Benjamin Andrew Stokes OBE is an English international cricketer and current vice-captain of the England Test team. Stokes was part of the England squad that won the 2019 Cricket World Cup. In July 2020, Stokes captained the England team for the first time, for the first Test match against the West Indies.
Stokes, the England vice-captain, has made significant progress in the MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings after the second Test against West Indies in Manchester.
• Becomes first England player at the summit since Andrew Flintoff in May 2006; reaches career-best third position among batsmen
• Brooks, Chase gain for the West Indies in latest rankings update
England star Ben Stokes has outdone West Indies captain Jason Holder to become the world’s top-ranked Test all-rounder while also attaining a career-best third position among batsmen in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s Test Player Rankings, after a match-winning performance at Old Trafford.
Stokes, who trailed Holder by 54 rating points going into the second Test in Manchester, enjoys a lead of 38 points after his memorable knocks of 176 and 78 and a match haul of three wickets helped England win by 113 runs and level the three-match series 1-1.
Stokes ended Holder’s 18-month reign at the top, becoming the first from England at the summit since Andrew Flintoff in May 2006. His tall of 497 rating points is the highest by any Test all-rounder since Jacques Kallis aggregated 517 in April 2008.
Among batsmen, Stokes is joint-third with Marnus Labuschagne, only behind Steve Smith and Virat Kohli and with specialist batsmen like Kane Williamson and Babar Azam below him in the list. His captain Joe Root is ninth while opener Dom Sibley has advanced 29 places to a career-best 35th position after a sturdy first innings 120.
MRF Tyres ICC Men’s Test Player Rankings (as of 21 July, after the second England-West Indies Test)
Batsmen (top 10)
| Rank | (+/-) | Player | Team | Pts | Avge | Highest rating |
| 1 | ( – ) | Steve Smith | Aus | 911 | 62.84 | 947 v SA at Durban 2018 |
| 2 | ( – ) | Virat Kohli | India | 886 | 53.62 | 937 v Eng at Southampton 2018 |
| 3= | (+6) | Ben Stokes | Eng | 827! | 38.58 | 827 v WI at Old Trafford 2020 |
| ( – ) | M Labuschagne | Aus | 827*! | 63.43 | 827 v NZ at Sydney 2020 | |
| 5 | (-1) | K Williamson | NZ | 812 | 50.99 | 915 v Ban at Hamilton 2019 |
| 6 | (-1) | Babar Azam | Pak | 800! | 45.12 | 800 v Ban at Rawalpindi 2020 |
| 7 | (-1) | David Warner | Aus | 793 | 48.94 | 880 v NZ at Perth 2015 |
| 8 | (-1) | C Pujara | India | 766 | 48.66 | 888 v SL at Nagpur 2017 |
| 9 | (-1) | Joe Root | Eng | 738 | 48.07 | 917 v Aus at Trent Bridge 2015 |
| 10 | (-1) | Ajinkya Rahane | India | 726 | 42.88 | 825 v NZ at Indore 2016 |
Stuart Broad, who was not picked for the opening Test, returned to the top 10 after claiming three wickets in each innings. He is now England’s top-ranked bowler, one slot ahead of James Anderson, who dropped to 11th after being rested for the match. Chris Woakes, who scalped five in the match to reach the 100-wicket mark, is in 21st position, his highest since late 2016.
Bowlers (top 10)
| Rank | (+/-) | Player | Team | Pts | Avge | Highest rating |
| 1 | ( – ) | Pat Cummins | Aus | 904 | 21.82 | 914 v Eng at Old Trafford 2019 |
| 2 | (+1) | Neil Wagner | NZ | 843 | 26.60 | 859 v Aus at Melbourne 2019 |
| 3 | (-1) | Jason Holder | WI | 834 | 26.22 | 862 v Eng at Southampton 2020 |
| 4 | ( – ) | Tim Southee | NZ | 812! | 29.00 | 812 v India at Christchurch 2020 |
| 5 | ( – ) | Kagiso Rabada | SA | 802 | 22.95 | 902 v Aus at Port Elizabeth 2018 |
| 6 | ( – ) | Mitchell Starc | Aus | 797 | 26.97 | 807 v NZ at Perth 2019 |
| 7 | ( – ) | Jasprit Bumrah | India | 779* | 20.33 | 834 v WI at Jamaica 2019 |
| 8 | ( – ) | Trent Boult | NZ | 770 | 27.65 | 825 v Eng at Lord’s 2015 |
| 9 | ( – ) | J Hazlewood | Aus | 769 | 26.20 | 864 v India at Bengaluru 2017 |
| 10 | (+4) | Stuart Broad | Eng | 768 | 28.38 | 880 v SA at Johannesburg 2016 |
For the West Indies, Shamarh Brooks has moved up 27 places to a career-best 45th position after scores of 68 and 62. He is now just four slots behind Holder, who remains the top-ranked West Indies batsman in 41st position despite slipping four places. Holder has also dropped a slot among bowlers to take third place, behind Pat Cummins and Neil Wagner. Roston Chase has gained two places in the bowlers’ list after a five-wicket haul in the first innings.
ICC World Test Championship: The win at Old Trafford has lifted England to the third position in the ICC World Test Championship points table.
World Test Championship (2019-2021) Points Table
| Rank | Team | Series Played | Matches Played | Matches Won | Matches Tied | Matches Drawn | Matches Lost | Points | PCT | Series Wins | RPW |
| 1 | India | 4 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 360 | 0.750 | 3 | 2.011 |
| 2 | Australia | 3 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 296 | 0.822 | 2 | 1.604 |
| 3 | England | 3* | 11 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 186 | 0.581 | 1 | 1.098 |
| 4 | New Zealand | 3 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 180 | 0.500 | 1 | 0.883 |
| 5 | Pakistan | 2 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 140 | 0.467 | 1 | 0.984 |
| 6 | Sri Lanka | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 80 | 0.333 | 0 | 0.589 |
| 7 | West Indies | 2* | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 40 | 0.200 | 0 | 0.585 |
| 8 | South Africa | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 24 | 0.100 | 0 | 0.521 |
| 9 | Bangladesh | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0.351 |
They are now on 186 points, six more than New Zealand. India leads with 360 points while Australia is second at 296. The West Indies remain on 40 points.
Each series of the WTC is worth 120 points, distributed evenly over the number of matches in a series. The points range from 60 for each match of a two-Test series to 24 for each match of a five-Test series.
Also Read : News Highlights From July 2020
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