WTC Standings: Australia step closer to World Test Championship Final with win at MCG, to play South Africa

Australia have taken a giant step towards the final of the World Test Championship after beating India by 184-runs in a dramatic finish to the fourth Test in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. From a seemingly confident position at 112/3 at the Tea break, India collapsed to 155 all out.With the win, Australia took a 2-1 lead in the five-match series which now moves to Sydney from 3 January. But more importantly for the Pat Cummins-led side, they are step away from defending their crown at Lord's in June. The win keeps Australia in second place but ensures India will have to rely on Sri Lanka to overhaul them, even if they win in Sydney. South Africa, meanwhile, had maintained their place at the top of the charts with a dramatic two-wicket win against Pakistan on Sunday.After the win, Australia have moved themselves to 61.46 percentage points for winning 10 of their 16 matches in the two-year cycle. South Africa are top of the charts with 66.67 points. India, meanwhile, remain third with 52.78 points.

LATEST WORLD TEST CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS

No.	Teams	M	W	L	T	D	N/R	PT	PCT
1	South Africa	11	7	3	0	1	0	88	66.67
2	Australia	16	10	4	0	2	0	118	61.46
3	India	18	9	7	0	2	0	114	52.78
4	New Zealand	14	7	7	0	0	0	81	48.21
5	Sri Lanka	11	5	6	0	0	0	60	45.45
6	England	22	11	10	0	1	0	114	43.18
7	Bangladesh	12	4	8	0	0	0	45	31.25
8	Pakistan	11	4	7	0	0	0	40	30.30
9	West Indies	11	2	7	0	2	0	32	24.24

India's quest to play the WTC Final for a third straight time suffered one jolt after another. It all began with the 3-0 series loss at home against New Zealand. In Australia, India got off to a positive start, winning the opener in Perth by a massive 295 runs.But Australia clinched the second Test, at the Adelaide Oval, by 10-wickets, to keep themselves in the thick of things as far as WTC Points Table is concerned.A draw at the Gabba in Brisbane didn't help either side. Instead, it made the MCG Test even more important than the context of the series and bragging rights that go with it.But with India losing seven wickets in the final session, Australia got the job done for a comprehensive win out of nowhere.