Steven Smith (2015-2018, 2019 and 2020)
Former Australian captain Steven Smith is active in Test cricket and he will surely continue it for more years. Though he started the international career as a leg-spinner, Smith has evolved as a top-class batsman with the time progress and incredibly maintained his consistency. The right-handed batsman has surprised everyone with his unorthodox batting style, which has been proved hugely successful in international cricket. After his international debut in 2010, Smith has played 73 Tests where he has scored 7227 runs (average 62.84), including 26 centuries and 29 half-centuries.
Smith first time reached on the top spot of the ICC Test batting rankings in 2015. Though he slightly lost that place, he returned in the leadership spot at the end of that year and continued it till 2018. Due to facing a one-year suspension for involving in the ball-tampering incident during the 2018 Cape Town Test, Smith slowly lost his place. However, soon after his return to international cricket, he quickly grabbed that position in 2019 and reclaimed that in early 2020. At present, he is the top-ranked Test batsman.
Smith’s highest Test rating was 947 (30th December 2017), which was the second-highest rating in the Test batting rankings history. Only the legendary Australian cricketer Don Bradman managed to cross the 950-mark as his highest Test rating was 961 (10th February 1948).