The Alternative Test Cricket World Championship

This is how it works. People often have a bit of a problem coming to terms with it, but it's really quite simple. Basically, the Alternative Test Cricket World Championship works like a boxing title. To win the title, you must beat the current champions in a Test series - not in a match - in a series. If the series is drawn, then the champions retain their title.

So who are the current Alternative Test Cricket World Champions? Well big thanks to The Scientician because working this out is just the kind of thing that we can't be bothered doing. (We wouldn't have known where to start - so we didn't.) 

The Scientician traced the path of the title from the very first Test series between England and Australia back in 1877. The full table can be seen in this post.

Pakistan are currently the Alternative Test Cricket World Champions having beaten England late last year - England having prised the title off Australia in the Ashes. The Scientician is 98% certain that Pakistan are the current holders, which is more than good enough for us because even after our very best effort we'd only be about 4% certain that we were right.

The upshot of this is that the upcoming Test series between England and Pakistan is an Alternative Test Cricket World Championship bout. If England can win, they will reclaim the title.

Come on. That's better than it being 'an indicator for the upcoming Ashes series'.

This whole thing was inspired/stolen from the Unofficial World Championship which does much the same thing for football. We should probably mention that.