The 2017–18 international cricket season was from September 2017 to April 2018.^[1][2] 28 Test matches, 93 One Day Internationals (ODIs), and 44 Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) were played during this period. Out of the 30 Test matches that were played four were day/night matches. The day/night Test match between South Africa and Zimbabwe was scheduled to last for only four days in duration, with the last such four-day Test match being played in 1973. The season started with India leading the Test cricket rankings, South Africa leading the ODI rankings, New Zealand leading the Twenty20 rankings, and England women leading the women's rankings. Additionally, the Laws of Cricket 2017 Code came into effect on 1 October 2017, superseding the 6th Edition of the 2000 Code of Laws, with many of the changes in the laws being incorporated into the ICC Standard Playing Conditions.

The season started with Australia's tour of India, which consisted of 5 ODIs and 3 T20Is. After this, 16 more bilateral series among the full member nations were scheduled for the remainder of the season. The most notable of these series was the 70th edition of The Ashes, which was held in Australia from November 2017 to January 2018. Other notable highlights included New Zealand beating England in a home Test series for the first since 1984 and South Africa beating Australia in a home Test series since 1970. Australia's tour of South Africa was also notable for the many disciplinary issues that occurred throughout, with the most serious of these incidents being a ball tampering scandal that resulted in Australian captain Steve Smith, vice captain David Warner, and Cameron Bancroft being suspended from international cricket for 12 months, 12 months, and 9 months respectively. In addition, the first two T20I Tri-Series (Trans-Tasman Tri-Series and the Nidahas Trophy) among Full Member nations ever were conducted.

The culmination of the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup qualification process occurred in this season. The start of this season marked the cut off date for direct qualification for the World Cup from the ICC ODI Championship. The top eight teams at the cut off date gained direct qualification to the World Cup while the bottom four teams (West Indies, Zimbabwe, Ireland, Afghanistan) went into the 2018 Cricket World Cup Qualifier. These four teams were joined by the top four teams of the World Cricket League Championship and the top two teams of the World Cricket League Division Two to make up the ten teams that played in the World Cup Qualifier.

The final two rounds (rounds 6 and 7) of the World Cricket League Championship concluded in this season, with the top 4 teams (Netherlands, Scotland, Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong) qualifying for the 2018 Cricket World Cup Qualifier. In addition, the Netherlands gained One Day International Status by winning the World Cricket League Championship and qualified for the 2020–23 ICC Cricket World Cup Super League. The bottom four teams (Kenya, Nepal, United Arab Emirates, Namibia) were relegated to World Cricket League Division Two for a chance to qualify for the final two spots of the World Cup Qualifier. These four teams were joined by Canada and Oman, the top two placed teams in the World Cricket League Division Three. The United Arab Emirates and Nepal finished in the top two and thus qualified for the World Cup Qualifier while Oman and Kenya finished in the bottom two and were relegated to Division Three. In the World Cup Qualifier, West Indies and Afghanistan were the top two finishers and thus qualified for the World Cup.

In addition, the Intercontinental Cup concluded during this season, with matches in rounds 6 and 7 played in this period. Afghanistan won the tournament after finishing at the top of the table with the most points.

Finally, the qualification process for the 2020 ICC T20 World Cup got underway with the Americas Southern Sub Region Qualifier, which saw Bermuda and Cayman Islands qualify for the Americas Regional Qualifier. The Asia Western Sub Region Qualifier was also conducted, with the UAE, Qatar, and Kuwait qualifying for the Asia Regional Qualifier. The Africa North-Western Sub Region Qualifier saw Ghana and Nigeria qualify for the Africa Region Qualifier.

The following are the rankings at the beginning of the season:

More information Rank, Team ...

ICC Test Championship 26 September 2017[3][4]
Rank	Team	Matches	Points	Rating
1	India	36	4493	125
2	South Africa	31	3395	110
3	England	43	4497	105
4	New Zealand	32	3114	97
5	Australia	34	3294	97
6	Pakistan	31	2868	93
7	Sri Lanka	36	3229	90
8	West Indies	30	2260	75
9	Bangladesh	20	1471	74
10	Zimbabwe	10	0	0

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More information ICC ODI Championship 10 September 2017, Rank ...

ICC ODI Championship 10 September 2017[5]
Rank	Team	Matches	Points	Rating
1	South Africa	50	5957	119
2	Australia	47	5505	117
3	India	45	5266	117
4	England	50	5645	113
5	New Zealand	46	5123	111
6	Pakistan	41	3885	95
7	Bangladesh	31	2905	94
8	Sri Lanka	59	5088	86
9	West Indies	36	2824	78
10	Afghanistan	30	1618	54
11	Zimbabwe	41	2129	52
12	Ireland	25	1028	41

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More information ICC T20I Championship 18 September 2017, Rank ...

ICC T20I Championship 18 September 2017[6]
Rank	Team	Matches	Points	Rating
1	New Zealand	13	1625	125
2	Pakistan	20	2417	121
3	West Indies	20	2395	120
4	England	17	2029	119
5	India	20	2328	116
6	South Africa	18	1983	110
7	Australia	13	1431	110
8	Sri Lanka	21	1961	93
9	Afghanistan	25	2157	86
10	Bangladesh	15	1168	78
11	Scotland	11	737	67
12	Zimbabwe	13	842	65
13	United Arab Emirates	16	827	52
14	Netherlands	9	441	49
15	Hong Kong	13	599	46
16	Papua New Guinea	6	235	39
17	Oman	9	345	38
18	Ireland	15	534	36

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More information ICC Women's Rankings 3 October 2017, Rank ...

ICC Women's Rankings 3 October 2017[7][8]
Rank	Team	Matches	Points	Rating
1	England	34	4368	128
2	Australia	40	5137	128
3	New Zealand	43	5053	118
4	India	45	5216	116
5	West Indies	35	3544	101
6	South Africa	55	5112	93
7	Pakistan	39	2801	72
8	Sri Lanka	40	2696	67
9	Bangladesh	19	704	37
10	Ireland	17	504	30

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