South Africa host India for a 3-match ODI series starting Wednesday at the Boland Park in Paarl. However, this series is not part of the ODI Super League, which is a qualification pathway for the ICC World Cup in 2023, to be held in India.
According to ICC, all ODIs played towards the build-up to the World Cup are not necessarily part of the ODI Super League; only pre-decided series are.
It means that the India- South Africa ODI series that was postponed due to the pandemic in March 2020 was part of the ODI Super League. And not the ongoing series in South Africa.
The ODI series which India play against West Indies next month at home is part of the Super League. But, the three ODIs against England in England in July 2022 are not part of it as the two teams completed their Super League matches in March last year in Pune.
What are the rules of the ODI Super League as defined by the ICC? “Each team plays three ODIs against eight other teams. Four of these are home series and four are away series. This means each team plays a total of 24 ODIs.”
Ten points are added for each win and five for a tie/no result/abandoned match.
Also, what about series that have more than 3 ODIs? The ICC says, “In some cases, they may play four or five matches in a series, but only three pre-decided matches will count for the Super League points.”
In the FTP, ending in 2023, many teams are scheduled to play bilateral ODIs outside of the Super League and the South Africa-India series that started at Paarl is rubber outside this league and hence doesn’t affect the Super League points table.
India have already played 9 games in this competition – against Australia away (played in November 2020), Sri Lanka away (in July 2021), and against England at home (played in March 2021) – and are in the seventh position with 49 points.
As per the pre-decided schedule, the abandoned series against South Africa, from March 2020, was a Super League fixture. It will be replayed next year. India’s other fixtures are against Afghanistan (at home), Zimbabwe and New Zealand (both away).
Notably, the Super League points and position do not count for India because being the hosts of the 2023 World Cup, they have qualified for the tournament automatically. However, the series for their opponents matter.
Apart from India, 7 other teams in the 13-team ODI Super League will qualify for the World Cup directly. The bottom five teams will play a qualifying tournament, which will also feature the best teams from the lower rungs of the competition.
The ODI Super League had started on May 1, 2020, but its schedule has been disrupted due to the pandemic. The ICC has scrapped the league for the next cycle starting in 2024.
