India goes into its forthcoming three-Test series against Pakistan with a clear chance of claiming second spot in the LG ICC Test Championship for the first time.
India has never been higher than its current third place in the official Test table since it was launched in May 2001, but a 2-0 win would be enough to see it leapfrog England into second.
Victory by two clear Test matches would boost India's rating to 111, an increase of four points and, crucially, one higher than England.
A 3-0 victory for the home side would increase the gap ahead of England to two points while a 1-0 win would leave India level with England on 110 points, but behind in the table when the ratings are recalculated to three decimal places.
Pakistan, currently fifth in the LG ICC Test Championship, has never been in the top two of the official table but did climb to third on two occasions in 2004. If it can win the series in India 2-0 or 3-0 it will overtake its neighbour and reclaim third spot.
Defeat for Pakistan could see it drop below South Africa into sixth position.
A drawn series will see India's rating drop by one point and Pakistan's rating improve by the same amount, but their positions will remain unchanged.
South Africa must win both matches of its current series against Zimbabwe to retain its current rating of 99 points and sixth place in the table.
The ICC Test Championship table as on March 4, 2005:
| Position | Team | Rating |
| 1 | Australia | 130 |
| 2 | England | 110 |
| 3 | India | 108 |
| 4 | Sri Lanka | 103 |
| 5 | Pakistan | 101 |
| 6 | South Africa | 99 |
| 7 | New Zealand | 93 |
| 8 | West Indies | 73 |
| 9 | Zimbabwe | 42 |
| 10 | Bangladesh | 6 |
India v Pakistan, 3 Tests full scenarios:
| Result | India | Pakistan |
| Current rating: | 108 | 101 |
| Possible series outcomes: | ||
| India wins 3-0 | 112 | 96 |
| India wins 2-0 | 111 | 98 |
| India wins 1-0, 2-1 | 110 | 99 |
| Drawn 1-1, 0-0 | 107 | 102 |
| Pakistan wins 1-0, 2-1 | 105 | 105 |
| Pakistan wins 2-0 | 104 | 106 |
| Pakistan wins 3-0 | 103 | 108 |
