Dubai: If India wins all five matches of the ODI series against England, it will jump two places to claim the top spot on the Reliance ICC ODI Championship table, while South Africa can only go top if it wins all three matches against New Zealand and India wins its series, but fails to complete a clean sweep.

Meanwhile, England will be aiming to carry its Test form into the ODI format and win its first series in India in 28 years, and, in so doing, cement its status as the number-one ranked side on the Reliance ICC ODI Championship table.
 
England plays India in a five-match series starting on Friday, 11 January in Rajkot, while South Africa will play New Zealand in a three-match series starting on 19 January in Paarl.
 
England currently leads second-ranked South Africa by a fraction of a point, but will take an outright lead on the championship table if it wins the series, irrespective of the results of the South Africa-New Zealand and Australia-Sri Lanka series (starting on Friday in Melbourne).

However, England’s failure to win the series will give both India and South Africa opportunities to reclaim the top spot.

With 14 ratings points separating number-one ranked England from sixth-ranked Sri Lanka, the battle for the Reliance ICC ODI Shield and a cash award of US$175,000 is truly warming up.

While India-England and Australia-Sri Lanka will square-off against each other from Friday, and South Africa will take on New Zealand from 19 January, there is a number of additional series to be played before the 1 April cut-off date.  Australia will take on the West Indies between 1 and 10 February, England will travel to New Zealand for a three-match series from 17 February, and South Africa will host Pakistan in a five-match series from 10 March. Every match counts as the six leading sides battle to finish inside the top two.

The side that tops the Championship table on the 1 April cut-off date collects a cheque of US$175,000 along with a Shield, while the team that finishes second receives a cheque of US$75,000.

By Indian Sports News Network