Steve Smith climbs up to the third position in the ICC Test Rankings, while Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma remain in the top ten.

ICC Test Rankings: Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli remain the only two Indian hitters to rank among the top ten batsmen in the world. R Ashwin maintains his position as the second best bowler in the world, trailing only Pat Cummins.
 By Navhind Express News Desk Updated: Jan 12, 2022, 15:26 IST
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After the conclusion of the 4th Ashes Test, Australia vice-captain Steve Smith leapfrogged New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson to take third place in the ICC Test Batting Rankings, which were updated on Wednesday, January 12. Two Australians are in the top three ranks, with Marnus Labuschagne leading the Test batting rankings and Joe Root retaining his second sport despite not being able to contribute significantly in the Ashes.

In the drawn Sydney Test, Steve Smith produced a critical 67 in the first innings, while Labuschagne's 28 and 29 put him ahead of Joe Root, who made 0 and 24 in the fourth.

Meanwhile, despite mining the second Test against South Africa in Johannesburg, India Test skipper Virat Kohli remained in ninth place in the ICC Test Batting Rankings. The skipper, on the other hand, showed signs of regaining form with a tenacious 79 to start India's first innings in the third Test in Cape Town.

Only two Indian hitters are in the top ten in the batting lists, therefore Rohit Sharma, who was ruled out of the three-match series, has maintained his fifth place.

South Africa captain Dean Elgar has climbed four places into the top ten after hitting an unbeaten 96 in the second innings of the Johannesburg Test to help the hosts to a historic victory over India.

In the bowling rankings, Jamieson and Rabada have made significant gains.

Kyle Jamieson's match numbers of (6/114) have propelled him up eight spots, while Kagiso Rabada's six wickets have propelled him up a notch to sixth.

In the ICC Bowling Rankings, Pat Cummins remained in the first place, while R Ashwin remained in second place.

There were a few big moves outside of the top ten.


Usman Khawaja has soared back into the Test batting rankings, re-entering at 26th after twin hundreds in the fourth Ashes Test at the SCG.

The left-hander scored 137 and 101* in two innings at the venue where he made his Test debut 11 years ago, but the Australians were unable to grab the winning wicket.

A number of batsmen from New Zealand's second Test match against Bangladesh have moved across the Tasman Sea.

With the bat, Liton Das (up 17 places to 15th) and Devon Conway (up 18 places to 29th) were the most significant climbers, while on the bowling side, Ebadot Hossain (up 17 places to 88th) and Shoriful Islam (up 34 places to 104th) were the most prominent climbers.

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