Some of todays best cricket news. India wins series 2 nil against Australia. The ICC has approved the creation of a league-style Test Championship and redrawn the lines of one-day cricket as part of an extensive restructuring of the international game

Australia defeated 2-0 in series

Guided in the end by Sachin Tendulkar, the hosts cruised to their target of 207 to confirm the 2-0 series triumph, while Australia slid to fifth of the ICC rankings for the first time, courtesy of another toothless bowling display.

ICC Test Rankings

Australia have dropped to fifth place in the ICC Test rankings following their 2-0 series defeat in India and are placed below England for the first time since the rankings were introduced in 2003.

Australia and India entered the two-Test series on 113 and 127 points and the hosts’ wins in Mohali and Bangalore earned them three more points, taking them 11 clear of South Africa, who are in second place.

In contrast, Australia conceded three points and slipped to 110, two behind England. It is their lowest ranking ever. However, they will have the opportunity to reclaim fourth place when England travel to Australia for the Ashes in November.

Australia’s worst performance in 30 years

Australia’s issues are not so pleasant. Apart from losing all the Tests in a series for the first time in nearly 30 years, they will now enter the Ashes on the back of three consecutive defeats, a run that no Australian side has endured since West Indies were at their peak in 1988-89.

They have also dropped below England in the Test rankings, which is an abstract concept but one that will frustrate Ponting’s men as they aim to regain the urn. A more concrete measure of the side’s current state could be seen in the disappointing form of several key players.

Sachin Tendulkar

Born April 24, 1973, Bombay (now Mumbai), Maharashtra

Current age 37 years 172 days

The most complete batsman and the most worshipped cricketer in the world, Tendulkar holds just about every batting record worth owning in the game, including those for most runs and hundreds in Tests and ODIs, and most international runs.

Hundreds –

Tests- 49

ODI’s- 46

Runs

Tests- 14240

ODI’s- 17598

ICC approves Test championship

The ICC has approved the creation of a league-style Test Championship and redrawn the lines of one-day cricket as part of an extensive restructuring of the international game that also includes a reduced 50-over World Cup and an enlarged World Twenty20 event. The proposals – laid out by the ICC’s chief executive committee last month – were approved by the board at its meeting in Dubai on Wednesday.

The Future Tours Programme (FTP) will now comprise a Test league running over four years with the top four teams at the end of each period qualifying for a play-off event. The first play-off is scheduled for 2013, the same year England are due to host the Ashes, and Lord’s is the favoured venue for the final.

A one-day cricket league – mirroring the existing team rankings – will also be part of the FTP, starting in April 2011 and running over four years to culminate in the crowning of the first ODI league champion in April 2014.

The league will run separately from the World Cup, the ICC’s flagship event, which has been reduced to 10 teams for the 2015 tournament. The 2011 World Cup, to be held in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, will include 14 countries and run from February 19 to April 2. The lengthy tournament is itself a smaller version than the 2007 event, which was widely criticised for including 16 sides and taking too long.

A 10-team tournament effectively makes it much harder for any of the Associate countries to qualify (the 2011 event has four Associate teams), and the ICC has asked its governing council to examine the issue of qualification for ICC global events, as well as opportunities for Associate members to play ODIs, and make recommendations to the board.

The World Twenty20 event will be expanded to 16 teams from the 2012 tournament, due to be staged in Sri Lanka. The success of smaller nations like Netherlands and Afghanistan in Twenty20 cricket prompted the expansion of the tournament, which will continue to have the women’s event played alongside it

“Restructuring international cricket is a significant strategic challenge and one that must be dealt with,” Haroon Lorgat, ICC chief executive, said. “We have now agreed in principle to exciting and far reaching proposals to tackle this important issue.”