From rxpgnews.com
India look to improve ODI rankings with win in Bangladesh
By IANS,
May 10, 2007 - 7:53:01 PM
Dubai, May 10 - India look to get back to winning ways and start climb up the one-day championship table with a five-wicket victory against Bangladesh Thursday.
With just 10 wins from previous 30 one-day internationals - - a run stretching back 13 months - Rahul Dravid's men are well off the pace, in sixth place in the LG ICC ODI Championship table.
In April 2006 India was third in that table, just three rating points behind South Africa, and seemed one of the in-form sides in the world after convincing series wins over Sri Lanka and England.
A lot has happened since then, including the disappointments of last year's ICC Champions Trophy on home soil as well as the just-concluded World Cup in the West Indies and so the matches in Bangladesh represent a great chance for India to get back to winning ways.
Dravid has been keen to avoid suggestions that this tour represents a revenge mission for his side but given the fact it was Bangladesh that qualified ahead of India for the Super Eight stage of the World Cup, it can certainly be seen in that context.
Moreover, a clean sweep for the touring side will see it gain one rating point and so reduce the gap between it and fifth-placed Pakistan to just three points.
If Bangladesh can win all three matches in the series then it will gain six rating points, lifting it to 51 points. That is still some way short of eighth-placed West Indies - but such a success would also drop India to 101 points, below England -, the side currently in seventh position.
LG ICC ODI Championship -:
1. Australia 130 rating points
2. South Africa 124
3. New Zealand 113
4. Sri Lanka 111
5. Pakistan 110
6. India 106
7. England 104
8. West Indies 99
9. Bangladesh 45
10. Ireland 29
11. Zimbabwe 22
12. Kenya 0
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