DUBAI: Pakistan men’s cricket team will play 14 matches during the next World Test Championship (WTC) cycle, which spans from 2023 to 2025.
After dominant Australia thrashed India to win the second edition of the WTC, the International Cricket Council (ICC) unveiled the details of the third cycle in a bid to retain the legacy of the longest format of the game.
As per the ICC-released WTC schedule, Pakistan will play 14 matches against numerous teams over the course of a two-year period.
The Green Shirts will play six series – three home and three away – during their WTC campaign.
Pakistan will take on England, West Indies and Bangladesh in their own backyard while they will face some serious challenges in the away series against reigning champions Australia and South Africa.
The national team, however, will start their WTC campaign with the away series against Sri Lanka, which is likely to commence on July 16.
The third edition of the ICC World Test Championship cycle begins with a clash between a resurgent England side and reigning champions Australia, and will end with a Final at Lord’s in 2025.
Australia might still be revelling in their triumph over India in the ICC World Test Championship Final 2023 but will have to quickly shift their focus to the next WTC cycle that starts with a clash against arch-rivals England on 16 June.
The five-Test Ashes series will kickstart the World Test Championship 2023-25 cycle that is set to include 68 matches scheduled across 27 series and the third WTC Final to be played at Lord’s in 2025.
The nine teams set to participate in the WTC 2023-25 cycle are Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and West Indies.
Each WTC series in the cycle will include two to five Tests, with the nine competing teams each playing six series – three at home, and three away.
The top two teams in the WTC standings will then qualify for the Final at Lord’s.
The nine teams do not necessarily play the same number of matches in the WTC cycle, with the standings determined by the percentage of all possible points earned.
England will feature in the greatest number of Test matches during the WTC cycle with 21, while Australia (19) and India (19) will also line up in regular five-day fixtures.
Each Test included in the World Test Championship has 12 points available for a win, with four awarded to each team for a draw, and six to each team for a tie. No points are earned from a loss, and teams can lose points for slow over rates.
Pakistan WTC schedule:
Away series against Sri Lanka (2 matches)
Away series against Australia (3 matches)
Home series against West Indies (2 matches)
Home series against Bangladesh (2 matches)
Home series against England (3 matches)
Away series against South Africa (2 matches)
READ: Najam Sethi thanks ACC for accepting hybrid model for Asia Cup 2023