The five-match Pataudi Trophy between England and India, started 4 August 2021, started the second cycle of the World Test Championship.[6][7][8] That series, along with the Ashes in December 2021, were the only two series comprising five Tests in the second WTC cycle.[9][10][11]New Zealand were the defending champions.[12][13] In September 2022, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced that the final of this edition of the World Test Championship would be played at The Oval, London in June 2023.[14][15] That final saw Australia win by 209 runs, thus becoming the only team to win all ICC titles.[16][17][18]
Format
The tournament was played over two years, with 69 matches over 27 series scheduled for the league stage from which the top two teams advanced to a final.[19][20] Each team was scheduled to play six series, with three at home and three away. Each series consisted of two to five Test matches. Each participant played between 12 and 22 matches.[21] Each match was scheduled for a duration of five days.
Points system
The points system was changed from the previous edition. In this edition, 12 points would be available each match regardless of how many matches there were in a series. A win was worth all 12 points, a tie was worth 6 points each, a draw was worth 4 points each, and a loss was worth 0 points. A team that was behind the required over rate at the end of a match would have one point deducted for each over it was behind. As in the previous edition, teams were ranked in the league table based on percentage of total points won out of total points contested.[22][23][24]
Updated to match(es) played on 20 March 2023. Source: The numbers in square brackets are the number of matches in the series. Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win. Notes:
^The final test was originally scheduled to start on 10 September 2021 at Old Trafford, but was rescheduled to 1 July 2022 at Edgbaston due to COVID-19 cases in the Indian camp.[30]
The International Cricket Council declared a total prize money pool of US$3.8 million for the tournament. The prize money was allocated according to the performance of the team as follows:[31]
Position
Prize money (US$)
Winner
$1,600,000
Runner-up
$800,000
Third
$450,000
Fourth
$350,000
Fifth
$200,000
Sixth
$100,000
Seventh
$100,000
Eighth
$100,000
Ninth
$100,000
Total
$3,800,000
The winning team also received the ICC Test Championship Mace.
^The match was originally scheduled to be played from 10 to 14 September 2021 at Old Trafford, but was rescheduled due to COVID-19 cases in the Indian camp.
