During its April board meeting, the International Cricket Council (ICC) is expected to consider a new bonus points system that would give greater weight to bigger victories.
During its board meeting in April, the International Cricket Council (ICC) is expected to consider a new bonus points system that would give more weight to bigger victories, particularly those won overseas, during the next World Test Championship cycle. In June, India will play a five-match away Test series against England to kick off the 2025-27 WTC cycle. According to the current rules, the side that wins by the smallest margin or by an innings receives 12 points, while a tie earns six points and a draw earns four. However, this could change as the worldwide governing body, according to the Telegraph, is considering offering bonus points for innings victories or wins by a large margin, such as 100 runs.
“In fact, issues such as giving bonus points for innings wins etc has been in continuous discussion from the beginning of the WTC, as many teams felt that due weight is not getting for wins against big teams,” a person familiar with the matter told PTI.
“So, such topics have been a part of discussions, and this could again come up for deliberations,” he stated.
This could now change, though, as the ICC may add bonus points for decisive victory and provide extra points for defeating front-runners like Australia, England, and India based on their rankings.Yes, if it does happen, it’s a wise move. We may witness some thrilling matches, thus the sides would be more driven to strive for outcomes,” a former India player told PTI on condition of anonymity.
The ICC is also considering awarding bonus points for victories that take place away from home. Indeed, it will serve as a driving force for those “smaller” teams. As you can see, last year’s victory over India was historic for New Zealand because so few countries came here to defeat us.However, they received no bonus points for it. Although winning away from home can serve as a motivational factor in and of itself, he continued, “the teams will now have that carrot in front of them — extra points, if it really happens.”
In addition, the two-tier Test system, which Cricket Australia strongly supports, may be discussed during the ICC board meeting.
Before implementation, there should be a lot of discussion because certain teams may feel that they aren’t getting enough opportunities to play against powerful teams like Australia or India.As it stands, there are fewer series between Australia and the West Indies or India and New Zealand than there are between the top teams in a WTC cycle. Therefore, they ought to give it careful thought before putting it into practice,” the player continued.
