New Zealand drop to second in ODI rankings after series loss to India

Dubai : New Zealand dropped to No 2 in the ICC men's ODI Team Rankings following their eight-wicket loss to India at Raipur on Saturday, allowing England to overtake them.

Days after playing out a thriller at Hyderabad, New Zealand suffered a resounding defeat against India on January 21. With this, they have lost the series as well as their top ODI rankings tag. England are now the top-ranked team in the ODI Team Rankings chart. Before this game, New Zealand were top with 115 rating points while England were in the second position with 113 rating points. Australia were third with 112 ratings and India fourth with 111 rating points.

After losing to India by eight wickets, New Zealand now sit at the second spot with 113 rating points and 3166 overall points. England and India are ranked first and third, respectively, with 113 rating points.

After a thrilling win in Hyderbad, Raipur proved to be a cakewalk for India. The fast bowlers floored the Kiwis in the opening overs, reducing New Zealand to 15/5 inside 11 overs. The visitors had Glenn Phillips (36), Michael Bracewell (22) and Mitchell Santner (27) to thank for saving them the blushes but they were eventually bundled out for 108.

India made light work of the chase, with Rohit Sharma helping himself to a fifty.

If India replicates their performances from the first two matches in the last game and sweeps the series 3-0, they will become the No 1 side in ODIs.