New Zealand draws level with South Africa

New Zealand has drawn level on points with South Africa in the ICC ODI Championship table after winning the NatWest series final at Lord's on Saturday.

The win against the West Indies improved New Zealand's rating in the official ODI table from 112 to 113, the same as South Africa's. The Black Caps remain narrowly behind South Africa in third spot when the ratings are recalculated to three decimal places.

This is New Zealand's highest rating and is the closest South Africa has been to losing its grip on second spot since the official ODI table was introduced in October 2002.

New Zealand entered the NatWest series in fourth with a rating of 109 points and was the only one of the participating teams to improve its rating during the series.

Hosts England failed to reach the final and its rating has fallen from 105 to 101, while the West Indies' rating has slipped from 102 to 101. The sides remain in seventh and eighth place respectively.

The annual update of the ICC Test and ODI Championships will take place at the end of this month. Australia has a healthy advantage at the top of both tables but second-placed South Africa will be looking nervously over their shoulder in both forms of the game.

The ICC ODI Championship table is updated on the ICC website www.icc-cricket.com after every ODI match.