South Africa’s qualification was clinched with a win in just one of the two tests against Pakistan, which illustrated the robustness of their performance throughout this WTC cycle. With this victory, they now lead the standings, making the outcome of the second Test against Pakistan irrelevant for their qualification.

The battle for the second spot, however, remains intensely competitive. India and Australia are the primary contenders with three and four Tests left respectively in their current series. India requires a win in both the remaining matches against Australia to secure direct qualification, with any other result leaving their fate dependent on other series outcomes. Australia, on the other hand, needs to perform well not only against India but also in their subsequent series against Sri Lanka to ensure they make it to Lord’s.

Sri Lanka, although mathematically still in the race, would need to win both their remaining Tests against Australia and hope for other results to go their way to challenge for a final spot. The complexity of these scenarios highlights the strategic importance of every match in the WTC cycle.