South Africa rose to second place in the WTC standings after winning the decider, sending Australia down to third
West Indies boosted their standing after an eight-wicket victory over Bangladesh
New Zealand remain top of the table, while England, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan round out the bottom positions
South Africa completed a stirring comeback at Newlands, beating Australia by 176 runs to win the series 2-1 after losing the opening Test. Centuries from Ryan Rickelton and Wiaan Mulder lifted the hosts to 387 in their second innings, setting a target of 288.
Simon Harmer then took six wickets as Australia were bowled out for 111, and Kagiso Rabada reached his 350th Test wicket along the way. Josh Inglis’s first-innings century proved in vain.
The result reshuffled the top of the World Test Championship 2025-27 table. Australia led before the series decider, with 108 points and a points percentage of 75.00, while South Africa were third on 66.67.
Now South Africa are second, with five wins and two defeats from seven Tests, 60 points and a PCT of 71.43. Australia drop to third, with nine wins and four defeats from 13 Tests, still 108 points but a PCT of 69.23. Only New Zealand, on 72.22 from six Tests, sit ahead of South Africa, who also took the No.1 Test ranking from Australia.
The other big mover was Bangladesh. West Indies beat them by eight wickets in the first Test at Mirpur to go 1-0 up in the two-match series. Shadman Islam made 105 as Bangladesh posted 272, and West Indies replied with 245. Nayeem Hasan’s 4-33 gave the hosts a 27-run lead, but captain Roston Chase took 5-36 and Jomel Warrican 4-63 as Bangladesh collapsed for 142.
West Indies chased down 170 with two wickets lost. The win earned them 12 points, lifting them to 42 points from 13 Tests (three wins, eight defeats, two draws, two points deducted) and a PCT of 26.92. That keeps them eighth, up from 20.83. Bangladesh stay on 40 points but slipped one place to fifth, their PCT dropping from 55.56 to 47.62 after three wins, three defeats and a draw in seven Tests.
India benefited without playing. With 51.52, they move up to fourth. They have 68 points from 11 Tests, with five wins, four defeats and two draws, and seven Tests still to play in this cycle. They remain in the race for the final at Lord’s in June 2027, and Australia, now needing to recover, next play India.
WTC 2025-27 Points Table Updated
| Pos | Team | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Points | PCT (%) |
| 1 | New Zealand | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 52 | 72.22% |
| 2 | South Africa | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 60 | 71.43% |
| 3 | Australia | 13 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 108 | 69.23% |
| 4 | India | 11 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 68 | 51.52% |
| 5 | Bangladesh | 7 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 40 | 47.62% |
| 6 | England | 16 | 7 | 8 | 1 | 74 | 38.54% |
| 7 | Sri Lanka | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 24 | 33.33% |
| 8 | West Indies | 13 | 3 | 8 | 2 | 42 | 26.92% |
| 9 | Pakistan | 9 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 24 | 22.22% |
The rest of the table is unchanged. England are sixth with 74 points from 16 Tests (seven wins, eight defeats, one draw, 14 points deducted) and a PCT of 38.54. Sri Lanka are seventh with 24 points from six Tests (one win, two defeats, three draws) and a PCT of 33.33. Pakistan remain last, with five points from nine Tests (two wins, seven defeats, 19 points deducted) and a PCT of 4.63.
