Steve Smith, Australian batsman has surpassed New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson to become the top-ranked Test batsman in the latest ICC Test rankings that were revealed on Wednesday. India captain Virat Kohli jumped to the number 4th spot while Australia batsman Steve Smith reclaimed the No.1 position in the ICC Test rankings for batsmen for the first time since the Boxing Day Tests last year.
Steve Smith takes over from New Zealand captain Kane Williamson, who is set to lead his team in the ICC World Test Championship Final against India at the Hampshire Bowl in Southampton from Friday.
Steve Smith Reclaims Top Spot While Kane Williamson Is Second Among Batsmen
Kane Williamson, who missed the second Test against England at Edgbaston due to injury after scoring 13 runs in the drawn first Test at Lord’s, has slipped five points behind Steve Smith’s 891 rating points and is second in the batters’ list. This means that Steve Smith has been at the top for 167 Tests played worldwide in total, only behind Garry Sobers (189 matches) and Viv Richards (179 matches).
An injury saw Kane Williamson miss the second Test against England at Edgbaston, hence paving way for Steve Smith to claim the No. 1 spot. Courtesy of his performances in the Test series, Kane Williamson lost 5 points because of which he dropped down to No. 2 spot.
The rankings also produced a positive change for Virat Kohli who moved from 5th position to 4th in the ICC Test Rankings for batsmen. Virat Kohli has as many as 6 Test matches to come — one against New Zealand in the WTC final and 5 against England — and he would be determined to further improve his position in the ICC Test rankings.
Quinton de Kock Gains 11 Positions To Reach Joint 12th Position, While South African Pave Trio Of Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, And Lungi Ngidi Moves Up
The latest men’s weekly update, which also includes performances from the first Test between South Africa and the West Indies in St Lucia, sees Quinton de Kock in joint-12th position with Cheteshwar Pujara while his compatriot Adrian Markram has advanced two slots to reach 14th position.
Quinton de Kock, who was named player of the match for scoring an unbeaten 141 that helped his team win by an innings and 63 runs, has gained 11 positions to attain his highest position since December 2019.
South Africa’s pace bowlers too have made rapid strides after the huge win. Formerly top-ranked Kagiso Rabada has gained two spots to reach the seventh place after a five-wicket haul in the second innings, Anrich Nortje is up into the top 30 for the first time in his career finishing with seven wickets in the match, while Lungi Ngidi is up 14 places to 44th position with a first-innings five-wicket haul.