India's busy Test season is set to kick off with two red-ball matches against Bangladesh at home. The Indian cricket team will be hosting the Bangla Tigers and New Zealand for five Tests in the coming time before a trip Down Under for a five-Test Border-Gavaskar series against the Aussies later in the year.
India, the serial WTC finalists now, have a chance to make it a hat-trick of finales in the Test arena. They are the leaders of the nine-team pack and have their destiny in their own hands. Another finale and this time with a title, will be the thing Rohit Sharma and his men would be aiming at.
India have won six of the nine Tests they have played, losing only two and settling for a draw in the other one to rank on top of the chart with 68.52 PCT against their name. Where will India's PCT go if they win sweep the Bangla Tigers in the two-match series and will it confirm their place in the final once again? Let's check it out.
India's PCT to shoot in mid-70s if they win 2-0
The Indian team's PCT will reach the mid-70s if they win both of the Test matches against Bangladesh. They currently have a PCT of 68.52 and the next two wins will take them to 74.24 in the PCT column, which is as healthy as anyone would like for a place in the finals.
But that will not guarantee them a finale ticket as they would still have eight more games and not winning them will drop the Men in Blue in the South of the WTC standings. (Note: Each team gets 12 points for a win, 6 for a tie, 4 for a draw and no point for a loss).
For India to qualify for the final, they must win nearly six of the remaining ten games. Winning six of them will keep India's PCT to 64.03 which should be enough for a place in the final.
Are Bangladesh in a fight for a WTC final ticket?
Bangladesh's 2-0 sweep of Pakistan have given them real chances to reach the final but the road ahead is not very easy. After their series win over the Men in Green, Bangladesh are in fourth place with a PCT of 45.83. They have to play four away Tests against India and West Indies (two each against them) and are scheduled to host South Africa in two Tests.
If they somehow win all of the six, they will have a PCT of 72.91 but it looks too big of a task for them. Winning four will keep their PCT to 56.25, which might not be enough.
At the moment, bottom-placed West Indies are the only team to be out of the WTC final race with even eighth-ranked Pakistan having a slim mathematical chance to sail into the summit clash. Similarly, no team has booked its place in the final and it is unlikely it will happen anytime soon.
