TL;DR
- The World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle begins, with nine nations competing for a final spot.
- Teams play six Test series, three home and three away, over two years.
- The league format awards points for wins, ties, and draws, with percentage determining final standings.
- Two teams with the highest point percentages advance to the final match.
The path to the World Test Championship (WTC) 2027 final is now underway. Following South Africa's inaugural WTC championship win in the 2023–25 period, focus shifts to the upcoming two years of Test cricket as nations compete for a spot in the subsequent final.
The fourth edition of the WTC will run from June 2025 to mid-2027. Nine Test-playing nations are part of the race, including India, England, Australia, and Pakistan.
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Throughout the competition cycle, each nation will participate in six Test series, with three played on home soil and three on foreign grounds. The struggle is expected to intensify as countries aim to secure early victories.
The World Test Championship 2025-27 will follow a league format where teams earn points based on their match results.
For the 2025–27 WTC cycle, the structure mirrors that of prior editions. Over two years, 27 Test series will be contested, featuring 71 matches in all. Each squad will take part in six of these series, with all games contributing to the championship standings.
Similar to previous rounds, two teams will advance to the final stage determined by their accumulated point percentages from all matches. This approach guarantees that consistency throughout the series, not solely the quantity of victories, is a significant factor.
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World Test Championship 2023-25 points breakdown
| Points per match | Percentage of points | |
|---|---|---|
| Win | 12 | 100 |
| Tie | 6 | 50 |
| Draw | 4 | 33.33 |
| Loss | 0 | 0 |
*Teams will be ranked according to the percentage of points won
*Teams will be docked one championship point for slow overrates.
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World Test Championship standings, most recently revised
| Rank | Team | Matches | Wins | Losses | Draws | N/R | Points (PT) | Percentage (PCT) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48 | 100.00 |
| 2 | South Africa | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 75.00 |
| 3 | Sri Lanka | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 66.67 |
| 4 | Pakistan | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 50.00 |
| 5 | India | 9 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 52 | 48.15 |
| 6 | England | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 26 | 36.11 |
| 7 | Bangladesh | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 16.67 |
| 8 | West Indies | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| 9 | New Zealand | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
The World Test Championship has had previous victors.
| Cycle | Champion | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|
| 2019-21 | New Zealand | India |
| 2021-23 | Australia | India |
| 2023–25 | South Africa | Australia |