduling, as franchise leagues around the world are making the international calendar completely tight. If this continues, players will start opting out of central contracts and keep plying their trade as freelancers in the short format leagues. A solution needs to be worked out unanimously by all members to protect the game and Test cricket.
It would be exciting to watch what the future holds as we hope that Test cricket continues to amaze the fans with all that it has to give.
