Only the slightest improvement in New Zealand's ODI ranking

Reaching the Super Six stage of the World Cup at the expense of nations ranked ahead of it has done little to improve New Zealand's ranking on the ICC One-Day International Championship table.

New Zealand has improved one place to seventh, and that by the merest of fractions ahead of England.

Comments on the New Zealand side's return that the side had lifted its ranking to fourth or fifth in the world have not been borne out by the release of the latest table. In fact, the four-yearly tournament has had little impact on the overall rankings.

What the latest Championship details show are the continuing inconsistency of the New Zealanders in their one-day game.

Even a string of victories like those achieved over the summer in which the side played 18 One-Day Internationals, winning 11 of them, for a win percentage of 61%, was not sufficient to lift New Zealand's ranking.

New Zealand's win percentage is only 41% in 81 ODIs played since August 1, 2000, the start of the rating period, so the enormity of the task to lift the side's ranking is all the more obvious.

The rankings are (with current points and change in rating since the start of the World Cup in brackets): Australia 1 (136, up 4), South Africa 2 (123, down 3), Pakistan 3 (110, down 4), Sri Lanka 4 (108, down 2), India 5 (103, up 4), West Indies 6 (99, no change), New Zealand 7 (98, up 1), England 8 (98, no change), Zimbabwe 9 (63, down 3), Kenya 10 (30, up 10), Bangladesh 11 (6, down 4).

The latest table confirms, if it was ever necessary, the absolute dominance of the Australian side.

It is 13 points ahead of its nearest rival, South Africa and it has established the highest ranking since the launch of the Championship in October last year.

The most significant mover on the Championship ladder was India which broke clear of the group it had been in with the West Indies, New Zealand and England.

It now has the opportunity to move past Pakistan and Sri Lanka to take third place on the ladder.

Kenya's run to the semi-finals has seen it improve its rating by 10 points, to climb to 24 points ahead of Bangladesh who are on the bottom of the table.