Live Score
Cricket Teams
Cricket PlayersIndia crowned new No.1 Test team as Rohit Sharma and Co. end Australia's dominance ahead of WTC final, BCCI reacts
India have lost just one Test series since the end of the 2019/20 season.
India have jumped past Australia to the top of the International Cricket Council's (ICC) Test rankings just weeks ahead of the 2023 World Test Championship (WTC) final. The ICC said that the change comes after an annual update that “drops results from the 2019/20 season and reflects all series completed since May 2020.”
"India’s rating points have moved up from 119 to 121 as their 2-0 defeat to New Zealand in March 2020 no longer figures in the rankings, which assesses series completed prior to May 2022 at 50 per cent and subsequent series at 100 per cent. India were last at the top for a month in December 2021," said the ICC in its press release.
The international cricket governing body further stated that Australia have have slipped from 122 to 116 rating points as their home series wins over Pakistan (2-0) and New Zealand (3-0) in 2019-20 no longer figure in the rankings, while their 4-0 win over England in 2021-22 has its weighting halved to 50 per cent. Australia have been at the top of the standings since January 2022. England are stationary at third place but their dramatic upswing in form since Ben Stokes took over as captain and Brendon McCullum as head coach has also worked in their favour.
ALSO READ | 'I won't take abuses from anyone...': Naveen-ul-Haq to LSG players on fight with Virat Kohli
"England remain in third position but the gap between them and the second placed side is reduced from 13 to two rating points owing to some consistent performances in recent months as well as reduced weightage of their 4-0 Ashes defeat and a 1-0 defeat in the West Indies," said the ICC.
Since their 2-0 defeat in New Zealand in the 2019/20 series, India have played seven bilateral series apart from the 2021 WTC final against New Zealand. While India lost the final, they have lost just one and drawn one of the seven series that they played and their victories included a second consecutive Test series win in Australia against the odds. They also drew a five-match Test series in England 2-2 and South Africa are the only side to have managed to beat them in a series in this period.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India's secretary reacted to the news by saying: “Congratulations to #TeamIndia 🇮🇳 for becoming the No. 1 Test team in the world. The top spot reflects India’s commitment to Test cricket and the consistent performances both home and away. India are also the No. 1 T20I side.”
India's reign at the top of the ICC's (ICC) T20I rankings also continued. The ICC stated in its release that India have added two more points, thus putting them eight points clear of second-placed England. While they had a disappointing campaign in the 2022 T20 World Cup, India's overall consistency in the format since 2020 has worked in their favour.
India have been led by Hardik Pandya in T20Is since the end of the T20 World Cup, with Rohit Sharma sitting out in the format to concentrate on ODIs ahead of the 2023 World Cup that the country will host. Since the T20 World Cup last year, India have defeated New Zealand in the latter's home before beating Sri Lanka and the Kiwis again at home.
