Along with hosts India, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand qualified for the semi-finals after the 2023 ICC Men’s ODI World Cup went into its final round of fixtures with three teams vying one spot.
With qualification for the 2025 ICC Men’s Champions Trophy also on the line, England, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Netherlands were in a four-way battle to finish in the top eight but with a victory in their final match against Pakistan, England managed to sneak in.
Bangladesh finished in eighth by virtue of having a better net run rate than Sri Lanka and the Netherlands despite having the same points.
Here’s a look at the points table after the end of the round robin stage:
Final points table
| POS | TEAM | PLAYED | WON | LOST | N/R | TIED | NET RR | POINTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +2.570 | 18 |
| 2 | South Africa | 9 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | +1.261 | 14 |
| 3 | Australia | 9 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | +0.841 | 14 |
| 4 | New Zealand | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | +0.743 | 10 |
| 5 | Pakistan | 9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -0.199 | 8 |
| 6 | Afghanistan | 9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -0.336 | 8 |
| 7 | England | 9 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | -0.572 | 6 |
| 8 | Bangladesh | 9 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0 | -1.087 | 4 |
| 9 | Sri Lanka | 9 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0 | -1.419 | 4 |
| 10 | Netherlands | 9 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0 | -1.825 | 4 |
India
Unbeaten India were the first team to qualify for the semi-finals and with 18 points, finished top of the points table.
South Africa
South Africa joined India in the semi-finals after Pakistan beat New Zealand in a rain-curtailed match. With 14 points, the Proteas finished second ahead of Australia who they will face in the semi-final.
Australia
Glenn Maxwell’s stunning double hundred against the Afghans not only helped Australia qualify for the semi-finals, but pretty much dented Afghanistan’s hopes of making it to the last-four. With 14 points, the five-time champions will face South Africa in the semi-final.
New Zealand
Following Pakistan and Afghanistan’s loss to England and South Africa respectively, New Zealand confirmed their berth at the semi-finals.
Despite starting the World Cup with four wins on the trot, New Zealand found themselves in danger of missing out on a spot in the last-four. The Kiwis were unlucky to lose to Pakistan via the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method in their last match despite posting a mammoth total of 401.
Kane Williamson’s side were the first team to play out all their nine round robin matches with their win against Sri Lanka on Thursday solidifying their fourth spot in the points table with 10 points.
A five-wicket win in just 23.2 overs against Sri Lanka gave their Net Run Rate a good boost and helped them reach the semi-finals.
Pakistan
Pakistan needed to beat England by 287 runs in order to squeeze into the semi-finals on net run-rate but that escape route was immediately closed when Jos Buttler won the toss and chose to bat first. Eventually, they lost by 93 runs to finish fifth with eight points.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan were three-wickets away from a famous win over Australia which would have bolstered their chances of reaching the semi-finals for the first time. However, Glenn Maxwell had other ideas and the Afghans have to beat impossible odds to still make it.
The Hashmatullah Shahidi-led side had the worst Net Run Rate amongst the sides who were in a three-way battle for the fourth semi-final spot. They exited the semi-final race after a five-wicket defeat to South Africa in Ahmedabad.
Although they did not qualify for the semi-finals, they are assured of a spot in the 2025 Champions Trophy.
England
After putting up arguably the worst World Cup defence in the history of the tournament, England played for pride and a place in the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy in their final match. The defending champions were in a four-way battle for the last two spots for the Champions Trophy.
By defeating Pakistan by 93 runs, England confirmed a top-eight finish.
Bangladesh
Bangladesh lost to Australia and finished their campaign with the eighth spot. However, with Sri Lanka and the Netherlands also losing their respective matches, Bangladesh finished above the two teams on net run rate.
Sri Lanka
Having lost their final group stage match against New Zealand, Sri Lanka are not only out of the 2023 ICC Men’s ODI World Cup but also missed out on a spot at the 2025 Champions Trophy.
Netherlands
By virtue of playing the final league stage fixture, the Netherlands went into their match against India knowing exactly what their margin of victory would need to be to finish in the top-eight.
However, a dominant Indian side romped to a 160-run win to confine the Dutch to last place in the World Cup.
