Harry Brook snatches Joe Root's crown, becomes World No.1 Test batter

The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday (December 11) announced the updated ICC Men's Test Batter Rankings, where the players from England, Australia, and South Africa made big gains following their Test match assignment earlier this week.

Rising England star Harry Brook has overtaken Joe Root to claim the top spot in the latest ICC Men's Test Batter Rankings. Brook made it to the top of the ICC Rankings for the first time, thanks to his impressive performance in the recent second Test match in New Zealand.

Harry Brook dethrones Joe Root to become the world's number-one Test batter

Harry Brook struck his eighth Test century in the second Test match to help England secure the ongoing three-match Test series against New Zealand in Wellington, which earned him the No. 1 spot for the first time in the updated ICC Men's Test Batter Rankings.

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With 898 rating points, Harry Brook surpassed his senior England teammate and one of the world beaters, Joe Root, by just one point, who currently holds 897 points, and is now moved to the second spot in the ICC Men's Test Batter Rankings.

With this remarkable milestone, the 25-year-old Harry Brook joined one of the all-time greats, Sachin Tendulkar, with the 34th-highest rating of all time for Test batters. Notably, Joe Root, who had been at the top since July, congratulated his teammate and praised Harry Brook as the best player in the world after their 323-run win in the Wellington Test against the Black Caps.

Travis Head climbs to fifth spot, Temba Bavuma enters Top-10 in ICC Test Batter Rankings

Meanwhile, Australian batter Travis Head and South Africa captain Temba Bavuma climbed the ICC Test Batter Rankings after impressive performances for their teams against India and Sri Lanka, respectively.

Travis Head jumped six spots to claim fifth place after his match-winning knock of 140 runs in the Adelaide Test against India, while Temba Bavuma gained three places to secure the seventh spot in the latest rankings for the Test batters.

Bavuma was named Player of the Series after helping South Africa to a clean sweep of Sri Lanka in the two-match Test series, where he amassed 327 runs in four innings. On the other hand, Marnus Labuschagne, who smashed fifty in the Adelaide Test, moved up three spots to sit in 13th place.

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Sri Lankan batter Dinesh Chandimal jumped two spots to 15th, while South Africa's Kyle Verreynne jumped 15 places to 23rd in the latest Test batter rankings. Meanwhile, several fast bowlers make notable gains in the updated ICC Test Bowlers Rankings.

Jasprit Bumrah leads the pack as Pat Cummins, Keshav Maharaj and Matt Henry make notable gains in ICC Test Rankings

Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah remains at No. 1, but Australian pacer and captain Pat Cummins moved to 4th place after helping his team to beat in the pink-ball Test with a five-wicket haul, while New Zealand’s Matt Henry also climbed to 9th spot in the latest rankings.

On the other hand, Mitchell Starc climbed three spots to 11th, Chris Woakes rose two places to 15th, and Gus Atkinson jumped four positions to 17th in the rankings. Meanwhile, South Africa spinner Keshav Maharaj moved up four spots to 18th, re-entering the top 20 after his match-winning performance against Sri Lanka.

In the all-rounder rankings, India’s Ravindra Jadeja stays at the top, while Bangladesh's Mehidy Hasan Miraz jumped to the second spot after his stunning show against the West Indies.