England must win series in South Africa to keep ahead of rivals

England's opportunity to strengthen its grip on number two spot in the ICC Test Championship begins in Port Elizabeth on Friday 17 December in the first Test of a five-match series against South Africa.

England must win the series to improve its rating in the official Test table. A 1-0, 2-1 or 3-2 winning margin will boost its rating from 109 to 110 points.

If England loses the series by the same margin its rating will fall to 106 points while a series draw would see it slide to 108 points.

South Africa had never been outside the top two in the official Test table until it was overtaken by England in August 2004 but it has since slipped to sixth place with a rating of 100.

A strong performance on home soil would boost South Africa back up the table. A 5-0 home win for South Africa would increase its rating to 108 while England's would fall to 102. If South Africa wins the series by two clear Tests (3-1 or 2-0) both sides will have a rating of 105.

Ahead of the series, England's closest rival is India. If India wins the second Test of its current two-match series against Bangladesh, the gap between second and third in the table will be down to one point.

Pakistan lies fourth in the official table and its away series against Australia presents an opportunity for it to leapfrog India and England into second place.

A 1-0 or 2-1 series win over Australia, the current leaders, would improve Pakistan's rating to 111 points.

Australia holds a comfortable advantage in the official table - it is 21 points clear of England - and must beat Pakistan at least 2-0 to improve its rating.

For full details of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires and Referees officiating on these series visit the umpires and referees section of the ICC website.

For details of the ICC Test Championship visit the Test cricket page of the ICC website.