International cricket season
The 2017–18 international cricket season was from September 2017 to April 2018.[ 1] [ 2] 28 Test matches , 93 One Day Internationals (ODIs), and 44 Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) were played during this period. Out of the 30 Test matches that were played four were day/night matches. The day/night Test match between South Africa and Zimbabwe was scheduled to last for only four days in duration, with the last such four-day Test match being played in 1973 . The season started with India leading the Test cricket rankings , South Africa leading the ODI rankings , New Zealand leading the Twenty20 rankings , and England women leading the women's rankings. Additionally, the Laws of Cricket 2017 Code came into effect on 1 October 2017, superseding the 6th Edition of the 2000 Code of Laws, with many of the changes in the laws being incorporated into the ICC Standard Playing Conditions.
The season started with Australia's tour of India , which consisted of 5 ODIs and 3 T20Is. After this, 16 more bilateral series among the full member nations were scheduled for the remainder of the season. The most notable of these series was the 70th edition of The Ashes , which was held in Australia from November 2017 to January 2018. Other notable highlights included New Zealand beating England in a home Test series for the first since 1984 and South Africa beating Australia in a home Test series since 1970 . Australia's tour of South Africa was also notable for the many disciplinary issues that occurred throughout, with the most serious of these incidents being a ball tampering scandal that resulted in Australian captain Steve Smith , vice captain David Warner , and Cameron Bancroft being suspended from international cricket for 12 months, 12 months, and 9 months respectively. In addition, the first two T20I Tri-Series (Trans-Tasman Tri-Series and the Nidahas Trophy ) among Full Member nations ever were conducted.
The culmination of the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup qualification process occurred in this season. The start of this season marked the cut off date for direct qualification for the World Cup from the ICC ODI Championship . The top eight teams at the cut off date gained direct qualification to the World Cup while the bottom four teams (West Indies , Zimbabwe , Ireland , Afghanistan ) went into the 2018 Cricket World Cup Qualifier . These four teams were joined by the top four teams of the World Cricket League Championship and the top two teams of the World Cricket League Division Two to make up the ten teams that played in the World Cup Qualifier.
The final two rounds (rounds 6 and 7) of the World Cricket League Championship concluded in this season, with the top 4 teams (Netherlands , Scotland , Papua New Guinea , Hong Kong ) qualifying for the 2018 Cricket World Cup Qualifier. In addition, the Netherlands gained One Day International Status by winning the World Cricket League Championship and qualified for the 2020–23 ICC Cricket World Cup Super League . The bottom four teams (Kenya , Nepal , United Arab Emirates , Namibia ) were relegated to World Cricket League Division Two for a chance to qualify for the final two spots of the World Cup Qualifier. These four teams were joined by Canada and Oman , the top two placed teams in the World Cricket League Division Three . The United Arab Emirates and Nepal finished in the top two and thus qualified for the World Cup Qualifier while Oman and Kenya finished in the bottom two and were relegated to Division Three. In the World Cup Qualifier, West Indies and Afghanistan were the top two finishers and thus qualified for the World Cup.
In addition, the Intercontinental Cup concluded during this season, with matches in rounds 6 and 7 played in this period. Afghanistan won the tournament after finishing at the top of the table with the most points.
Finally, the qualification process for the 2020 ICC T20 World Cup got underway with the Americas Southern Sub Region Qualifier , which saw Bermuda and Cayman Islands qualify for the Americas Regional Qualifier . The Asia Western Sub Region Qualifier was also conducted, with the UAE, Qatar , and Kuwait qualifying for the Asia Regional Qualifier . The Africa North-Western Sub Region Qualifier saw Ghana and Nigeria qualify for the Africa Region Qualifier .
Season overview
Rankings
The following are the rankings at the beginning of the season:
September
Australia in India
Netherlands in Zimbabwe
Sri Lanka vs Pakistan in United Arab Emirates
Test series
No.
Date
Home captain
Away captain
Venue
Result
Test 2275
28 September–2 October
Sarfaraz Ahmed
Dinesh Chandimal
Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium , Abu Dhabi
Sri Lanka by 21 runs
Test 2278
6–10 October
Sarfaraz Ahmed
Dinesh Chandimal
Dubai International Cricket Stadium , Dubai
Sri Lanka by 68 runs
ODI series
No.
Date
Home captain
Away captain
Venue
Result
ODI 3922
13 October
Sarfaraz Ahmed
Upul Tharanga
Dubai International Cricket Stadium , Dubai
Pakistan by 83 runs
ODI 3924
16 October
Sarfaraz Ahmed
Upul Tharanga
Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium , Abu Dhabi
Pakistan by 32 runs
ODI 3926
18 October
Sarfaraz Ahmed
Upul Tharanga
Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium , Abu Dhabi
Pakistan by 7 wickets
ODI 3927
20 October
Sarfaraz Ahmed
Upul Tharanga
Sharjah Cricket Stadium , Sharjah
Pakistan by 7 wickets
ODI 3930
23 October
Sarfaraz Ahmed
Upul Tharanga
Sharjah Cricket Stadium , Sharjah
Pakistan by 9 wickets
T20I series
No.
Date
Home captain
Away captain
Venue
Result
T20I 625
26 October
Sarfaraz Ahmed
Thisara Perera
Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium , Abu Dhabi
Pakistan by 7 wickets
T20I 627
27 October
Sarfaraz Ahmed
Thisara Perera
Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium , Abu Dhabi
Pakistan by 2 wickets
T20I 629
29 October
Sarfaraz Ahmed
Thisara Perera
Gaddafi Stadium , Lahore
Pakistan by 36 runs
Bangladesh in South Africa
October
Scotland in Papua New Guinea
Netherlands vs Kenya in South Africa
Sri Lanka women in West Indies
Nepal in Hong Kong
Afghanistan in Hong Kong
West Indies in Zimbabwe
England women in Australia
New Zealand in India
New Zealand women vs Pakistan in United Arab Emirates
November
Sri Lanka in India
England in Australia
The Ashes Test series
No.
Date
Home captain
Away captain
Venue
Result
Test 2282
23–27 November
Steve Smith
Joe Root
The Gabba , Brisbane
Australia by 10 wickets
Test 2285
2–6 December
Steve Smith
Joe Root
Adelaide Oval , Adelaide
Australia by 120 runs
Test 2288
14–18 December
Steve Smith
Joe Root
WACA Ground , Perth
Australia by an innings and 41 runs
Test 2289
26–30 December
Steve Smith
Joe Root
Melbourne Cricket Ground , Melbourne
Match drawn
Test 2291
4–8 January
Steve Smith
Joe Root
Sydney Cricket Ground , Sydney
Australia by an innings and 123 runs
ODI series
No.
Date
Home captain
Away captain
Venue
Result
ODI 3951
14 January
Steve Smith
Eoin Morgan
Melbourne Cricket Ground , Melbourne
England by 5 wickets
ODI 3958
19 January
Steve Smith
Eoin Morgan
The Gabba , Brisbane
England by 4 wickets
ODI 3960
21 January
Steve Smith
Eoin Morgan
Sydney Cricket Ground , Sydney
England by 16 runs
ODI 3966
26 January
Steve Smith
Eoin Morgan
Adelaide Oval , Adelaide
Australia by 3 wickets
ODI 3968
28 January
Steve Smith
Eoin Morgan
Perth Stadium , Perth
England by 12 runs
Scotland vs Papua New Guinea in United Arab Emirates
Hong Kong vs Papua New Guinea in United Arab Emirates
Afghanistan in United Arab Emirates
Namibia vs Netherlands in United Arab Emirates
Ireland vs Scotland in United Arab Emirates
December
West Indies in New Zealand
Ireland vs Afghanistan in United Arab Emirates
Kenya vs Scotland in United Arab Emirates
Nepal in United Arab Emirates
Zimbabwe in South Africa
January
India in South Africa
Freedom Trophy Test series
No.
Date
Home captain
Away captain
Venue
Result
Test 2292
5–9 January
Faf du Plessis
Virat Kohli
Newlands Cricket Ground , Cape Town
South Africa by 72 runs
Test 2293
13–17 January
Faf du Plessis
Virat Kohli
Centurion Park , Centurion
South Africa by 135 runs
Test 2294
24–28 January
Faf du Plessis
Virat Kohli
Wanderers Stadium , Johannesburg
India by 63 runs
ODI series
No.
Date
Home captain
Away captain
Venue
Result
ODI 3969
1 February
Faf du Plessis
Virat Kohli
Kingsmead Cricket Ground , Durban
India by 6 wickets
ODI 3970
4 February
Aiden Markram
Virat Kohli
Centurion Park , Centurion
India by 9 wickets
ODI 3971
7 February
Aiden Markram
Virat Kohli
Newlands Cricket Ground , Cape Town
India by 124 runs
ODI 3973
10 February
Aiden Markram
Virat Kohli
Wanderers Stadium , Johannesburg
South Africa by 5 wickets (DLS )
ODI 3976
13 February
Aiden Markram
Virat Kohli
St. George's Park , Port Elizabeth
India by 73 runs
ODI 3978
16 February
Aiden Markram
Virat Kohli
Centurion Park , Centurion
India by 8 wickets
T20I series
No.
Date
Home captain
Away captain
Venue
Result
T20I 652
18 February
JP Duminy
Virat Kohli
Wanderers Stadium , Johannesburg
India by 28 runs
T20I 654
21 February
JP Duminy
Virat Kohli
Centurion Park , Centurion
South Africa by 6 wickets
T20I 655
24 February
JP Duminy
Rohit Sharma
Newlands Cricket Ground , Cape Town
India by 7 runs
Pakistan in New Zealand
2017–18 United Arab Emirates Tri-Nation Series
2018 Under-19 Cricket World Cup
2017–18 Bangladesh Tri-Nation Series
Sri Lanka in Bangladesh
February
2017–18 Trans-Tasman Tri-Series
Afghanistan vs Zimbabwe in United Arab Emirates
India women in South Africa
2018 ICC World Cricket League Division Two
Group Stage
No.
Date
Team 1
Captain 1
Team 2
Captain 2
Venue
Result
Match 1
8 February
Kenya
Rakep Patel
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
Wanderers Cricket Ground , Windhoek
United Arab Emirates by 218 runs
Match 2
8 February
Namibia
Sarel Burger
Nepal
Paras Khadka
Affies Park , Windhoek
Nepal by 1 wicket
Match 3
8 February
Canada
Nitish Kumar
Oman
Sultan Ahmed
United Ground , Windhoek
Canada by 8 wickets
Match 4
9 February
Canada
Nitish Kumar
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
Wanderers Cricket Ground , Windhoek
Canada by 23 runs
Match 5
9 February
Nepal
Paras Khadka
Oman
Sultan Ahmed
Affies Park , Windhoek
Oman by 6 wickets
Match 6
9–10 February
Namibia
Sarel Burger
Kenya
Rakep Patel
United Ground , Windhoek
No result
Match 7
11 February
Namibia
Sarel Burger
Oman
Sultan Ahmed
Wanderers Cricket Ground , Windhoek
Namibia by 2 wickets
Match 8
11 February
Canada
Nitish Kumar
Kenya
Rakep Patel
Affies Park , Windhoek
Canada by 59 runs
Match 9
11 February
Nepal
Paras Khadka
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
United Ground , Windhoek
Nepal by 4 wickets
Match 10
12 February
Kenya
Rakep Patel
Nepal
Paras Khadka
Wanderers Cricket Ground , Windhoek
Nepal by 3 wickets
Match 11
12 February
Oman
Sultan Ahmed
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
Affies Park , Windhoek
United Arab Emirates by 46 runs
Match 12
12 February
Namibia
Sarel Burger
Canada
Nitish Kumar
United Ground , Windhoek
Namibia by 17 runs
Match 6 (replay)
13 February
Namibia
Sarel Burger
Kenya
Rakep Patel
United Ground , Windhoek
Namibia by 8 wickets
Match 13
14 February
Canada
Nitish Kumar
Nepal
Paras Khadka
Wanderers Cricket Ground , Windhoek
Nepal by 1 wicket
Match 14
14 February
Namibia
Sarel Burger
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
Affies Park , Windhoek
United Arab Emirates by 19 runs
Match 15
14 February
Kenya
Shem Ngoche
Oman
Sultan Ahmed
United Ground , Windhoek
Oman by 2 wickets (DLS )
Playoffs
Fifth-place playoff
15 February
Kenya
Shem Ngoche
Oman
Zeeshan Maqsood
United Ground , Windhoek
Oman by 5 wickets
Third-place playoff
15 February
Namibia
Sarel Burger
Canada
Nitish Kumar
Affies Park , Windhoek
Canada by 49 runs
Final
15 February
Nepal
Paras Khadka
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
Wanderers Cricket Ground , Windhoek
United Arab Emirates by 7 runs
Final standings
England in New Zealand
March
Australia in South Africa
2018 Cricket World Cup Qualifier
Group Stage
Group Stage
No.
Date
Group
Team 1
Captain 1
Team 2
Captain 2
Venue
Result
ODI 3983
4 March
B
Afghanistan
Rashid Khan
Scotland
Kyle Coetzer
Bulawayo Athletic Club , Bulawayo
Scotland by 7 wickets
ODI 3984
4 March
A
Papua New Guinea
Assad Vala
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
Harare Sports Club , Harare
United Arab Emirates by 56 runs (DLS )
List A match
4 March
B
Zimbabwe
Graeme Cremer
Nepal
Paras Khadka
Queens Sports Club , Bulawayo
Zimbabwe by 116 runs
List A match
4 March
A
Ireland
William Porterfield
Netherlands
Peter Borren
Old Hararians , Harare
Ireland by 93 runs (DLS )
ODI 3985
6 March
B
Scotland
Kyle Coetzer
Hong Kong
Babar Hayat
Bulawayo Athletic Club , Bulawayo
Scotland by 4 wickets
ODI 3986
6 March
A
Papua New Guinea
Assad Vala
Ireland
William Porterfield
Harare Sports Club , Harare
Ireland by 4 wickets
ODI 3987
6 March
A
West Indies
Jason Holder
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
Old Hararians , Harare
West Indies by 60 runs
ODI 3988
6 March
B
Zimbabwe
Graeme Cremer
Afghanistan
Rashid Khan
Queens Sports Club , Bulawayo
Zimbabwe by 2 runs
List A match
8 March
A
Netherlands
Peter Borren
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
Harare Sports Club , Harare
United Arab Emirates by 6 wickets
List A match
8 March
B
Scotland
Kyle Coetzer
Nepal
Paras Khadka
Queens Sports Club , Bulawayo
Scotland by 4 wickets
ODI 3990
8 March
B
Afghanistan
Rashid Khan
Hong Kong
Babar Hayat
Bulawayo Athletic Club , Bulawayo
Hong Kong by 30 runs (DLS )
ODI 3991
8 March
A
West Indies
Jason Holder
Papua New Guinea
Assad Vala
Old Hararians , Harare
West Indies by 6 wickets
ODI 3993
10 March
A
West Indies
Jason Holder
Ireland
William Porterfield
Harare Sports Club , Harare
West Indies by 52 runs
ODI 3994
10 March
B
Zimbabwe
Graeme Cremer
Hong Kong
Babar Hayat
Queens Sports Club , Bulawayo
Zimbabwe by 89 runs
List A match
10 March
A
Papua New Guinea
Assad Vala
Netherlands
Peter Borren
Old Hararians , Harare
Netherlands by 57 runs
List A match
10 March
B
Afghanistan
Rashid Khan
Nepal
Paras Khadka
Bulawayo Athletic Club , Bulawayo
Afghanistan by 6 wickets
List A match
12 March
A
West Indies
Jason Holder
Netherlands
Peter Borren
Harare Sports Club , Harare
West Indies by 54 runs (DLS )
List A match
12 March
B
Hong Kong
Babar Hayat
Nepal
Paras Khadka
Bulawayo Athletic Club , Bulawayo
Nepal by 5 wickets
ODI 3995
12 March
A
Ireland
William Porterfield
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
Old Hararians , Harare
Ireland by 226 runs (DLS )
ODI 3996
12 March
B
Zimbabwe
Graeme Cremer
Scotland
Kyle Coetzer
Queens Sports Club , Bulawayo
Match tied
Play-offs
List A match
15 March
Papua New Guinea
Assad Vala
Nepal
Paras Khadka
Old Hararians , Harare
Nepal by 6 wickets
List A match
15 March
Netherlands
Peter Borren
Hong Kong
Babar Hayat
Kwekwe Sports Club , Kwekwe
Netherlands by 44 runs
ODI 4000
17 March
Hong Kong
Babar Hayat
Papua New Guinea
Assad Vala
Old Hararians , Harare
Papua New Guinea by 58 runs
List A match
17 March
Nepal
Paras Khadka
Netherlands
Peter Borren
Kwekwe Sports Club , Kwekwe
Netherlands by 45 runs
Super Sixes
Super Sixes
No.
Date
Team 1
Captain 1
Team 2
Captain 2
Venue
Result
ODI 3997
15 March
West Indies
Jason Holder
Afghanistan
Rashid Khan
Harare Sports Club , Harare
Afghanistan by 3 wickets
ODI 3998
15 March
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
Scotland
Kyle Coetzer
Queens Sports Club , Bulawayo
Scotland by 73 runs
ODI 3999
16 March
Ireland
William Porterfield
Zimbabwe
Graeme Cremer
Harare Sports Club , Harare
Zimbabwe by 107 runs
ODI 4001
18 March
Ireland
William Porterfield
Scotland
Kyle Coetzer
Harare Sports Club , Harare
Ireland by 25 runs
ODI 4002
19 March
West Indies
Jason Holder
Zimbabwe
Graeme Cremer
Harare Sports Club , Harare
West Indies by 4 wickets
ODI 4003
20 March
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
Afghanistan
Asghar Stanikzai
Old Hararians , Harare
Afghanistan by 5 wickets
ODI 4004
21 March
West Indies
Jason Holder
Scotland
Kyle Coetzer
Harare Sports Club , Harare
West Indies by 5 runs (DLS )
ODI 4005
22 March
United Arab Emirates
Rohan Mustafa
Zimbabwe
Graeme Cremer
Harare Sports Club , Harare
United Arab Emirates by 3 runs (DLS )
ODI 4006
23 March
Ireland
William Porterfield
Afghanistan
Asghar Stanikzai
Harare Sports Club , Harare
Afghanistan by 5 wickets
Final
ODI 4007
25 March
West Indies
Jason Holder
Afghanistan
Asghar Stanikzai
Harare Sports Club , Harare
Afghanistan by 7 wickets
Final standings
Note: Remaining teams already had ODI status until at least 2023.
West Indies women in New Zealand
2018 Nidahas Trophy
Australia women in India
Pakistan women in Sri Lanka
2017–18 India women's Tri-Nation Series
April
West Indies in Pakistan
England women in India
References
September 2017 October 2017 November 2017 December 2017 January 2018 February 2018 March 2018 April 2018 Ongoing