Sipu Jha
New Zealand’s demolition of Zimbabwe in Bulawayo by an innings and 359 runs might have made headlines for its sheer dominance, but it has no bearing on the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 table — and therefore no direct impact on India’s current standing. That is because Zimbabwe, despite being a full member nation of the ICC, are not part of the WTC cycle. When the tournament was launched in 2019, only the top nine Test teams as of 31 March 2018 were included. Zimbabwe, along with Ireland and Afghanistan, missed out and have yet to be added to the competition.
The nine competing nations remain Australia, England, India, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, West Indies, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.ICC World Test Championship, 2025/27
World Test Championship (WTC) Points Table for the 2025–27 cycle
At the moment, following the Anderson–Tendulkar Trophy series, India are placed third on the WTC table with a points percentage of 46.67. England sit just behind in fourth with 43.33. Australia lead the way with a perfect 100 points from their opening matches, while Sri Lanka are second on 66.67.
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Should Zimbabwe be included in the ICC World Test Championship in the future?
For India, New Zealand’s result changes nothing right now. The Kiwis — winners of the inaugural 2019-21 cycle — have yet to start their WTC 2025-27 campaign, which begins in December with a three-Test home series against West Indies. The match in Bulawayo, however, was historic. New Zealand declared at 601 for three before skittling Zimbabwe out twice, Zak Foulkes grabbing five wickets in the second innings to seal the third-biggest innings victory in Test history. While it will not shift the WTC standings today, performances like this are a reminder that when the Kiwis do join the race, they could be one of India’s biggest hurdles on the road to the 2027 final.
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