Which team will reunify the belts?

[honestbharani]

They'll attempt to win a match in Australia after 21 years after 9 consecutive losses.

They lost every match to them, home and away for a period of 15 years between '95 and 2010.

Even granting that the current team does look really good, they have not actually done anything away from home except the England series and end up dropping home tests to the Windies in their present state. I love Misbah and the fact that he has taken this group of players this far but sadly, unless they find the next gen being just as committed and honest and hard working as Misbah, they are looking at a pretty bleak future.

I really like the current team and want to support them but boy does folks like listentome make it hard to do.

 

[theegyptian]

Actually If I'm answering the question in the op the most likely is India (rather than Aus). A few wins in ODI and T20 cricket and they could be top in all 3.

However I personally think ODIs and T20s rankings are somewhat redundant. You have tournaments to decide who the best teams are. What relevance is some ODI team with 4 or 5 players rested? Reaching latter stages or winning World Cups or champions trophy are more important than amassing lots of points in random ODI series. Australia were very much up and down between the last 50 over WCs as they rested many players but peaked for the World Cup and there was no doubt at the time they were the best team in the world.

 

[indiaholic]

Although I personally rate teams by world cup performance, one issue there is knock out games. Team A might clearly be better than B if they played 10 games but on the day that mattered, B won.. Notions like 'best' generally work better when excellence is displayed over a period of time.

 

[honestbharani]

Also, Australia were "clearly" the best team in those conditions. A tournament never really tests you across conditions. So while the rankings are not perfect, they are better to provide a longer term picture while the ICC tourneys show us who the best in the world are at tournament play in particular conditions that particular time. Of course, the winning teams do deserve the right to be called world champions in that format for the duration till the next one is crowned. But I think ICC has the balance right at the moment between the world tourneys and the world rankings.

 

[Fuller Pilch]

Well considering India are playing almost all their cricket at home, it'll be India no?

But the rankings are kinda **** and in reality,apart from England and to a lesser extent Pakistan and South Africa, not many teams have been successful home and way and this has gone on since the loss of the Australian hegemony circa 2007.

In ODIs Pakistan are pretty bad - have just moved from 9th to 8th after beating the WIndies.

One of India, South Africa, Australia, England seem most likely

Although NZ are no 1 in T20s at the mo, and SL and WI have been in the past, none of them will ever get to no1 in test cricket.

 

[smash84]

LOL @ pakistan having any chance of getting all 3 belts together.

Pakistan are a **** package in LO cricket

 

[Zinzan]

LOL @ pakistan having any chance of getting all 3 belts together.

Pakistan are a **** package in LO cricket

Agree, Pakistan have about as much chance as the Windies based on their ODI cricket in the last 3-4 years.

 

[smash84]

Agree, Pakistan have about as much chance as the Windies based on their ODI cricket in the last 3-4 years.

West Indies is probably a better when team when you take ODIs+T20

 

[smash84]

I really like the current team and want to support them but boy does folks like listentome make it hard to do.

Now imagine if there were 1 billion+ listentomes

 

[honestbharani]

There are not. Unfortunately there is the one and only in CW...

 

[Shady Slim]

easily india if they have a good CT

 

[GIMH]

Weren't England ranked #1 in all formats circa late 2011? Seems bizarre given our WC performance that year but it rings a bell. Obviously we were Test #1 and T20 world champs at that point