In the latest update of the ICC Men’s Test Rankings, Babar Azam, the captain of the Pakistani cricket team, has made a notable rise after leading his side to a convincing 2-0 victory against Sri Lanka in the longer format of the game.
Babar Azam’s impressive performance has earned him the fourth spot in the rankings. Leading the chart are Kane Williamson of New Zealand in the first position, Joe Root of England in the second position, and Steve Smith of Australia in the third position.
Babar Azam’s progress in the rankings can be attributed to the decline in ratings for Australia’s Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head. Despite being the seventh and eighth highest-scorers in the Ashes Test series, Labuschagne and Head experienced a decrease in their ratings, allowing Babar to climb up.
Another notable change in the rankings is seen in Shaheen Shah Afridi, who demonstrated an excellent bowling performance during the two Tests against Sri Lanka. As a result, he has advanced three positions and now stands at the sixth spot.
Pakistan’s Saud Shakeel and Abdullah Shafique have also shown promise and have achieved respective rankings of 15th and 21st. Both players played a significant role in Pakistan’s success against Sri Lanka, scoring their maiden double-hundreds.
Meanwhile, following the conclusion of the Ashes series, Steve Smith of Australia has risen from fifth to third position, solidifying his position among the top-ranked players. England’s Joe Root, with an impressive 412 runs in the Ashes Tests, has secured the second spot.
In the bowlers’ rankings, Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin leads the chart with a rating of 879, while his compatriot Ravindra Jadeja has moved up to the third position.
Notably, England’s veteran pacer Stuart Broad has achieved the fourth position, marking his final ranking in Test cricket after announcing his retirement.
| POS | PLAYER | TEAM | RATING | CAREER BEST RATING |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kane Williamson | NZ | 883 | 919 v Pakistan, 07/01/2021 |
| 2 | Joe Root | ENG | 859 | 923 v India, 05/07/2022 |
| 3 | Steve Smith | AUS | 842 | 947 v England, 08/01/2018 |
| 4 | Babar Azam | PAK | 829 | 882 v New Zealand, 30/12/2022 |
| 5 | Marnus Labuschagne | AUS | 826 | 937 v West Indies, 12/12/2022 |
| 6 | Travis Head | AUS | 818 | 884 v India, 11/06/2023 |
| 7 | Usman Khawaja | AUS | 796 | 847 v England, 02/07/2023 |
| 8 | Daryl Mitchell | NZ | 792 | 800 v Sri Lanka, 13/03/2023 |
| 9 | Harry Brook | ENG | 773 | 773 v Australia, 31/07/2023 |
| 10 | Rohit Sharma | IND | 759 | 813 v England, 06/09/2021 |
| 11 | Dimuth Karunaratne | SL | 747 | 783 v Ireland, 18/04/2023 |
| 12 | Rishabh Pant | IND | 743 | 801 v England, 05/07/2022 |
| 13 | Tom Blundell | NZ | 739 | 782 v England, 28/02/2023 |
| 14 | Virat Kohli | IND | 733 | 937 v England, 22/08/2018 |
| 15 | Saud Shakeel | PAK | 705 | 705 v Sri Lanka, 28/07/2023 |
| 16 | Temba Bavuma | SA | 685 | 685 v West Indies, 12/03/2023 |
| 17 | Jonny Bairstow | ENG | 683 | 772 v South Africa, 07/08/2017 |
| 18 | Litton Das | BAN | 682 | 724 v Sri Lanka, 27/05/2022 |
| 19 | Ben Stokes | ENG | 668 | 827 v West Indies, 20/07/2020 |
| 20 | Tom Latham | NZ | 658 | 733 v West Indies, 07/12/2020 |
| 21 | Abdullah Shafique | PAK | 657 | 676 v England, 05/12/2022 |
How does the ICC Men’s Test Ranking system work?
The ICC Men’s Test Ranking system is a method used by the International Cricket Council (ICC) to rank the performance of international cricket teams and individual players in the Test format of the game. The rankings are updated after every Test match and are based on a points system. You can learn more about ICC’s Test ranking system for men’s games here.
