Pakistan’s participation in the 2017 Champions Trophy was confirmed by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in the new rankings released by the governing body on Wednesday.
Pakistan were locked in a three-way battle with Bangladesh and West Indies for the final spot of the Champions Trophy, but edged out the Caribbean side after an ODI series win in Sri Lanka in July.
Azhar Ali’s side are currently in the 8th spot in the ICC rankings just two points above the West Indies who are placed 9th in the ODI Team Rankings on the September 30, 2015, cut-off date for qualification in the eight-nation Champions Trophy.
The eight sides to play in the short 2017 event to be hosted by England are (in rankings order): world champion Australia, title holder India, 1998 winner South Africa, 2000 champion New Zealand, 2002 co-winner Sri Lanka, host England, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Bangladesh will return to the ICC Champions Trophy for the first time since 2006.
Bangladesh has replaced the West Indies, which finished outside the top eight in ninth position and will miss participation in the Champions Trophy for the first time in the tournament’s history.
The 2017 Champions Trophy will be a 15-match tournament, with teams split into two groups of four, with the top two teams in each group progressing to the semi-finals.
