India went down against New Zealand who defeated the Rohit Sharma-led team by eight wickets in the first Test of the three-match IND vs NZ series at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. New Zealand won their first Test on Indian soil after 36 years, with their last win having come back in 1988.
Despite the loss to the Kiwis in Bengaluru, India maintained their top position in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 points table. With eight wins, three losses and a draw in 12 matches India have 98 points and the points percentage (PCT) of 68.06. Prior to the loss against NZ, India’s PCT was 74.24. Despite the top position, India’s qualification scenario for the WTC final has become trickier.
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India's WTC 2023-25 Final Qualification Scenario After Defeat To NZ
India have seven Tests remaining in the current WTC cycle. Rohit Sharma & co. will have to either win five Tests or win at least four of their seven Tests and make sure they do not lose more than two Tests to be assured of a berth in the WCT final next year. They could also qualify for the final with less than that but then will have to depend on the result of other teams and their matches, which will not be an ideal situation for Team India.
India will next play against New Zealand in the second Test in Pune and then play the final Test of the ongoing IND vs NZ series in Mumbai. After the New Zealand series, India will fly to Australia for the five-match Border-Gavaskar series.
Hence, India’s would aim to defeat New Zealand in the next two home Test matches and then secure either three wins in Australia or two wins and no more than two losses in the process.
Here's a look at the updated WTC 2023-25 Points Table
| Pos | Team | Matches | Won | Lost | Drawn | NR | Points | PCT |
| 1 | India | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 98 | 68.06% |
| 2 | Australia | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 90 | 62.50% |
| 3 | Sri Lanka | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 60 | 55.56% |
| 4 | New Zealand | 9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 48 | 44.44% |
| 5 | England | 18 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 93 | 43.06% |
| 6 | South Africa | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 28 | 38.89% |
| 7 | Bangladesh | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 34.38% |
| 8 | Pakistan | 9 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 25.93% |
| 9 | West Indies | 9 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 20 | 18.52% |