LAHORE - Former Pakistan captain Babar Azam has experienced a significant drop in the latest ICC Test Rankings, falling six places from third to ninth after a disappointing performance in the first Test against Bangladesh.
In contrast, wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan has surged up the rankings, climbing seven spots to achieve a career-high position, breaking into the top 10 at joint 10th, thanks to his century in the same match. This shake-up leaves Babar Azam just six rating points ahead of Rizwan, with Pakistan’s vice-captain Saud Shakeel not far behind. Shakeel moved up one place to 13th overall following his century against Bangladesh.
On the global stage, England’s Harry Brook has secured the fourth spot in the rankings, while his teammate Joe Root continues to reign as the No.1 ranked Test batter. Bangladesh’s Mushfiqur Rahim has also reached a career-high rating, jumping seven spots to 17th. Other notable movers include Sri Lanka’s Dinesh Chandimal, who climbed four places to 23rd, Kamindu Mendis, who rose eight rungs to 36th, and England’s Jamie Smith, who made an impressive leap of 22 places to 42nd.
In the ICC Test bowler rankings, India’s Ravichandran Ashwin remains the top-ranked bowler. Sri Lanka’s Prabath Jayasuriya, following his five-wicket haul against England in Manchester, has moved up one place to ninth. England seamer Chris Woakes (up four places to 16th) and Sri Lanka’s Asitha Fernando (up 10 spots to 17th) have also made gains, while Pakistan’s Naseem Shah (up four spots to 33rd) and England’s Gus Atkinson (up four places to 42nd) reached new career-best ratings. Woakes also improved by one place to move up to eighth on the list of Test all-rounders, with India’s Ravindra Jadeja continuing to lead that category.
The latest T20I rankings have also seen notable shifts, particularly among West Indies players following their home series against South Africa.Power hitters Nicholas Pooran (up three spots to ninth) and Shai Hope (up 32 places to joint 40th) have risen in the T20I rankings for batters. Meanwhile, Akeal Hosein (up four spots) and Gudakesh Motie (up 10 spots) now occupy second and third places, respectively, in the T20I bowler rankings, just behind England’s Adil Rashid.
South Africa’s Reeza Hendricks improved his standing in the T20I batter rankings by moving up two places to 13th. Romario Shepherd made significant strides in both the T20I bowler rankings (up 13 spots to joint 31st) and the all-rounder rankings (up five places to joint 14th) following his impressive performances against the Proteas.