Zaheer Khan has his say on ‘question marks’ about World Test Championship

Each series will be worth 120 points. Hence, if it is a 2-match Test series, a win will fetch 60 points, and if it is a 5-match series, a win will fetch 24 points.

While there is a lot of excitement among fans and the cricket fraternity about the start of the World Test Championship with the first Ashes Test between England and Australia, there are some who still have doubts about its format and structure. The point system in the World Test Championship has come in for sharp criticism and someone who has reservations against it is former India paceman Zaheer Khan.

File photo of Indian cricketer Zaheer Khan. (Getty Images)

The left arm pacer, who was the joint highest wicket taker in India’s victorious 2011 ICC World Cup campaign, said that while it is good to finally have a structure around Test cricket, there is a lot that needs to be done to improve the format during a chat on Cricbuzz.

“The talk around it has been for what 10 years now? I am happy that it on floor but there will be issues and the format will evolve. As a thought I think it is very nice, to have a championship around Test cricket. But when you look at the point system and look at how it is approached, there are lot of question marks around it. A lot of work needs to be done to put a structure around it,” Khan said during the show.

“The point system is very confusing. For the same amount of effort you can get 60 points or 24 points. Now Australia should have got a lot more points for the win in Birmingham but they will get less points because they are playing a 5-match series,” Khan said.

Matches played by each team

Each team will play six series, but the number of matches will differ:

England: 22

Australia: 19

India: 18

South Africa: 16

West Indies: 15

New Zealand: 14

Bangladesh: 14

Pakistan: 13

Sri Lanka: 13