New Zealand will reclaim their top spot if they win the T20I series against India

The Black Caps were dethroned from their top spot when they lost the first T20I of the three-match series in Delhi by 53 runs. It was also the first loss in six matches for them against the Men in Blue in the shortest format. Pakistan was benefitted from their loss and were crowned as the top-ranked team in T20Is on Wednesday. However, New Zealand will need to win the remaining two matches of the series now to reclaim their numero uno status in T20 format.

Pakistan is currently holding the top spot in the shortest format after their 3-0 victory over Sri Lanka with 124 points. They have won 12 of their 14 T20 Internationals and certainly deserve the credit. New Zealand is a fighting team and they won the hearts of the cricket fans when they went down chasing 337 in the final ODI in Kanpur. They are expected to come back hard in the second T20I in Rajkot on Saturday which will take them close to the Men in Green in rankings.

India can maximum climb to the second place even if they whitewash the Kiwis in the ongoing series. They are currently at 118 points after their win in the first game and will gain 4 points if they manage to win both the remaining games. Similarly, New Zealand can regain their status at the top if they win the series.

Here are the different scenarios

New Zealand wins the series 2-1: If the Kiwis manage to win both the matches in Rajkot and Thiruvananthapuram, then they will reach the pinnacle of T20I rankings again with 127 points. On the other hand, India will lose three rating points and stay at the fifth place.

India wins the series 2-1: If India wins the series by getting better of their opposition in any one of the two remaining matches, then both the teams will stay at their positions and Pakistan will hold onto their top spot. In this case, the Black Caps will be ahead of Windies just on decimals with 120 rating points who will be third.

India wins the series 3-0: The whitewash will hurt New Zealand very badly as they will slip down to 5th position with 114 rating points. However, India will climb to the second place with 122 points and only 2 points adrift of their arch-rivals at the top.