Bangladesh are ranked eighth in the ICC T20I rankings as of October 26. Team Tigers might improve their current position if they win the remaining Super 12 matches in the T20 World Cup 2021. Bangladesh will face South Africa on Tuesday (November 2) and Australia on Thursday (November 4) before coming back home. However, Tigers will have to rely on some of the other Super 12 round fixtures in order to climb up the ICC rankings. Let's look at how Bangladesh can better its ranking in the T20 format.
Probable Ranking Scenarios at the end of Super 12 of T20 World Cup 2021
England are now ranked top in the ICC T20 team rankings according to the latest update on October 26. Both Asian powers, India and Pakistan are placed second and third. South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia are ranked fourth, fifth, and sixth. Meanwhile, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and the West Indies are positioned seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth, respectively.
Bangladesh's prospects of rising in the rankings
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First and foremost Bangladesh have to do their part to improve its ranking. They must defeat South Africa and Australia in order to boost their rating to 240. Bangladesh will almost certainly move up to sixth place if Australia lose to the West Indies in Group 1 and Afghanistan lose to India and New Zealand in Group 2. Despite Sri Lanka's strong performance in the current T20 World Cup 2021, their results will have no impact on Bangladesh's ranking improvement.
On the other hand, the team tigers will have 234 rating points if they lose both of their remaining matches. Depending on the outcome of the other matches, they may stay in their current position. Both Sri Lanka and the West Indies have a chance to pass Bangladesh for the eighth and ninth places, respectively.
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The scenario of other top teams in terms of rankings
World no.1 England's position in the ICC T20 team rankings will not change even if they lose all of their remaining Super 12 matches. On the other hand, India will drop to third place if they lose one of their last four matches in this round. Whereas Pakistan would move up to second place if they finish the round unbeaten.
New Zealand are in a safe position with better rating points. If India have a bad run in the Super 12, New Zealand will stay in fourth place or possibly climb to third.
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South Africa will remain in fifth place even if they lose their matches against Bangladesh and England. However, if Australia lose both of its remaining matches against Bangladesh and the West Indies, they are at risk of falling to seventh place.
Afghanistan will move up to sixth place if they win two of their remaining three Super 12 matches. On the other side, Sri Lanka and the West Indies may each improve one spot in the ICC Twenty20 team rankings depending on the outcomes of the remaining super 12 round matches.
Verdict
Bangladesh's primary objective would be to win their remaining T20 World Cup 2021 matches in order to reclaim some pride. If they win those games, the Tigers have a chance to improve their team ranking. Bangladesh would move up the standings if Sri Lanka and Afghanistan lose one of their remaining games in the Super 12 round. As the race for a semifinal berth heats up, no team will take any of their remaining fixtures lightly.
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