Has the recently concluded World Test Championship (WTC) final exposed the shocking flaws in the World Test Championship format, and has it done more harm than good to the dying format?

Test Cricket – Not the Ultimate format of Cricket

We see empty stadiums in most Test matches across the globe when one of the big three in Test cricket is not playing.

Irony is that most cricket boards prefer to play T20s and ODI format games over Test cricket. The longest format of the game is losing considerable fan base.

This is the reality of the current state of Test cricket.

While the media and cricketers may try to portray Test cricket as the ultimate format of the game, it may be limited only to the players.

It is far from the truth for the cricket fans who prefer the shorter version of the game.

South Africa cricket Board had even sent a third-string side to New Zealand for a Test match to keep their top players at home to appear in their domestic T20 league. Commerce from the game comes from the fans, and that matters.

Even after winning the World Test Championship, South Africa has not scheduled any home Tests for the year 2025/26.

Introduction of the World Test Championship (WTC) – ICC’s desperate attempt

The International Cricket Council (ICC) introduced the World Test Championship (WTC) cycle to give a new lease of life for Test cricket. The Tournament format, however, is facing a lot of criticism today.

The World Test Championship is a Two-year tournament cycle with the top 2 ranked teams (based on a percentage of points won-PCT) competing with each other in a one-off Test match at Lord’s (England) cricket stadium to become the World Test Champions.

Flaws in the World Test Championship Format

• Top Test teams prefer to play against strong opponents for their commercial interests.
• Test teams are not required to face each other or to play the same number of matches, unlike most sports leagues.
• Countries are free to decide how many Tests they would like to play in the two-year qualifying cycle
• Test teams do not play with all test-playing nations in the cycle.
• Table Positions are calculated on the percentage of available points won by teams. So, teams playing a 5-match test series stand to have a disadvantage as compared to a team playing a 3-match test series.
  • Though England plays the most Test cricket and the most 5-match Test series, due to the flawed points percentage system, they are yet to qualify for the WTC finals.
• Playing at the Lord’s for the finals gives undue advantage to Western Teams as compared to teams from the subcontinent.
• The percentage of points won (PCT) system does not account for more subjective variables such as the length of series, quality of opponents, and the diversity of conditions.

The Test championship format in its current form is flawed and is being wrongly branded as a showpiece event. Former England captain Michael Atherton said “everyone knows the WTC in its present guise is flawed”. Even Ben Stokes of England has termed it “utterly confusing”.

India and Pakistan, two Test-playing nations, have not played a Test against each other since 2007, so how does the WTC justify the standings and point system?

Was South Africa a worthy opponent to face the defending champion Australia in the Ultimate Test?

At the inaugural final in 2021, New Zealand’s success was widely hailed. Even the Australian win was appreciated two years later, but the third instalment of the WTC final begs to ask the question if it was the two best teams in Test cricket playing the finals?

Table-topper South Africa played just 12 Tests in the 2023–25 cycle, the joint-lowest with Bangladesh, while England featured in 22 matches in the same time frame.

While the victory in the final against the mighty Australians should be celebrated, the glaring flaw in the WTC cycle also cannot be ignored.

How did South Africa Qualify?

The South Africans qualified for the WTC finals on the back of six consecutive wins — two each against lower-ranked Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and a 1-0 series win against West Indies. South Africa’s last four opponents in the current WTC cycle comprise the bottom-placed teams in the standings.

South Africa played just 12 Tests in the current cycle and did not play against strong teams like England or Australia in the WTC cycle. All six of South Africa’s series in the current cycle comprised two matches each, which gave them more percentage points.

The criticism of South Africa’s seemingly easier path to the final is being widely discussed as they neither faced Australia nor England in the entire WTC Cycle.

Super Sports View

People supporting the current format argue that India was able to qualify for two finals and needs to be continued.

Strong teams can play 3 match short series against lower ranked team and with the points scored can book their place in the finals. But, is the current format of WTC helping or hindering the oldest and the endangered format in the game?

While South Africa’s spot in the WTC final shouldn’t be up for debate, the Proteas’ campaign warrants scrutiny of the WTC’s format and structure.

Our Views

• Ideally, the WTC should be over a period of 4 years with the top nine Teams in the rankings to play an equal number of games against each other and have a minimum of 3 Test series, both at home and away.
• The 2-match short Test series should be discontinued. Currently, India, Australia, and England are the only teams that play Five-Test series. This should be encouraged more in the WTC cycle.
• Extending the WTC cycle from six series per team to eight minimum 3 test match series could be a better solution.
• Test to move towards a two-tier system, prioritizing the top teams in one tier and the bottom 4-5 teams in another tier, a system similar to football.

Also Read: Will India Reach The 2027 World Test Championship (WTC) Finals?

WTC 2025-27 Schedule:

SRI LANKA

2 Tests vs Bangladesh (Home) – June 2025

2 Tests vs West Indies (Away) – June 2026

2 Tests vs India (Home) – August 2026

2 Tests vs Pakistan (Away) – November 2026

2 Tests vs New Zealand (Away) – January 2027

2 Tests vs South Africa (Home) – February 2027

BANGLADESH

2 Tests vs Sri Lanka (Away) – June 2025

2 Tests vs Pakistan (Home) – March 2026

2 Tests vs West Indies (Home) – October 2026

2 Tests vs South Africa (Away) – November 2026

2 Tests vs England (Home) – February 2027

2 Tests vs Australia (Away) – March 2027

AUSTRALIA

2 Tests vs West Indies (Away) – June 2025

5 Tests vs England (Home) – November 2025

3 Tests vs South Africa (Away) – September 2026

3 Tests vs New Zealand (Home) – December 2026

5 Tests vs India (Away) – January 2027

2 Tests vs Bangladesh (Home) – March 2027

WEST INDIES 

2 Tests vs Australia (Home) – June 2025

2 Tests vs India (Away) – October 2025

2 Tests vs New Zealand (Away) – November 2025

2 Tests vs Sri Lanka (Home) – June 2026

2 Tests vs Pakistan (Home) – July 2026

2 Tests vs Bangladesh (Away) – October 2026

ENGLAND

5 Tests vs India (Home) – June 2025

5 Tests vs Australia (Away) – November 2025

3 Tests vs New Zealand (Home) – June 2026

3 Tests vs Pakistan (Home) – August 2026

3 Tests vs South Africa (Away) – December 2026

2 Tests vs Bangladesh (Away) – February 2027

INDIA

5 Tests vs England (Away) – June 2025

2 Tests vs West Indies (Home) – October 2026

2 Tests vs South Africa (Home) – November 2026

2 Tests vs Sri Lanka (Away) – August 2026

2 Tests vs New Zealand (Away) – October 2026

5 Tests vs Australia (Home) – January 2027

SOUTH AFRICA

2 Tests vs Pakistan (Away) – October 2025

2 Tests vs India (Away) – November 2025

3 Tests vs Australia (Home) – September 2026

2 Tests vs Bangladesh (Home) – November 2026

3 Tests vs England (Home) – December 2026

2 Tests vs Sri Lanka (Away) – February 2027

NEW ZEALAND

2 Tests vs West Indies (Home) – November 2025

3 Tests vs England (Away) – June 2026

2 Tests vs India (Home) – October 2026

3 Tests vs Australia (Away) – December 2026

2 Tests vs Sri Lanka (Home) – January 2027

2 Tests vs Pakistan (Away) – March 2027

PAKISTAN

2 Tests vs South Africa (Home) – October 2025

2 Tests vs Bangladesh (Away) – March 2026

2 Tests vs West Indies (Away) – July 2026

3 Tests vs England (Away) – August 2026

2 Tests vs Sri Lanka (Home) – November 2026

2 Tests vs New Zealand (Home) – March 2027

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