Root was the highest-ranked player during a golden run in England’s summer. However, a mixed performance against Pakistan and strong performances from Labuschagne against West Indies have seen major changes at the top of the rankings.
Test Batting Rankings
Wednesday’s update by the ICC was about Labuschagne, who claimed top spot from Root. He also closed in on a career-high rating.
Labuschagne scored scores of 204* and 104* against West Indies in the first Test at Perth. This helped Australia No.3 to rise to the top ranking with 935 rating points.
This mark is only one point shy of Labuschagne’s 936 rating, which he earned after playing in Pakistan earlier in the year. It puts him within the top 10 batters ratings of all time.
With a strong performance in the second Test at Adelaide, the right-hander will be able to surpass Sir Vivian Richards, former India captain and West Indies cricket great Virat Kohli. Teammate Steve Smith will also be trying to earn more rating points. Root has improved and is now in second place in the latest rankings of Test batters.
All-Time Test Batting Rankings
Smith scored a double century against the West Indies in the first Australia innings. That helped Smith take second place in the rankings with 893 rating points. Root (876) and Babar Azam (879) were just behind Smith.
Australia captain Pat Cummins retains his lead in the latest Test bowler rankings. However, his gap has been reduced by an impressive performance by a pair England bowlers during the thrilling Test victory over Pakistan in Rawalpindi.
Test Bowling Rankings
James Anderson, an Evergreen pacer, and Ollie Robinson, a quick bowler, each took five wickets during the thrilling contest. They were rewarded with eye-catching moves in the top 10 of the bowler charts.
Anderson moves up two spots to third. Robinson climbs to a career-high rating of 754 points, and Robinson rises seven spots overall to eighth.
There was some movement in the ODI rankings as well, with two experienced spinners being the most benefited from recent performances of 50-over cricket.
Afghanistan’s ace Rashid Khan moves up four places to sixth overall after he took four wickets against Sri Lanka in the final match of the ODI series. Shakib Al Hazan improves seven spots and is now ninth, owing to his five-wicket win against India in Mirpur.
Men’s ODI Bowling Rankings
Trent Boult, a Kiwi pacer, retains his No.1 ranking in ODI bowling. Matt Henry, a fellow New Zealander quick, moved up one spot to fourth after their series against India.
Only one change in the latest rankings for ODI batters is that a pair of veterans batsmen swap places. Kane Williamson, New Zealand’s skipper, rose two spots to eighth place and Kohli fell two places to 10th.
Men’s ODI Batting Rankings
Babar and Imam-ul-Haq, Pakistan’s duo, remain the two leading players in the ODI rankings of batters. South Africa’s Rassie van den Dussen and Quinton De Kock round out the top five
