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New Zealand Dethrone Australia To Top WTC Standings Following Clinical Win Vs SA

image-lsobtl0jNew Zealand players celebrating a SA wicket at Hamilton (x.com)

New Zealand ravaged an inexperienced South African side in the second Test at home to increase their lead at the top of the World Test Championship (WTC) points table.

Powered by Kane Williamson and anchored by Will Young, the Kiwis overhauled their monumental 267-run task on the fourth evening with seven wickets to spare. The win also helped them seal their two-match series with a 2-0 margin, thus marking their first-ever Test series triumph over the Proteas.


New Zealand extend WTC lead over Australia

New Zealand’s win-loss percentage rose to 75 per cent after they walloped South Africa by seven wickets at Hamilton’s Seddon Park.

On the other hand, South Africa fell below England on the 2023-25 WTC points table despite coming up with an improved performance in the series-deciding second Test, considering they went down to the hosts by 281 runs at Mount Maunganui earlier this month.

With several Proteas players opting themselves out of New Zealand Tests to feature in SA20, the T20-prone South African team is only leading a winless Sri Lankan side on the nine-team standings at the moment.

Reigning WTC winners, Australia retained their second spot, while subcontinental trio India (third), Bangladesh (fourth) and Pakistan (fifth) constitute the remaining three teams on the top five list. An insurgent West Indies unit rose to number six owing to their emphatic Test victory over Australia at the Gabba last month, while ‘BazBall’ radical England is ranked seventh on the table.

New Zealand will now defend their number one WTC tag against antipodean rivals Australia at home through a short two-match Test series. The first of the two Tests will be played at Wellington’s Basin Reserve between February 29 and March 4.