West Indies climbs to eighth spot in ODI rankings

West Indies climbs to eighth spot in ODI rankings
Associated Press / Andres Leighton, File

West Indies has climbed to the eighth position in the just released One-Day International (ODI) rankings — a boost ahead of the World Cup, after overhauling Sri Lanka to reach that spot in the International Cricket Council ODI charts.

The Caribbean side gained four rating points to move to 80 while Sri Lanka remained stagnant on 76, following the annual update which saw the removal of the 2015-2016 results and those between 2016-2018 computed at 50 percent.

For the West Indies, the rise comes on the back of their outstanding performance in the recent five-match series against world number one, England, when they snatched a 2-2 tie.

The series result saw them draw level on 76 points with the Sri Lankans last March but remained in ninth spot.

They can solidify their new rankings while they face hosts Ireland and Bangladesh in a Tri-Nation Series, which ends on May 17.

West Indies has spent recent years languishing at number nine and it resulted in them missing an automatic qualification for the World Cup.

England, meanwhile, remains the top-ranked side with India second, after gaining one-rating point, while South Africa is at third.