Updated 6 July 2025 at 17:49 IST
West Indies Cricket Faces Another Setback as ICC World Cup 2027 Automatic Qualification No Longer a Certainty
West Indies are currently outside of the automatic qualifying slots for the ICC World Cup 2027, and may have to play in the qualifiers if things remain this way.
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West Indies' Nicholas Pooran walks off the pitch at the end of the match during ICC Cricket World Cup between West Indies v Pakistan at Trent Bridge in Nottingham | Image:
ANI
The West Indies cricket team are two-time ICC World Cup winners, but their past glories is no guarantee of them qualifying for the ICC World Cup 2027. In fact, there is a real chance that the West Indies could miss out on the 2027 edition of the tournament altogether, just as they did in 2023.
That is because, in the latest edition of the ICC rankings, the Men in Maroon have slipped to 10th place - which means they will not automatically qualify for the next edition of the tournament and, as things stand, will have to make it through via the World Cup Qualifiers.
How Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh ODIs Hurt West Indies
The reason for their sudden slip in the rankings is due to the second game of the five-match series between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in the island nation.
The second game saw Bangladesh emerge victorious and as a result they took the 9th spot in the rankings which previously belonged to the West Indies, who in turn dropped to 10th place.
As a result, the Men in Maroon are now outside of the automatic qualifying slots and will need to up their 50-over form in the next few months to keep themselves in contention.
How Does ICC World Cup Qualifying Work?
The top 8 teams in the ICC rankings are given automatic qualification for the tournament but since the hosts are excluded, this means South Africa are not counted and therefore the rankings extend to the top 9.
The 2027 World Cup will see 14 teams take part as two of the co-hosts - South Africa and Zimbabwe - are granted automatic qualification. The top 8 teams aside from them will get automatic qualification.
As for the last 4 remaining teams, they will be part of a 10-team qualifier tournament that will see 4 teams go through and be a part of the main tournament.
When the West Indies last played in the Qualifiers, it did not end well for them - they lost out on a spot in the 2023 ICC World Cup to Sri Lanka and Netherlands.
Published 6 July 2025 at 17:49 IST