Joe Root is the new No.1 Test Batsman – ICC Test Rankings Released

We have a New No.1 !!!

Joe Root has rocketed himself to the No.1 spot of the ICC Men’s Test Batsman rankings courtesy of the remarkable performances he has been putting up in ongoing India vs England series. Earlier, Joe Root was ranked second, behind Kane Williamson. However, Root has dominated the batting charts since due to his three consecutive test centuries against India. He has a current rating of 916 points. Root has returned to the top of the charts after six long years. It’s important to note here that Root started the series ranked fifth in the charts. Root is now only one point below his career-best aggregate of 917 rating points, which he achieved in August 2015 after his innings of 130 against Australia in Nottingham.

Other changes in the ranking include Virat Kohli losing a rank and going down to 6th position. Rohit Sharma, who has given great starts to the team, has overtaken him. The last time someone other than Kohli was the top-ranked Indian batter was in 2017 when Pujara was ranked 2nd and Kohli was ranked 5th. Kohli had climbed down a rank in the previous rankings too. His coach, Rajkumar Sharma, had expressed his shock over the news. With Kohli further going down the ranking, it seems that more disappointment awaits his childhood coach.

The 29-year-old left-handed Kiwi batsman Henry Nicholls has made it on the list. He is ranked at the 10th position with 714 rating points.

Here’s the complete list of the ICC Men’s Test Player Rankings for batting.

Rank	Player	Rating
1	Joe Root	916
2	Kane Williamson	901
3	Steve Smith	891
4	Marnus Labuschagne	878
5	Rohit Sharma	773
6	Virat Kohli	766
7	Babar Azam	749
8	David Warner	724
9	Quinton De Kock	717
10	Henry Nicholls	714

 

 

We can also see here that there’s a huge difference in the rating points of No 4 and No 5 batsmen. A difference of more than 100 points. It is as if the top 4 batsmen are batting in a different league right now, a different zone.

Men’s Test Rankings: Bowling

There are no big changes in the bowling charts, it is still headed by the Australian right-arm pacer Pat Cummins.Cummins is the only bowler on the list with more than 900 rating points. James Anderson has overtaken Neil Wagner and is now ranked 5th on the chart. Anderson has been performing terrifically in the ongoing series which has earned him lots of points. Bumrah has entered the bowling charts again and is now ranked 10th with 758 points to his name. Ravichandran Ashwin, the second-ranked bowler in the world, has not played a single test match in the ongoing series.

Here’s a quick look at the ICC Men’s Test Player rankings for bowling.

Rank	Player	Rating
1	Pat Cummins	908
2	Ravichandran Ashwin	839
3	Tim Southee	824
4	Josh Hazlewood	816
5	James Anderson	813
6	Neil Wagner	810
7	Kagiso Rabada	798
8	Shaheen Afridi	783
9	Jason Holder	766
10	Jasprit Bumrah	758