Mitchell Starc Reclaims Top Spot in ICC Test Bowling Rankings
Starc's Stellar Performance
File image of Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc(Photo: @CricCrazyJohns/X)
Dubai, Nov 4: Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc has regained the top position in the ICC Test Bowling Rankings following an outstanding display against South Africa. Meanwhile, India's captain Shreyas Iyer has ascended two spots to seventh in the latest T20I rankings released on Wednesday.
Starc moved ahead of South Africa's Marco Jansen after securing nine wickets in the final Test of the three-match series held in Cape Town. The left-arm pacer achieved a career-best rating of 881, allowing him to reclaim the No.1 ranking.
Initially, Starc reached the top in August, dethroning India's Jasprit Bumrah. However, Jansen took over the lead after a six-wicket haul in the second Test at Gqeberha. With only three wickets in the Cape Town match, Jansen's position weakened, enabling Starc to return to the top.
Simon Harmer from South Africa also saw a significant rise in the rankings after his match-winning performance at Newlands, where he took six wickets in Australia's second innings, contributing to his team's victory and series win. Harmer jumped nine places to seventh, surpassing his teammate Kagiso Rabada.
Despite losing the top Test bowler spot, Jansen solidified his lead in the Test all-rounders' rankings, achieving a career-high rating after scoring a half-century in the third Test. Wiaan Mulder moved up one position to third, while Harmer climbed three spots to fifth in the all-rounders' rankings.
In the Test batting rankings, Aiden Markram rose to 11th, and Mulder made a significant leap of seven places to 17th. Ryan Rickelton had the most notable rise among South African batters, jumping 25 spots to 23rd with a career-best rating.
Australia's Cameron Green and Alex Carey also improved their standings, moving up three and two places respectively to share the 19th position. West Indies batter Justin Greaves climbed 12 places to joint 38th after his team's eight-wicket win over Bangladesh in the first Test in Mirpur.
West Indies bowlers Jomel Warrican and Roston Chase also advanced in their rankings, moving to 30th in Test bowling and joint 23rd among all-rounders, respectively.
In ODI bowling, Pakistan's Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf made notable gains following the conclusion of the home tri-series. Afridi moved up to fifth, while Rauf jumped five positions to 24th.
Pakistan opener Fakhar Zaman climbed nine places to 37th in the ODI batting rankings. England's Ben Duckett moved up one spot to sixth, while Sri Lanka's Pavan Rathnayake made a remarkable leap of 20 places to 16th.
In T20I rankings, Iyer's rise to seventh in batting follows India's series victory in New Zealand. New Zealand's Glenn Phillips also gained 13 places to reach 24th among T20I batters.
Among T20I bowlers, New Zealand's Mitchell Santner climbed two spots to fifth, while teammate Jacob Duffy made a significant jump of 23 positions to 23rd.
Afghanistan all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai improved his ranking as well, moving up three places to third in the T20I all-rounders' rankings after being named Player of the Series in his team's recent series win over Zimbabwe in the UAE.