ICC Test Rankings: Marnus Labuschagne Breaks Into The Top Three

Marnus Labuschagne continued his ascendancy in the ICC Test rankings as he soared up to become the number three batsman. The South African born’s leap to number three came after he mustered a double-hundred against New Zealand at the Sydney Cricket Ground that sealed Australia’s win by 279 runs. The victory also gave Australia a series win by 3-0, completing an unbeaten summer.

Also Read: No Place For Shikhar Dhawan, MS Dhoni In VVS Laxman’s India Squad For T20 World Cup 2020

Before the game, Labuschagne was at number four and at the start of January 2019, his ranking stood at 110. The Australian summer witnessed the right-hander accumulate 896 runs in five Tests at a staggering average of 112. At present, there are three Australian batsmen in the top five with opening batsman David Warner climbing two spots up to five, thanks to his 297 runs in the three-match series against New Zealand. Virat Kohli and Steven Smith have maintained the number one and number two spot respectively.

Post the second Test between South Africa and England; Ben Stokes broke into the ICC Test rankings for batsmen. The Kiwi-born scored 47 and 72 in Cape Town because of which he took a leap from 15th to 10th. His previous best was ninth. Meanwhile, Dom Sibley went from 87th to 80th. Meanwhile, Dean Elgar and Aiden Markram grabbed the 19th and 22nd spot.

A shift in rankings among the bowlers too:

Left-arm speedster Mitchell Starc attained his career-best fifth spot that he also achieved back in March 2018. He finished with 15 wickets in the series against the Kiwis. It included a four-wicket haul in Sydney and a six-wicket haul in the first Test in Perth. Off-spinner Nathan Lyon also advanced from 19th to the 14th spot, having taken two five-wicket hauls in the final Test in Sydney.

All-rounder Ben Stokes gained a ranking of 27th among the bowlers while Proteas’ pace bowler Anrich Nortje took a massive leap from 96th to finish in the 62nd spot. Veteran fast bowler James Anderson’s seven-wicket haul in the second Test saw him bagging the seventh position in the Test rankings.

The latest ICC Test Rankings as below:

Also Read: ICC World Test Championship: Australia Solidify Position At Second Place