Race to World Cup heats up: Who will grab last spot?

Four teams remain in contention to qualify for the ODI World Cup in India following the shock exit of two-time champions West Indies at the ongoing Qualifier.

Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Scotland and Netherlands are in the race to secure two qualifying spots for the 50-over showpiece in India from October 5.

Sri Lanka (6 points from three Super Six games)

Sri Lanka, who remain unbeaten in the competition, will qualify for the World Cup with a win over Zimbabwe here on Sunday. Even if they lose, they can qualify by beating West Indies in their last Super Six game on July 7. Sri Lanka also enjoy an excellent net run rate of 1.832.

Zimbabwe (six points from three games)

Zimbabwe, like Sri Lanka, have won all their games so far. Their run rate of 0.752 is not very assuring and they can still find themselves in a tough situation even if they win against Sri Lanka on Sunday.
A loss to Scotland in their last game could knock Zimbabwe out of the competition.

Scotland (four points from three games)

Scotland have boosted their chances of qualification with the win over West Indies. They will qualify if they win their remaining two games and Sri Lanka beat Zimbabwe on Sunday. If Zimbabwe win that game, then Sri Lanka, Scotland and Zimbabwe could finish on eight points bringing net run rate into equation.

Scotland, who have a net run rate of 0.188, find themselves in a must-win situation in their next game against Zimbabwe on Tuesday.

Netherlands (two points from three games)

Netherlands need big wins in their remaining games against Oman and Scotland to qualify. They would want Sri Lanka to qualify, making it a three-way battle between themselves, Zimbabwe and Scotland. Their net run rate of -0.560 is the lowest among four teams.