Virat Kohli’s consistent failure with the bat has impacted his ranking. He is not even among the top 20 in the ICC Test batsmen’s rankings. For the first time in almost 10 years, the Indian batting great has experienced this.
The weekly update of the men’s cricket rankings was released by the ICC on Wednesday (November 6). Kohli has dropped eight places among Test batsmen. He is now in the 22nd position with a rating point of 655.
In the Mumbai Test played last week against New Zealand, Kohli failed to reach double digits in both innings. His scores were 4 and 1, respectively. This match aside, he has reached fifty only once in his last 10 Test innings. As a result, the star batsman has steadily fallen in the rankings. For the first time since December 2014, Kohli is not in the top 20 Test batsmen.
In the Mumbai Test, Indian wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant and New Zealand all-rounder Daryl Mitchell have returned to the top ten among batsmen. Pant has moved up five places and is now sixth with 750 rating points. Mitchell, moving up eight places, is right behind him with 743 points.
Pant scored fifties in both innings of the Mumbai Test, which India lost by 25 runs. The left-handed batsman scored 60 runs in the first innings and inspired hopes of victory in the second innings before being controversially dismissed for 64.
Mitchell played a crucial role in New Zealand’s victory. He scored 82 runs in the first innings and 21 in the second. In September, Mitchell was ranked third among Test batsmen.
Will Young, who won the Player of the Series award during the India tour, has improved by 29 places and is now ranked 44th. The Kiwi top-order batsman scored 71 and 52 in the two innings of the Mumbai Test. Glenn Phillips moved up three places to 42nd position.
Performances from the Chattogram Test between Bangladesh and South Africa were also considered in the rankings update. In that match, three Protea batsmen scored their first Test centuries in the same innings; this was only the second time in Test history such a feat occurred. Tony de Zorzi (up 32 places to 38th), Tristan Stubbs (up 27 places to 71st), and Wiaan Mulder (up 19 places to 75th) have improved in the rankings. No Bangladeshi batsman showed any improvement in the match, which they lost by an innings and 273 runs. Currently, Mushfiqur Rahim holds the best ranking for a Bangladeshi batsman at 31st.
The top two positions in the batsmen’s list remain unchanged with England’s Joe Root and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson. India’s Yashasvi Jaiswal has moved down one place to fourth, making England’s Harry Brook third. Australia’s Steven Smith is still in fifth place.
In the Test bowlers’ rankings, South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada, Australia’s Josh Hazlewood, and India’s Jasprit Bumrah hold the top three positions as before. With Ravichandran Ashwin (now fifth) dropping one place, Australia’s Pat Cummins has moved up to fourth.
Despite the team’s loss, Ravindra Jadeja, who took five wickets in both innings in Mumbai, has improved by two places and is now in sixth place. Ajaz Patel, who won the Player of the Match award with 11 wickets in that game, has jumped 12 places. The Kiwi left-arm spinner is now in a career-best 22nd place. South Africa’s left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj, who took 5 wickets for 59 runs in the second innings against Bangladesh, has moved up four places to 19th.
In the Test all-rounders’ rankings, Jadeja remains at the top, followed by Ashwin. With Bangladesh’s Mehidy Hasan Miraz dropping three places to sixth, Shakib Al Hasan (third), West Indies’ Jason Holder (fourth), and England’s Joe Root (fifth) have each moved up one place.
