DUBAI: India captain Virat Kohli has reached a personal best of 937 rating points while reclaiming the top position in the MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings after the Trent Bridge Test.
The 29-year-old’s player of the match effort of 97 and 103 not only helped his team reduce the deficit in the five-match series to 2-1 after winning the third Test by 203 runs but has also lifted him to the 11th best ever in terms of rating points, an ICC media statement on Thursday said.
Kohli, who claimed the top spot for the first time after the opening Test in Birmingham but dropped to second after the Lord’s Test, is now only one point behind a group of four in the all-time list and with a good chance of going past them on current form that has seen him score 440 runs in the series.
The top 10 in the list are Don Bradman (961 points), Steven Smith (947), Len Hutton (945), Jack Hobbs (942), Ricky Ponting (942), Peter May (941), Gary Sobers, Clyde Walcott, Vivian Richards and Sangakkara (all 938 points).
Cheteshwar Pujara remains the second highest ranked India batsman in the list, in sixth position, while Ajinkya Rahane (up four places to 19th), Shikhar Dhawan (up four places to 22nd) and all-rounder Hardik Pandya (up eight places to 51st) have moved up after useful contributions at Trent Bridge.
Pandya has also reached the 51st spot in the bowlers’ rankings, gaining 23 slots to reach his career-best position. His fellow fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah’s five-wicket haul in England’s second innings has also lifted him to a career-best 37th position. (UNI)
