WTC23: Your guide to every team in the tournament

And this time around, there are a few tweaks, chiefly around how the points sytem works – here's all you need to know about them. It promises to be another exciting edition of Test cricket's marquee tournament.

We take a look at what every team has in store for them and what they are looking to build on from the inaugural tournament.

AUSTRALIA

WTC21 campaign

Where they finished– 3rd – 69.2 per cent of points

Only India were faster out of the blocks than Australia in the inaugural World Test Championship, with Tim Paine’s men following up a 2-2 Ashes campaign with five straight victories on home soil over Pakistan and New Zealand. The drawn Ashes series saw Australia retain the urn in the UK for the first time since 2001.

The advent of the pandemic saw Australia go 11 months without a Test but they took a big step towards making the WTC Final when they returned to action, beating India in a famous match at Adelaide Oval. The Australians bowled India out for 36 in that day-night Test, igniting hopes of reclaiming the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. As it turned out, it was their last Test win of the WTC cycle, with India bouncing back to win the series 2-1.

To make things worse for Australia, they were docked four points for a slow over-rate in the second Test against India. Those lost points proved very costly in the end, with the Australians missing out on the Final by 0.8 of a per cent after their series against South Africa was postponed.

Star performers in WTC21

In Marnus Labuschagne(1675 at 72.82) and Steve Smith(1341 at 63.85), Australia had the top-scorer and third-highest run-scorer across the WTC21 cycle. It was Smith’s glorious return to Test duty that fuelled Australia’s success in the UK, with the modern giant notching twin centuries in his first match back and a double ton in the fourth Test of the series to secure the urn.

It was in Smith’s absence through concussion that Labuschagne returned to the XI and it was his rise that powered their perfect run at home in 2018-19. He notched four centuries across just five Tests that summer and finished the WTC as the only player to make five hundreds.

Pat Cumminsled the way for Australia’s attack, taking 70 wickets at just 21.02 runs apiece, finishing second on the charts globally. With his incredible engine and unerring reliability, Cummins took his wickets regularly rather than in bursts, as his lone five-wicket haul and 15 other 3+ wicket efforts attest to.

Cummins was ably supported by Australia’s all-star attack, with Josh Hazlewood(48 at 20.54) particularly impressive. The metronomic quick was at his very best in the Adelaide Oval Test against India, taking 5/8 in an unforgettable spell.

WTC23 opponents

Home: England, South Africa, West Indies

Away: India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka

BANGLADESH

WTC21 campaign

**Where they finished –**9th – 4.8 per cent of points

It was a tough WTC tournament for Bangladesh, and one they will be looking to move on from quickly, with their points coming in a draw against Sri Lanka in the penultimate match of their campaign.

The Tigers lost 2-0 to India and trailed Pakistan 1-0 before their series was aborted. Against West Indies, they had strong opportunities to win both matches but lost 2-0, and they rounded out their tournament with a 1-0 loss to Sri Lanka.

Star performers in WTC21

While the results didn’t go their way, Bangladesh actually had a core group of batters who excelled.

Tamim Iqbal thrived, making 420 runs at 46.66 across five matches, while Mushfiqur Rahim managed 453 at 45.30 across six Tests. The two veterans each notched four half-centuries. Captain Mominul Haque was the team’s highest run-scorer, making 534 at 41.07 with two tons to his name. Liton Das (417 at 37.90) was also solid and the Tigers will be hoping for a big campaign from Shakib Al Hasan, who scored a fifty in his lone Test of the tournament.

It is with the ball that they will need to improve.

WTC23 opponents

Home:****Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka

Away: South Africa, New Zealand, West Indies

ENGLAND

WTC21 campaign

**Where they finished –**4th – 61.4 per cent of points

England were constantly in the mix to make the WTC21 Final but never truly the favourites to despite only losing one of their six series in the cycle.

England’s campaign started on the wrong foot when they went down in the opening Test of the Ashes. While they went on to draw the series 2-2, the points they left behind over the course of the five matches proved costly when the point-percentage system was introduced in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

They took an impressive stride forward when they beat South Africa 3-1 away, and after an early scare against the West Indies won that series 2-1. They followed that up with a 1-0 win against Pakistan across three Tests.

Joe Root’s side made a late dash to try and reach the Final, beating Sri Lanka 2-0 before stunning India in their series-opener but fell away to lose that campaign 3-1 and ultimately slip out of contention.

Star performers in WTC21

England’s senior quartet led the way through their WTC21 campaign, withJoe Root (1660 runs at 47.42) and Ben Stokes (1334 at 46.00) shining the way with the bat, and James Anderson (39 wickets at 19.51) and Stuart Broad (69 at 20.08) starring with the ball.

Root finished the last WTC as its second-highest run-scorer behind Australia’s Labuschagne and he finished the tournament in hot form as England attempted to make the Final. The skipper scored three centuries for the campaign, with all of them coming in 2021 as he led England to three consecutive wins in Asian conditions.

Stokes was the outstanding all-rounder of the tournament, pairing his efforts with the bat with strong numbers with the ball (34 at 26.26). He was herculean in the 2-2 Ashes series (441 runs at 55.12, eight wickets at 45.25) and continued that form against South Africa (318 at 45.42, 10 at 22) and the West Indies (363 at 90.75, nine at 16.33).

Hampered by injury early in the WTC, Anderson was a menace whenever he played, thriving all around the world. His 14 wickets at 12.36 against Sri Lanka and India this year suggest he still has plenty left in the legs.

Broad looks similarly unaffected by age, with the veteran the WTC’s third-highest wicket-taker with the best average of anyone who finished on the podium.

WTC23 opponents

Home: India, South Africa, New Zealand

Away: Pakistan, West Indies, Australia

INDIA

WTC21 campaign

**Where they finished –**Runners up. First on the standings – 72.2 per cent of points.

Unlike New Zealand, India had a dream start to their WTC campaign but had to crawl their way into the Final after faltering towards the latter stages.

India took all 360 points available to them in the first three series, winning 2-0 against West Indies away, 3-0 against South Africa and 2-0 against Bangladesh at home.

Their perfect record came to an end at the hands of New Zealand, who swept them 2-0 at home.

Things got worse for India as they were bowled out for 36 and eventually lost by eight wickets at Adelaide in the series opener against Australia. What followed was a memorable turnaround that a few would have predicted, taking the series 2-1

Going into the final series in the group stages against England, India needed to win at least two Tests to reach the finals. Despite losing the first Test by a massive 227 runs at Chennai, the home side bounced back with three consecutive wins and made their way into the finals.

Star performers in WTC21

India managed to make it to the finals of the WTC21 despite their star player and captain Virat Kohli going through a lean patch by his standards. Fortunately, he had Ajinkya Rahane and Rohit Sharma step up in the batting department.

Known to be a crisis man, Rahane came to the team's rescue in the very first match of India's WTC campaign against West Indies, scoring 81 and 102 to help the visitors register a 318-run win. He was the architect, both as captain and batter, of India's win at Melbourne against Australia that kickstarted the turnaround in the series. With 1159 runs, Rahane finished as India's highest run-getter and fifth overall in WTC 2019-21.

Rohit Sharma started opening for India in Tests only in 2019 and it didn't take him long to become a permanent fixture at the top. He set the tone in the series against South Africa with two centuries and a double hundred. Rohit also made a crucial 161 against England in the second Test in Chennai and proved to be the gamechanger. He aggregated 1094 runs and was the sixth-highest run-getter in World Test Championship 19-21.

With the ball, the two most experienced bowlers, Ishant Sharmaand Ravichandran Ashwin, shone for India.

Ishant started with a bang, recording a five-for in India's first match of WTC against West Indies. He returned with a four-for and a five-for against Bangladesh in what was India's first-ever pink-ball Test.

With 72 wickets, Ashwin finished as the highest wicket-taker in the last cycle of the WTC. He was also quite handy with the bat, scoring an unbeaten 39 at SCG to help India salvage a draw as well as a 106 against England at Chennai, his fifth century in the shortest format.

WTC23 opponents

Home: Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Australia

Away: Bangladesh, England, South Africa

NEW ZEALAND

WTC21 campaign

**Where they finished –**Champions. Second on the standings – 70 per cent of points.

After several years of coming close to getting their hands on an ICC men's trophy, New Zealand finally achieved glory when they beat India by eight wickets in the final of ICC the World Test Championship 2019-21.

It wasn't all smooth sailing though as they had a rough start to their WTC21 campaign, losing to Sri Lanka at Galle by six wickets in their first Test of the tournament. They bounced back strongly in the second Test with an emphatic innings win to level the series 1-1.

Their hopes of making it to the Final were dampened when they lost 3-0 to Australia but they managed to take all points from their series against India, completing a 2-0 whitewash.

New Zealand showed zero signs of ring-rust from the break forced by COVID-19 as they dominated West Indies 2-0 at home, recording innings wins in both matches. They went on to record their third consecutive 2-0 series win, this time against Pakistan, and finished with 420 points in the league stage.

After the Australia-South Africa series was indefinitely postponed due to a COVID-19 case in the camp, New Zealand became the first team to qualify for the decider of the inaugural World Test Championship.

Star performers in WTC21

After registering scores of 0 and 4 in the first Test of New Zealand's WTC campaign, Kane Williamson led by example with the bat, finishing with 951 runs, including three centuries and two half-centuries, at an average of 61.2 and a high score of 251 that came against West Indies at Hamilton. He was well supported by Tom Latham, Henry Nicholls and Ross Taylor, all of whom scored more than 500 runs during the course of the tournament.

With 56 wickets, Tim Southee was New Zealand's wrecker-in-chief with the ball, finishing as their highest wicket-taker and fourth overall. Usual suspects Neil Wagner and Trent Boult too were amongst the wickets, claiming 35 and 39 respectively but it was Kyle Jamieson who was the find of the tournament for the Kiwis.

Making his debut against India, Jamieson showed his all-round abilities, scoring 44 and 49 in the two Tests while registering a four-wicket and a five-wicket haul as well. He finished WTC 21 with 43 wickets in just seven matches at an average of just 12.53 – the best average for any bowler in the tournament.

Jamieson was awarded the Player of the Match in the Final for his seven-wicket haul in the match, which included a five-for alongside an important 16-ball 21 cameo that was pivotal to giving New Zealand a first innings lead.

WTC23 opponents

Home: South Africa, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka

Away: England, Pakistan, India

PAKISTAN

WTC21 campaign

**Where they finished –**6th – 43.3 per cent of points

Pakistan began their WTC campaign in tough conditions, taking on a red hot Australia Down Under and going down 2-0. They bounced back by beating Sri Lanka 1-0 in their first series at home since 2009.

That was followed by another 1-0 win over Bangladesh in Pakistan and that was a form line they followed throughout the WTC. They won every series they played at home but failed to register a single Test victory on tour.

In England, they managed two draws but lost the series 1-0 and in New Zealand, they went down 2-0, before wrapping up their tournament with an impressive 2-0 win over South Africa at home.

Star performers in WTC21

The big positive to come from Pakistan’s 2-0 loss to Australia was the steps Babar Azam took in his Test game. The right-hander notched an impressive 104 at the Gabba and backed it up with 97 at Adelaide Oval to begin his first purple patch in the format. Across his 10 WTC matches, he made 932 runs at 66.57, scoring four centuries.

Pakistan’s next most reliable performer with the bat was Mohammad Rizwan, who established himself as the team’s first-choice wicket-keeper. Rizwan helped himself to 741 runs at 46.31, scoring one ton and six fifties.

Young quick Shaheen Afridi(36 wickets at 32.63) led the way with the ball and Pakistan will be hoping he continues his development through the next WTC cycle. They will also be hoping Hasan Alicontinues his impressive return to international cricket. The quick took 12 wickets at 19.66 across his two WTC matches and if he can carry on that form, Pakistan become a much more dangerous outfit.

WTC23 opponents

Home: Australia, England, New Zealand

Away: Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, West Indies

SOUTH AFRICA

WTC21 campaign

**Where they finished –**5th – 44 per cent of points

South Africa started their campaign with what right now stands as cricket’s toughest challenge – a Test tour of India. It proved every bit as difficult as expected, with the Proteas going down 3-0, losing the first Test by 203 runs and the final two by more than an innings.

They looked to be getting their WTC tournament back on track when they trumped England in the first Test of their four-match series, only to go on to lose the next three comfortably.

Making the Final from there was always going to be difficult but they revived their hopes somewhat with a 2-0 win over Sri Lanka, only for their hopes to be dashed again by a 2-0 series loss to Pakistan.

They will be hoping their 2-0 win over the West Indies to round out their tournament is a sign of better things to come in the new WTC cycle.

Star performers in WTC21

Dean Elgar led the way with the bat for South Africa, making 935 runs at 42.50. Only three openers globally managed more runs in the tournament. The Proteas veteran started the WTC in style by making 160 against India and notched another ton against Sri Lanka to go alongside four further half-centuries.

In promising signs for South Africa, Quinton de Kock (847 at 38.50) got back to his best during South Africa’s tour of the West Indies, averaging 118.50 and notching his first century since 2019. That series also saw Kagiso Rabada get back amongst the wickets, with the pace spearhead collecting 11 at 11.45 to take his WTC tournament haul to 37 at 27.37.

The biggest gain South Africa had in the cycle was the rise of Anrich Nortje, whose express pace helped him to 47 wickets at 28.10.

WTC23 opponents

Home: Pakistan, Bangladesh, England

Away: Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka

SRI LANKA

WTC21 campaign

**Where they finished –**7th – 27.8 per cent of points

Sri Lanka began their WTC tournament on the right foot, beating New Zealand by six wickets at Galle. Unfortunately for the Sri Lankans, that would be their lone win of the WTC until their final match of the tournament against Bangladesh.

Defeat in the second Test against New Zealand saw them draw that series 1-1 before they tasted 1-0 and 2-0 defeats on tour against Pakistan and South Africa.

Things got worse at home as they were toppled 2-0 by England, before picking up points through two draws in the West Indies.

A 209-run win over Bangladesh, securing a 1-0 series victory, in their final Test of the WTC, saw them scrape past West Indies to the seventh on the standings.

Star performers in WTC21

Despite a lean opening WTC campaign, there are signs Sri Lanka is strengthening with the bat with all three of Dimuth Karunaratne (999 at 55.50), Lahiru Thirimanne (735 at 43.23) and Dhananjaya de Silva (653 at 59.36) having impressive tournaments.

Karunaratne finished the cycle on fire and has three centuries to his name in 2021, including a double hundred against Bangladesh at Pallekele. With Thirimanne also in form, averaging 50.69 this year, Sri Lanka look to have one of the most solid opening pairs in the game right now. De Silva, meanwhile, excelled throughout the tournament, scoring tons against New Zealand, Pakistan and Bangladesh, as well as fifties against South Africa and West Indies.

With the ball, veteran seamer Suranga Lakmal (20 wickets at 25.55) was the clear standout and Sri Lanka will be hoping he can continue to lead the attack as excellently in the new cycle.

WTC23 opponents

Home: West Indies, Australia, Pakistan

Away: Bangladesh, New Zealand, India

WEST INDIES

WTC21 campaign

**Where they finished –**Eighth – 26.9 per cent of points

West Indies began their tournament against India, looking to register their first win over them since 2002. Unfortunately for the Caribbean outfit, the wait goes on, as India took out that series 2-0.

When cricket returned from the pandemic enforced hiatus, West Indies beat England at Southampton, with Jason Holder and Shannon Gabriel leading a spirited effort with the ball. Sadly for the touring team, they slumped to a 2-1 series defeat and lost two more on the bounce against New Zealand.

Under the captaincy of Kraigg Brathwaite, they beat Bangladesh in Bangladesh 2-0, winning two memorable matches. Those turned out to be their final wins for the campaign, drawing 0-0 against Sri Lanka before a 2-0 loss to South Africa.

Star performers in WTC21

As has been the case since his 2014 debut, Jason Holder was among the West Indies’ most reliable performers with both bat (493 runs at 27.38) and ball (31 wickets at 29.03). The 29-year-old was the team’s fourth-highest run-scorer and second-highest wicket-taker, collecting a team-best three five-wicket hauls, including 6/42 in a victory over England. Veteran quick Kemar Roach once again led the attack, taking 39 wickets at 27.07.

The biggest gain for West Indies in the first WTC cycle was the emergence of Nkrumah Bonner and Kyle Myers at the Test level. Five Tests into his career, Bonner is averaging a healthy 55 with a century and two fifties to his name, while Mayers has impressed with bat (521 at 47.36) and ball (10 at 16.70). The all-rounder starred on debut, scoring an unbeaten 210 in a successful chase of 305 in Bangladesh.

WTC23 opponents

Home: Pakistan, Bangladesh, England

Away: Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka