Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra believes that Sri Lanka have a better chance than defending champions South Africa of reaching the 2027 World Test Championship (WTC) final. The upcoming 2025-27 WTC cycle will see both teams face varied challenges, but Chopra feels the scheduling of the series favours the Lankans.
It has been a decent start for Sri Lanka in the new cycle of the WTC. Playing against Bangladesh at home, they drew the first Test and beat their arch-rivals comprehensively with an innings victory in the second and the final match of the series. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Chopra said Sri Lanka’s fixtures offer them a realistic path to reach the final.
“Sri Lanka flatter to deceive. Their home series are against India, South Africa and Bangladesh. Their schedule is excellent because their away tours are to New Zealand, the West Indies and Pakistan. They should do well in the West Indies and Pakistan,” he explained.
The cricketer-turned-commentator added that even if Sri Lanka struggle in New Zealand, the strength of their home advantage could prove decisive in helping them reach the finale of the championship.
“Even if they get stuck in the two away matches in New Zealand, they have India, South Africa and Bangladesh at home. It is not a bad draw at all. Sri Lanka actually have decent chances. I feel Sri Lanka’s chances of qualifying are better than South Africa’s,” Chopra observed.
Back in 2023, the team had a golden opportunity to seal a spot in the finals. The Dimuth Karunaratne-led side had to beat New Zealand in both the tests to qualify for the summit clash at the Oval, London, but ended up losing both the matches. In the previous 2023-25 cycle, they finished sixth on the points table with a win percentage of 38.46.
Chopra pointed out that despite Australia’s strong start in the 2025–27 cycle, with a 3-0 away sweep of West Indies putting them atop the table with 100 percentage points, their journey ahead will not be easy.
“Their home series are against New Zealand, England and Bangladesh. They will 100 per cent win against Bangladesh. They should win against New Zealand. They should win against England as well. However, it’s a five-match series, so they are unlikely to get full points,” Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
Australia’s home series includes New Zealand, England, and Bangladesh. Chopra expects Australia to beat Bangladesh and New Zealand and possibly win against England, though he doubts they will take full points from the five-match series.
“I feel they will leave India after losing to them. They might win just one match. If they win only one match, they will lose a lot of points. South Africa will challenge them again. So it is not that straightforward. Decent chance, but I won’t say strong contenders,” he said.
Chopra also expressed doubts about South Africa’s chances, citing a challenging schedule. At home, they will face Australia, England, and Bangladesh, with Australia and England being tough opponents.
“Australia, England and Bangladesh are South Africa’s home series. Australia and England are tough, and they will beat Bangladesh. The away series are against India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. South Africa have less chances. All three of their away series are in the subcontinent. They will find it difficult to even draw all three of those series,” he said.
“South Africa, in my opinion, might not qualify. There is a good chance of them not qualifying,” Chopra concluded.
