In a dominating performance, New Zealand defeated England by 423 runs in the third Test at Hamilton. This was a fitting farewell for veteran pacer Tim Southee, who claimed two wickets in his final Test to finish with 391 wickets. Despite this win, New Zealand lost the series 2-1 to England, who have now been eliminated from the World Test Championship finals race due to their poor performance. Mitchell Santner was named the Player of the Match for his all-round performance, while Jacob Bethell and Joe Root showed some fight for England.
The third Test match between India and Australia ended in a draw due to persistent rain in Brisbane. Despite Australia dominating with both bat and ball, India's resilient performance in the second innings helped them avoid the follow-on. This result means that both teams earned 4 points each in the ongoing World Test Championship. However, India's and Australia's percentage points have dropped slightly, keeping them at the 3rd and 2nd positions respectively in the WTC points table.
In a closely fought match, India's draw against Australia caused their points percentage to drop in the ICC World Test Championship standings. Despite gaining four points, India's PCT slipped with their second draw in the ongoing WTC cycle, while Australia's also decreased. Both teams are still in the running for the WTC final, with India needing to avoid another loss and Australia having four games left to play.
Star Indian fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah takes over the top spot from Ravichandran Ashwin in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 cycle with 66 wickets. As he continues to shine in the ongoing India-Australia Test series, Bumrah's impressive wicket tally has surpassed Ashwin's record of 63 wickets. The pacer is now on track to break Ashwin's record for most wickets taken by an Indian in a WTC cycle if he takes six more wickets in the next two matches.
Travis Head dominates with his second century in the series against Indian cricket team. Team India's domination came crushing down on their day two of the third BGT Test against Australia at the Gabba in Brisbane when Travis Head scored another hundred, his second in the series and ninth overall in Tests. This has been the second consecutive time in a row that the Australian left-hander has targeted the Indian team in a decisive manner since his pivotal role in both the 2025 WTC Final and the dramatic 2023 ODI World Cup Final. With these two innings, Head has been the source behiond Australia's two biggest wins against India in recent times and the end is still not in sight.
After South Africa's convincing win over Sri Lanka in the second Test at Gqeberha, India's chances of making it to the ICC World Test Championship Final for the third time in a row have been greatly reduced. This win has propelled South Africa to the top of the WTC Final standings, pushing India down to third place. Australia's 10-wicket win against India in the second Test in Adelaide has put them in second place, making the race for the WTC Final even more intense.
After a dominant 109-run victory over Sri Lanka, South Africa has emerged as the new leader in the World Test Championship points table, surpassing Australia. The win was led by Keshav Maharaj who took five wickets, securing a 2-0 series sweep for the home team. With two more home tests against Pakistan, South Africa is now in a strong position to qualify for their first WTC final next year.
England's Harry Brook came close to breaking his compatriot Ben Duckett's record for the fastest to reach 2000 runs in red-ball cricket, but fell just 7 deliveries short during the ongoing Test against New Zealand. Despite the disappointment, Brook's partnership with Ollie Pope helped England recover from a shaky start and he also became the second-fastest to reach the milestone in Test cricket. Brook now has the second-most number of Test hundreds for England in the ongoing WTC cycle.
As the 2021 World Test Championship winners, New Zealand prepares to take on England in a three-match Test series, there is plenty at stake for both teams. While the Kiwis hope to keep their chances of qualifying for the WTC 2025 final alive, England has the opportunity to play spoiler. With star players Kane Williamson and Tim Southee back in the squad, the series is sure to be an exciting one for fans. As both teams have won one match each in their last Test series in New Zealand, it remains to be seen who will come out on top this time around.
In a rain-affected first day of the Test match between Sri Lanka and South Africa, the visitor's bowler, Lahiru Kumara, demonstrated his skills by taking two wickets, including that of South African opener, David Bedingham. Both teams are fighting for a win in this fixture as their hopes of qualifying for the final of the World Test Championship depend on it.