JOHANNESBURG -- Ireland have received a major psychological boost ahead of its tour to Zimbabwe after it leaped over the Southern African team in the latest International Cricket Council/Reliance Mobile Rankings. According to the rankings released by the world cricket governing body from United Arab Emirates last Thursday, the Irish are now ranked tenth with 45 ratings points, exchanging laces with Zimbabwe who are now ranked 11th, nine points adrift.
Ireland are now eight ratings points behind Bangladesh and will later this month travel to Zimbabwe for a three-One Day International series after a crucial ICC Intercontinental Cup match against Zimbabwe XI in Harare.
The matches are scheduled for Harare between September 20-Setember 30.
If Ireland wins all three of those ODIs, it will move ahead of Bangladesh into ninth position for the first time. ?
Meanwhile, with preparations for next year’s ICC Cricket World Cup in full swing, Sri Lanka has moved up three places on the Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Championship table following its successful hosting of the tri-series involving India and New Zealand. ?
Kumar Sangakkara’s team had been placed in sixth position prior to the series but now sits in third, level on points with India and South Africa.
Sri Lanka is just behind India, which clings on to second place, and just in front of South Africa, which drops to fourth, when the ratings are calculated beyond the decimal point. ?
New Zealand drops to sixth position from fourth as Australia, at the top, and England, in fifth spot, remain unchanged. Further down the ladder, Ireland has gained one place to 10th spot on the rankings thanks to a successful retention of the ICC World Cricket League Division 1 title recently in the Netherlands. ?
Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Championship table
Rank Team Rating
1 Australia 132
2 India 115
3 Sri Lanka 115
4 South Africa 115
5 England 113
6 New Zealand 112
7 Pakistan 98
8 West Indies 67
9 Bangladesh 53
10 Ireland 45
11 Zimbabwe 36
12 Netherlands 17
13 Kenya 0
Post published in: Cricket