Afghanistan and Ireland's hopes of reaching the slimmed-down 2019 World Cup were given a massive boost Wednesday when they were placed amongst the 10 Test-playing nations in a revised qualifying system. The International Cricket Council (ICC) said the two nations will now join the 10 Full Members in the rankings-based qualification system for the 2019 tournament. The top eight-ranked sides as at September 30, 2017 will qualify automatically, while the bottom four will play in a 10-team World Cup qualifier 2018 that will determine the final two teams in the line-up. “Both Afghanistan and Ireland have excelled on and off the field in recent years, and this decision is a critical step forward to the aim of having more competitive teams in international cricket," said ICC chief executive David Richardson. More...