The Tamim Iqbal-led Bangladesh's ODI team has been in fine shape lately, and they are now leading the points standings of the ICC Cricket World Cup Super League. With only two ODI League series remaining, Bangladesh do not have enough chances to earn points for the World Cup 2023 qualification tournament. Therefore, they must concentrate on winning as many games as possible in the remaining fixtures. Bangladesh's upcoming Super League schedule and World Cup qualification scenario are discussed in this article.
The Updated Standings of the ICC Cricket World Cup Super League
Bangladesh climbed to the top of the World Cup Super League points table after winning the ODI series against Afghanistan in February. The team Tigers strengthened their lead in the standings after clinching a historic series against South Africa (2-1) last March. Bangladesh are now in top place with 120 points, 25 points ahead of England in second place.
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The top eight teams in the standings will advance to the World Cup in 2023. As a result, the thirteen teams competing are fighting it out for a spot in the top eight spots in the points table. India will automatically qualify for the World Cup 2023 as the host nation, regardless of where they place in the Super League. India are currently in third place, ahead of Australia and Afghanistan. According to the most recent updates, Ireland, Sri Lanka, and New Zealand rounded up the top eight.
Interestingly, three major cricket teams, Pakistan, the West Indies, and South Africa, are currently outside the top eight. They must make a strong recovery in their remaining ODI Super League matches.
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World Cup Super League Points Standings (Updated April 4, 2022)
Position |
Team |
Match |
Win |
Loss |
Points |
NRR |
1 |
Bangladesh |
18 |
12 |
6 |
120 |
0.384 |
2 |
England |
15 |
9 |
5 |
95 |
0.838 |
3 |
India |
12 |
8 |
4 |
79 |
0.416 |
4 |
Australia |
12 |
7 |
5 |
70 |
0.496 |
5 |
Afghanistan |
9 |
7 |
2 |
70 |
0.416 |
6 |
Ireland |
18 |
6 |
10 |
68 |
-0.355 |
7 |
Sri Lanka |
18 |
6 |
11 |
62 |
-0.031 |
8 |
New Zealand |
6 |
6 |
0 |
60 |
2.171 |
9 |
Pakistan |
12 |
6 |
6 |
60 |
-0.194 |
10 |
West Indies |
15 |
5 |
10 |
50 |
-0.972 |
11 |
South Africa |
13 |
4 |
7 |
49 |
-0.206 |
12 |
Zimbabwe |
12 |
3 |
8 |
35 |
-0.894 |
13 |
Netherlands |
10 |
2 |
7 |
25 |
-1.028 |
Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/
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Bangladesh’s Upcoming Fixtures for the ODI League
Six of Bangladesh's eight ICC ODI World Cup Super League series have already been completed. As a result, they have only two series left in the competition. The Bangladesh team has already completed their series against Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, the West Indies, New Zealand, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. They will play Ireland and England in their final two series, respectively. Let's take a look at the completed series results and the match schedules for the upcoming matches.
Results
Bangladesh vs West Indies
(Bangladesh won the series 3-0/home)
New Zealand vs Bangladesh
(New Zealand won the series 3-0/away)
Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka
(Bangladesh won the series 2-1/home)
Zimbabwe vs Bangladesh
(Bangladesh won the series 3-0/away)
Bangladesh vs Afghanistan
(Bangladesh won the series 2-1/home)
South Africa vs Bangladesh
(Bangladesh won the series 2-1/away)
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Remaining Fixtures
3-match ODI series between Bangladesh and England (March 2023/Home)
3-match ODI series between Ireland and Bangladesh (May 2023/away)
Bottom Line
Bangladesh should focus more on the Ireland series in order to gain as many points as possible, as England at home would be a difficult series for them. However, Bangladesh have a strong home record in the recent ODI series, thus England will find it difficult to match the hosts. Team Tigers would have a great chance to finish among the top eight teams in the points standings if they can earn 40 more points in the two remaining series. If it happens, Bangladesh would qualify for the 2023 World Cup in India by participating in the ICC Cricket World Cup Super League.
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