New Zealand moves to third and now chasing second spot in official ICC ODI table

New Zealand will move into second place in the ICC ODI Championship Table for the first time since the ratings were introduced if it can win its next two matches in the NatWest Series.

The Black Caps take on the West Indies at Southampton's Rose Bowl tomorrow (8 July) ahead of the NatWest Series final against the same team at Lord's on Saturday (10 July).

Victories in both games will see New Zealand's rating improve to 113, level on points with South Africa but good enough for second spot when recalculated to three decimal places.

South Africa has never been outside the top two in the official ODI ratings since they were launched in 2002.

Having entered the NatWest Series in fourth with a rating of 109 points, New Zealand has overtaken Sri Lanka and climbed into third position with 112 points after securing a place in the tournament final.

New Zealand will still hold third spot in the table but drop to 111 points if it only wins one of the two remaining matches in the NatWest Series.

The West Indies, which displaced England to move into seventh place in the table following its seven-wicket win at Lord's yesterday (6 July), can further improve its rating.

Brian Lara's team, now sitting on 102 points, can extend its lead over England and increase its rating to 105 if it defeats New Zealand in the next two games.

This outcome would see New Zealand return to fourth place in the table with the same rating - 109 points - with which it began with at the start of the tournament.

However, should the West Indies suffer successive defeats against New Zealand, its rating will fall by two points, from 102 to 100 and it will slide back to eighth place.

England has dropped to eighth in the table with its rating falling from 105 to 101 after failing to qualify for the NatWest Series final.

Gundappa Viswanath from the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Referees will continue to oversee the two remaining matches in the series.

Daryl Harper and David Shepherd from the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires will officiate in the One-Day International match at the Rose Bowl tomorrow (8 July), while local official Mark Benson is the appointed third umpire.

Rudi Koertzen from the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires will join Shepherd as the on-field umpires for the NatWest Series final on Saturday (10 July), with Jeremy Lloyds officiating as the third umpire.

The ICC ODI Championship table is updated on the ICC website after every ODI match.