By IANS
Dubai : If fifth-placed India beat England 3-0 in the three-Test series starting at Lord's Thursday, Rahul Dravid's side could jump to second on the International Cricket Council (ICC) Test Championship table.
India, on 102 points, can gain nine points to take their tally to 111 with a clean sweep and in the process leap frog South Africa, Sri Lanka and England.
If that happens, England would drop from 115 points to 108 and slip down one place to third.
"A 2-0 win would lift India to third spot, just behind Michael Vaughan's English side, while a 2-1 or 1-0 series victory would elevate them to fourth and within striking distance of Sri Lanka," said ICC.
At the same time, there is plenty to lose for India if things go awry in England over the next few weeks. It could even end the series as low as seventh on the ICC Test Championship table.
"A 3-0 or 2-0 win for England would see India drop below Pakistan and New Zealand with just the West Indies and Bangladesh beneath it on the table," explained ICC.
For the home team, the only way is down, as England cannot catch leaders Australia during this series.
The hosts are currently are 26 rating points behind Australia (141 points) and could close that gap to 22 with a 3-0 series win over Team India.
ICC Test Championship table:
1 Australia 141 rating points
2 England 115
3 Sri Lanka 107
4 South Africa 102
5 India 102
6 Pakistan 99
7 New Zealand 99
8 West Indies 72
9 Bangladesh 4
Note: Zimbabwe has a rating of 12 but have not played sufficient number of Test matches since the new rating started in August 2004 to be included on the main table.