Agency :
The battle for prestige among the top five batters in the world has further intensified following the latest update of the MRF Tyres ICC Test batting rankings.
Reigning ICC Test Cricketer of the Year Joe Root has been the big mover on the latest rankings release, with the former England captain rising two spots to sit in second place behind Australia’s Marnus Labuschagne.
Root’s sudden rise comes on the back of his match-winning century in the first Test against New Zealand at Lord’s, an innings that also saw the right-hander become the second Englishman and 14th player overall to register 10,000 Test runs.
The 31-year-old moves within just 10 rankings points of Labuschagne and could close the gap even further when the second Test between England and New Zealand commences in Nottingham on Friday.
With Root’s rise, it also sees a small re-shuffle within the top five as Australia’s Steve Smith drops one place to third on the latest rankings.
Pakistan captain Babar Azam jumps a spot to claim fourth place, while New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson – who managed scores of just two and 15 at Lord’s – drops two places to fifth.
There are also some changes in the latest Test bowler rankings, with towering New Zealand pacer Kyle Jamieson the biggest mover on the back of his six wickets for the match against England.
Jamieson rises two places to claim third, with India speedster Jasprit Bumrah (fourth) and Pakistan quick Shaheen Shah Afridi (fifth) dropping one spot apiece.
Australia captain Pat Cummins remains the top ranked bowler with 901 rankings points, some 51 points ahead of veteran India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin with 850 points.
Ashwin remains second on the all-rounder rankings behind team-mate Ravindra Jadeja, with Jamieson dropping one place to eighth on the latest rankings update.
