WITH eight sides confirmed for the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, the race to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 begins in Colombo tomorrow when Sri Lanka hosts the West Indies in a three-match series.
Sri Lanka currently sits in fifth position on 103 points, while the West Indies is ranked eighth on 88 points. Each One-Day International (ODI) played over the next 23 months will count as the top eight sides on the ICC ODI Team Rankings as of 30 September 2017 will progress to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, while the bottom four sides, along with the top sides from the ICC World Cricket League Championship and the ICC World Cricket League, will head to the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2018 to fight out for the two remaining slots.
As such, all 12 sides on the ICC ODI Team Rankings will not only be aiming to play as many matches as possible but also to win most of the matches so that they can make the cut and secure direct qualification for the pinnacle 50-over tournament to be hosted by the England and Wales Cricket Board from 30 May to 15 July 2019.