ICC Test Rankings: Steve Smith, Kagiso Rabada retain top spots
Aiden Markram is taking giant strides at the international level and highlighted his ascent towards future batting glory by breaking into the top-10 in the latest ICC Test rankings, released after the end of the controversy-ridden South Africa-Australia series.
The top spot continued to be held by Australia's tainted former captain Steve Smith, who is set to be out of the game for a period of 12 months. Not part of the fourth Test, Smith's lead at the No.1 spot has come down, and he is now only 17 points ahead of second-placed Virat Kohli.
Kane Williamson slipped one place to be at No.4, being replaced by Joe Root, while Markram set camp on the 9th spot, speeding past Azhar Ali and Hashim Amla. David Warner, also suspended for a year by Cricket Australia, is currently resting at fifth rank.
In the bowling rankings, Vernon Philander, on the back of his best match figures ever that he collected in the final game of the series, moved to the third spot, behind James Anderson and fellow pacer Kagiso Rabada, who sits atop the rankings with 897 points.
Pat Cummins moved up to the sixth spot, while Morne Morkel, who retired from international cricket, bowed out with at the seventh rank. The Indian spin duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin slid down to the fourth and fifth position respectively.
In the all-rounder's rankings, Vernon Philander ascended further up, pulling down Ravichandran Ashwin to the fourth spot.
Here are the entire rankings:
BATTING
#1 Steven Smith
#2 Virat Kohli
#3 Joe Root
#4 Kane Williamson
#5 David Warner
#6 AB de Villiers
#7 Cheteshwar Pujara
#8 Dean Elgar
#9 Aiden Markram
#10 Azhar Ali
BOWLING
#1 Kagiso Rabada
#2 James Anderson
#3 Vernon Philander
#4 Ravindra Jadeja
#5 Ravichandran Ashwin
#6 Pat Cummins
#7 Morne Morkel
#8 Trent Boult
#9 Rangana Herath
#10 Neil Wagner
ALL-ROUNDERS
#1 Shakib Al Hasan
#2 Ravindra Jadeja
#3 Vernon Philander
#4 Ravichandran Ashwin
#5 Ben Stokes