Western Australian out of top 10 for first time since 2006; Michael Clarke achieves career-best rating to reach ninth; Dale Steyn closes gap on Muttiah Muralidaran
Australia’s Michael Hussey has dropped out of the top 10 of the Reliance Mobile ICC
Player Rankings for Test batsmen, after a run of low scores in the two Tests played so far against South Africa.Hussey, now ranked 11th, still averages 59.04 at Test level but has only managed a total of 10 runs in his last four innings. The last time he was ranked this low in the Test batsmen rankings was back in March 2006, when he was 14th after playing South Africa at Kingsmead, Durban.
Australia vice-captain Michael Clarke has reached the highest rating of his career to date following the Melbourne Test having climbed three places to break into the top 10. The 27-year-old New South Welshman scored 88 not out in the first innings of Australia’s defeat to South Africa at the MCG.
Meanwhile, Australia captain Ricky Ponting has climbed back up the rankings to sixth after impressive knocks of 101 and 99 in Melbourne. Ponting has leap-frogged his opposite number in the South Africa side, Graeme Smith, who has risen one spot to seventh.
Australia’s Matthew Hayden and South Africa’s AB de Villiers have each dropped two places after the Melbourne Test and have been overtaken by India’s Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman who assume joint-16th place.
Outside of the top 20, South Africa’s Jean-Paul Duminy has shot up the rankings by 62 places to 47th after his remarkable debut Test century. The left-handed batsman produced an outstanding knock of 166 to put his side in a commanding position after the first innings, with the match eventually ending in a nine-wicket victory for the Proteas.
Having played two Tests, the 24-year-old from Cape Town is now averaging 108.50 with the bat after a great start to his career at the top level.
Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan and Mohammad Ashraful have both risen up the Test batsmen rankings after fine displays against Sri Lanka in the first Test in Dhaka. Shakib climbs 23 places to 55th spot while Ashraful gains eight places to 56th position.
The list is still headed by Shivnarine Chanderpaul of the West Indies, who is currently the only batsman in the world with 900 ratings points or more.
Meanwhile in the Reliance Mobile ICC Player Rankings for Test bowlers, South Africa’s Dale Steyn has narrowed the gap at the top of the table between himself and Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralidaran.
Currently 39 points separate the two bowlers and with both men having two more Tests to play in their respective series, there is every opportunity for the gap to widen or decrease further.
Australia’s injured fast bowler Brett Lee has dropped two places to ninth after ending the Melbourne Test with match figures of 0-117. Elsewhere, India’s Harbhajan Singh has climbed one place to seventh while Sri Lanka’s Chaminda Vaas has dropped one place to 10th.
Also involved in the Bangladesh series, Vaas’s team-mate Dammika Prasad has climbed 10 spots to 56th in the rankings. Just above Prasad is Australia’s Nathan Hauritz who has shot up 19 places after the Melbourne Test match to 54th.
In the Reliance Mobile ICC Player Rankings for Test all-rounders, Vaas climbs one place to joint-forth place with the West Indies’ Dwayne Bravo. There is no change at the top of the table, which is still headed by South Africa’s Jacques Kallis followed by New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori.
ICC Test Player Rankings (as of 1 January 2009)
Batsmen
Rank (+/-) Player Team Points Ave HS Rating
1 ( - ) S.Chanderpaul WI 900! 49.71 900 v NZ at Napier 2008
2= (+1) Mohd Yousuf Pak 880 55.49 933 v WI at Karachi 2006
( - ) K. Sangakkara SL 880 54.79 938 v Eng at Kandy 2007
4 ( - ) M. Jayawardena SL 854! 52.84 854 v Ban at Dhaka 2008
5 ( - ) Kevin Pietersen Eng 832 50.48 905 v WI at Headingley 2007
6 (+3) Ricky Ponting Aus 827 57.20 942 v Eng at Adelaide 2006
7 (+1) Graeme Smith SA 810! 50.71 810 v Aus at Melbourne 2008
8 (-1) Yunus Khan Pak 799 49.14 856 v Eng at Headingley 2006
9 (+3) Michael Clarke Aus 772! 48.06 772 v SA at Melbourne 2008
10 ( - ) Gautam Gambhir Ind 771*! 49.35 771 v Eng at Mohali 2008
11 (-5) Mike Hussey Aus 753 59.04 921 v WI at Kingston 2008
12 (-1) Jacques Kallis SA 749 54.95 935 v NZ at Centurion 2007
13 ( - ) Virender Sehwag Ind 729 51.06 854 v SA at Kolkata 2004
14 ( - ) Ashwell Prince SA 716 45.68 756 v Pak at Centurion 2007
15 ( - ) Andrew Strauss Eng 705 42.37 769 v SA at Johannesburg 2005
16= (+2) Sachin Tendulkar Ind 683 54.27 898 v Zim at Nagpur 2002
(+2) VVS Laxman Ind 683 44.45 753 v Aus at Sydney 2004
18 (-2) Matthew Hayden Aus 678 50.92 935 v Eng at Brisbane 2002
19 (-2) AB de Villiers SA 676 41.78 692 v Aus at Perth 2008
20 ( - ) Chris Gayle WI 670! 39.60 670 v NZ at Napier 2008
Bowlers
Rank (+/-) Player Team Points Ave HS Rating
1 ( - ) M. Muralidaran SL 897 21.92 920 v Ban at Kandy 2007
2 ( - ) Dale Steyn SA 858 22.66 897 v Ind at Ahmedabad 2008
3 ( - ) Makhaya Ntini SA 796 27.85 863 v Ind at Durban 2006
4 ( - ) Stuart Clark Aus 790* 22.96 863 v WI at Bridgetown 2008
5 ( - ) Mitchell Johnson Aus 741* 28.58 779 v SA at Perth 2008
6 ( - ) Ryan Sidebottom Eng 723* 25.68 769 v SA at Lord's 2008
7 (+1) Harbhajan Singh Ind 686 30.88 765 v NZ at Wellington 2002
8 (+1) Shoaib Akhtar Pak 684 25.69 855 v NZ at Wellington 2003
9 (-2) Brett Lee Aus 680 30.81 811 v WI at Antigua 2008
10 (-1) Chaminda Vaas SL 676 29.36 800 v Ind at Chennai 2005
11 ( - ) Daniel Vettori NZ 653 33.09 681 v Aus at Auckland 2000
12 ( - ) Zaheer Khan Ind 630 34.04 689 v Pak at Delhi 2007
13 ( - ) Shane Bond NZ 629* 22.39 778 v WI at Auckland 2006
14 ( - ) Andrew Flintoff Eng 621 32.12 810 v Pak at Multan 2005
15= ( - ) Mohammad Asif Pak 619* 23.13 710 v SA at Cape Town 2007
( - ) Monty Panesar Eng 619 32.88 721 v WI at Chester-le-St 2007
17 ( - ) Jerome Taylor WI 618* 35.14 628 v Aus at Bridgetown 2008
18 ( - ) Danish Kaneria Pak 614 33.90 723 v Eng at Multan 2005
19 ( - ) James Anderson Eng 611 35.22 622 v Ind at Chennai 2008
20 ( - ) Jacques Kallis SA 597 30.98 742 v Eng at Headingley 2003
All-rounders
Rank (+/-) Player Team Points HS Rating
1 ( - ) Jacques Kallis SA 447 616 v Pak at Durban 2002
2 ( - ) Daniel Vettori NZ 347 369 v Ban at Dhaka 2008
3 ( - ) Andrew Flintoff Eng 305 501 v Pak at Multan 2005
4= (+1) Chaminda Vaas SL 283 300 v WI at Guyana 2008
( - ) Dwayne Bravo WI 283 /* 295 v Aus at Bridgetown 2008
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