Title-Win in Asia Cup to improve Pakistan's ODI Rank
Pakistan Times Sports Desk

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan can become the fourth or even third-best One-Day cricket team in the world if they win the Asia Cup starting in Sri Lanka on Friday.

Pakistan are currently placed 6th on the official One-Day cricket table.

The Asia Cup title-rivals Sri Lanka and India hold 4th and 5th positions respectively, behind Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. The International Cricket Council will update its official One-Day table early next month, also taking into account the Asia Cup performances.

Presently, Sri Lanka, India and Pakistan are separated by only four ratings points which means that a strong showing from any of the sides should be enough to put them ahead of their regional rivals before the update.

Sri Lanka will be looking to capitalise on its home advantage and if it can win all of its matches, it will leapfrog New Zealand and South Africa to claim second spot in the official ODI table.

South Africa has been second on the table since it was launched in October 2002. An indifferent run of form over the last 18 months means that even if Sri Lanka doesn't snatch second place during the Asia Cup, South Africa could still be displaced by one or more better-performing sides when the updated ratings are announced at the end of the tournament.

The following is the current One-Day Internationals (ODIs) Cricket Position Table (Position, Team and Points):

1 Australia 136
2 South Africa 113
3 New Zealand 113
4 Sri Lanka 110
5 India 107
6 Pakistan 106
7 England 101
8 West Indies 101
9 Zimbabwe 62
10 Kenya 28
11 Bangladesh 2●