Calcutta: Thanks to their disastrous World Cup campaign, Team India can slump to as low as eighth position in the ICC ODI championship ladder, according to an ICC release.

Rahul Dravid & Co. cut a sorry figure in the West Indies, managing their lone win against a lowly Bermuda and losing to Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

India, ranked sixth, might slip two rungs if the West Indies and England register good results in the coming weeks.

But the top slot is up for grabs. South Africa will retain the spot at the April 1 cut-off if they beat Sri Lanka in Guyana on Wednesday. If they fail and Australia win back-to-back matches against the West Indies on Tuesday and Bangladesh on Saturday, Ricky Ponting’s men will be back at the top again.

England batsman Kevin Pietersen has topped the batsmen’s list in ODIs for the first time in his career following a solid start to the World Cup for the 26-year-old.

Pietersen is the first England player to top the rankings since Marcus Trescothick did so for one match in 2005 and only the third in history with Allan Lamb doing so in 1989.

Pietersen replaces Michael Hussey at the top of the list as the Australian left-hander has had a string of low scores in recent weeks. Hussey has dropped two places to third position while his captain Ricky Ponting moves up to second.

New Zealand pacer Shane Bond has climbed to second position among the bowlers for the first time, illustrating the good form that the Black Caps are in at present.

ODI RANKINGS