Have you ever wondered which is the best cricket team in the world? And how does one get that title?
The answer revolves around the International Cricket Council (ICC) ranking system. So, why don’t we unfold the ranking system in detail?
The ICC ranking system
The ranking is made to countdown the cricket teams around the world. The ranking system of teams on all three formats are independent to each other.
For instance: If Australia has ranked high on One Day International (ODI) format, any other team with higher points will rank on the test matches or T20.
The ICC ranking system and calculations involved are far less complicated than individual player ranking.
How does the ICC Test ranking work?
The ICC ranking system was introduced by David Kendix.
The points scored at the end of the match/ series total is added on the respective team’s total. After that an average rating is calculated based on the total matches. Hence, the final score of a team is an average score of their game play.
Factors involved in the ICC Team Test Ranking
- Strength of the opposition.
- Win against strong opponent earns more points than weak opponent.
- Updates are added after the end of any format.
- Opposition’s strength is calculated on the basis of their initial rating.
- Winning any match increases the rating and vice-versa.
Terminology used in the ICC Team Test Ranking
Series Points
These are special points rewarded to a team-based off the final outcome of a particular series. Only valid for one series.
Rating Points
Total points acquired by the teams at that of ranking period.
Rating
Average points earned by a team.
It is calculated: By dividing total rating points with the total number of matches played by the team.
For example, Team A has accumulated 3600 points while playing 30 matches.
In that case, 3600/30 = 120 is the team’s ranking.
Note: A complete set of series is acknowledged as one match, irrespective to the games played in that series.
Ranking
Team’s position on the ICC Team Ranking Table.
Time period for ICC Team Test Ranking
The calculation is done in 3-4 years’ time. The period begins at May month every year.
Weightage
Initial two years: 50% weightage.
Remaining 12-24 months: 100% weightage.
ICC Team Ranking System
Step 1: Calculating Series Points.
Series points is assigned to each team in order to calculate rating points. Factors considered in adding series points are:
- Each match win = 1 series points.
- Each Match draw or tie = ½ series points.
- Winning the series= 1 bonus series points.
- Draw series = ½ bonus series points.
Step 2: Calculating Rating Points.
In order to calculate the rating points, two different formulas are applied based off two scenarios.
Scenario A: Rating gap between two teams is lower than 40.
[(The team A own series points) x (The team B rating + 50)] + [(The team B series points) x (The team B rating − 50)]
For example: Let’s consider India and Australia have a series point of 3 and 1. England’s rating: 90
Rating Points of India= [(India’s series points) x (England’s
= [ 3 X (90 + 50] + [ 1 X (90 – 50)]
= [3×140] + [1×40]
= 460 is the total rating points of India.
Scenario B: Rating gap between two teams is equal to or higher than 40.
Formula:
Higher rating Team:
[(The team’s own series points) x (The team’s own rating + 10)] + [(The opponent’s series points) x (The team’s own rating − 90)]
Lower rating Team:
[(The team’s own series points) x (The team’s own rating + 90)] + [(The opponent’s series points) x (The team’s own rating − 10)]
Final Step 3: Calculating the rating and ranking.
Rating points are added to overall teams’ point and an average is calculated.
ICC Team Ranking for ODI and T20.
The series point concept doesn’t apply in the remaining two formats, but the scenarios for rating points are same.
Formula A: Rating gap between two teams is lower than 40.
Rating points earned during a particular match will be:
- Win – Opponent’s rating + 50
- Tie – Opponent’s rating
- Lose – Opponent’s rating – 50
Formula B: Rating gap between two teams is equal to or higher than 40.
In case of High Rating team wins
Higher Rated Team Rating: Self-rating + 10.
Lower Rated Team Rating: Self-rating − 10.
In case of Tie match
Higher Rated Team Rating: Self-rating – 40.
Lower Rated Team Rating: Self-rating + 40.
In case of Low Rating team wins
Higher Rated Team Rating: Self-rating – 90.
Lower Rated Team Rating: Self-rating + 90.
Conclusion
Understanding the ICC team ranking system at first can be appalling. But once you get around the method, its merely a simple mathematical equation. We hope this guide helps you get a clear mental picture.
