On Tuesday (September 3), Pakistan were shocked by Bangladesh as they got defeated by six wickets during the second Test match of the two-match series that took place at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. It was a match that required winning in order for Shan Masood-led side to redeem themselves after earlier losing 10 wickets in the first test played at the same ground last month, unfortunately the home team could not come out of its bad performance again. This time round, it marked the first occasion when Pakistan lost a Test Series against Bangladesh with implication on their ambitions to gain a place in World Test Championship (WTC) 2025 finals.
WTC 2023-25 Points Table has Pakistan on No. 8 position after having lost five consecutive matches. However, they still remain contenders for WTC 2025 finals which will take place in June 2025 at Lord’s.
Wtc rule says that two teams that are on top qualify for the final and despite having been beaten in two previous red ball series, Pakistan can still occupy one of the top two positions. However, they must win all the matches in their remaining three series of ongoing Wtc cycle while also keeping an eye on results from other teams.
The first series against England is scheduled to be hosted by Pakistan at Multan starting October 7. The next Tests are set for Karachi (October 15-19) and Rawalpindi (October 24-28).
After facing England, Pakistan will play South Africa in a two-match Test series from December 2024 to January 2025 before hosting West Indies for another two-match Test series in January 2025.
Currently, Pakistan is at 19.05 PCT% and if they manage to win all seven upcoming Tests, they will have 59.52 PCT%. As of now India leads the WTC points table with 68.52 PCT% followed by Australia at 62.50 PCT%. At this point in time, Pakistan cannot overtake both these teams but since later this year there is a five-match series between India and Australia it will result in a change of the points thus giving a chance for Pakistan to finish in the top two places.
However, in case any of the remaining seven Tests are not won by them then their chances would be dampened hugely thus resulting in elimination from the competition.
